Noobie questions for EDC

C

cutitout

Joined
Aug 12, 2012
Messages
135
Hey guys,
I have been carrying a Shun Higo Nokami Folding Steak/fruit Knife and it has served me pretty well as a fruit and vegetable sampler knife on a daily basis. As a kid I always enjoyed knives and recently I decided to up my game. I picked up a Zero Tolerance 0350 Tungsten coated blade. I will use it as an EDC and mostly for sampling fruit/veggies etc. along with general tasks, ie. box cutting, opening packages etc. I learned that the ZT 560 had an all Elmax blade which is supposed to be specially made for food cutlery and so I just ordered this blade to use alternatively with the ZT 350 due to it's rest resistance properties and edge holding abilities. I will keep the knife in my pocket or in a sheath.

So my questions are;
1. will probably not sharpen it myself at least at first since I can send one in while using the other to ZT. What maintenance do I need to do to keep the blade sharp without wrecking it between factory sharpening, such as stropping. Or should I just wait until it gets a bit dull and let ZT do all the sharpening and maintenance? Don't want to use too many chemicals on the blade since it will be used a lot with food consumption. As I learn more and get a bit more experience with knives I will no doubt get some sort of sharpening kit in the future.

2. Is there any general maintenance you suggest such as oiling or greasing the pivot. The 560 is supposed to have ball bearings in a silicone sleeve so I am confused if oil or grease will just clog it up and leak into my pocket or will it make my knife smoother and last longer? I don't mind tinkering a bit, although I am totally new to the knife collecting.

3. Is there an outstanding horizontal sheath for these two knives you can recommend? 560 is 5" closed, 350 is just under that.

This is my first post, hope it is not too much. Thanks ahead for your contributions. Seems like a very helpful and decent forum, look forward to your responses.
 
1. You're going to want to learn how to sharpen your own knives. Sending them in is going to be annoying and time consuming. I literally sharpen the knife I carried for the day every night. Practice on some cheap kitchen knives before you give it a go with your expensive ones. In terms of other maintenance, elmax and s30v are stainless, keep them clean and dry and you won't have any problems.

2. People have different preferences in terms of oil or grease. Find one you like and use just a drop, a little goes a long way. If you want to keep it food safe, mineral oil works well.

3. That's what pocket clips are for...but if you really want a belt sheath I'm sure something could be found/made.
 
I'm unfamiliar with how expensive ZT's are (and I'm too lazy to google it) but it appears that you've dropped a couple hundred dollars on knives. A sharpening system would be a wise investment. Look/ask around the forums until you find something that you would feel comfortable getting started with. mkjellgren's suggest to pick up some cheapo knives to practice on is a great idea.

You might not really need to oil the pivot very frequently. I've been using a lefty Spyderco Military in the kitchen a lot and I wash it out with soap and water all the time; I don't keep it oiled. I haven't had any problems.

Off the top of my head CRK (Chris Reeve Knives) makes belt sheaths for their knives that might fit, but I could be wrong.
 
A strop with a good compound would be a wise investment if you are nervous about sharpening. I strop my 0561 one time a month or so and it whittles hair and has since April or so.

ELMAX responds very well to a strop and you won't hardly need to sharpen it if you keep up with it.
 
There are some guys here on the forums that make some great sheaths.
I've also seen some nice sheaths around on that big auction site.
 
Great comments, all are appreciated. Thanks to all. Great advice to experiment on some cheaper kitchen knives with a good sharpening system. I will start googling and youtubing for that. I can see how it might be a pain to send it in to Kershaw for sharpening.
 
Read up on the sharpening threads found on this forum. There is wealth of sharpening knowledge and experience here. Be patient as you learn.

You may find that one system will work better for you than others. I learned how to free hand and have tried one or two different systems. For me, the free hand seems to give the best results.

Practice on cheap kitchen knives is a good idea. I noticed that you seem to like Kershaws/ZTs. You might consider getting an inexpensive Kershaw like a Chill to practice on, so you know that you have steel that will take a good edge. It's also a good excuse to add another knife to your collection.

Another great knife to practice on is an Opinel. They are low cost and sharpen up easy. This is good for your confidence and ego as you are learning.

If there is a local maker, they may be willing to help you get started.

And one more thing: Welcome to the forums!

Ric
 
cutitout said:
Hey guys,
I have been carrying a Shun Higo Nokami Folding Steak/fruit Knife and it has served me pretty well as a fruit and vegetable sampler knife on a daily basis. As a kid I always enjoyed knives and recently I decided to up my game. I picked up a Zero Tolerance 0350 Tungsten coated blade. I will use it as an EDC and mostly for sampling fruit/veggies etc. along with general tasks, ie. box cutting, opening packages etc. I learned that the ZT 560 had an all Elmax blade which is supposed to be specially made for food cutlery and so I just ordered this blade to use alternatively with the ZT 350 due to it's rest resistance properties and edge holding abilities. I will keep the knife in my pocket or in a sheath.

So my questions are;
1. will probably not sharpen it myself at least at first since I can send one in while using the other to ZT. What maintenance do I need to do to keep the blade sharp without wrecking it between factory sharpening, such as stropping. Or should I just wait until it gets a bit dull and let ZT do all the sharpening and maintenance? Don't want to use too many chemicals on the blade since it will be used a lot with food consumption. As I learn more and get a bit more experience with knives I will no doubt get some sort of sharpening kit in the future.

2. Is there any general maintenance you suggest such as oiling or greasing the pivot. The 560 is supposed to have ball bearings in a silicone sleeve so I am confused if oil or grease will just clog it up and leak into my pocket or will it make my knife smoother and last longer? I don't mind tinkering a bit, although I am totally new to the knife collecting.

3. Is there an outstanding horizontal sheath for these two knives you can recommend? 560 is 5" closed, 350 is just under that.

This is my first post, hope it is not too much. Thanks ahead for your contributions. Seems like a very helpful and decent forum, look forward to your responses.
Click to expand...

I am curious on how is the Shun Higo Nokami Folding Steak doing as an EDC. I was considering getting one for a while but still unsure. Just wondering how do you like it thus far and also how do you carry it?

Stropping is my favorite way of maintaining an edge. Fairly easy to start and gets you a great edge. Best not to let it get too dull. After a while, I suggest investing in a good sharpening system. :)
 
Welcome to Bladeforums! Enjoy your stay!

Be sure to check out here for a guide to stropping. Also, if you want to make your own strop, knifenut1013 has a nice tutorial here. The Sharpmaker has mixed reviews, but is cheap and well made. The Wicked edge system looks really cool, but costs $275 for the basic system with 100, 200, 400, and 600 grit stones included, and you will still need medium-fine to fine stones and some strop blocks for a good polished edge, and these will cost you $65 and up per pair for the stones, and up to $55 for the strops.
 
I have both Zt0560 and Zt0350 I like them both, but I find the 0560 in my pocket the most I love the flipper with the IKBS set up it has and great feel in the had. The 560 also has an amazing pocket clip supper low in the pocket. As for steel choice the ELMAX seem to hold a good edge once I set a mirrored edge on mine I just strop it ass needed to keep it sharp. My current 350 is the S30V version and its amazing knife paired with the S30V steel. The S30V in my opinion and use seem to hold a edge a little better then the ELMAX but its not a big deal for me since they both are great knives. The zt 560 however is much larger. And the Shun flodign steak knife you have looks sweet im going to pick one up for my collection, Make a much less scary knife than using my 3 to 4 inch EDC blades at Diner to cut up my dinner. Here's a picture of the 2 side by side.

IMG_0123.jpg
 
Hey Viper89,
That little Shun folder is what I would call the perfect gentleman's knife. It fits in any pocket including a suit pocket or jeans. Comes with a nice quality leather pouch and stays sharp. Haven't seen any corrosion which is nice since I use it exclusively as a fruit knife to cut apples, pears etc. It is pricey. If you go to Amazon there are several with plastic handles that will do the same job without the coolness factor. Just search for fruit knives. But the coolness factor costs about a hundred bucks and (to me) it does look cool. I actually like it and once the romance of my new knives wears off a bit, I will probably carry it much more. You will hardly even know it is in your pocket. If you can afford it, get it if you want a quality, classy little knife that you can pull out at a fine restaraunt or at the saturday farmers market without getting stared at.

I have gone to a bigger badder knife because I don't really go to fancy restaurants very much any more. Still waiting on Kershaw Guy to deliver my ZT 560 which I have only seen in pictures and on youtube. I just loved my ZT 350 so much, I decided to drop a few more bucks and get the longer blade. The 560 has the Elmax steel which was apparantly created with culinary users in mind. It does hold an edge but it's real claim to fame is corrosion resistance which is important to me.

I have to be a bit careful because like anything new, it is fun and exciting to try more new stuff. I have a bit of an ocd personality and now that I have invested in some nice Knives I am starting to drool over the Wicked Edge sharpening system. Problem is I can not be happy with just the basic model. I will want to put a mirror finish on my edges and that costs a hell of a lot of bucks. More than all the knives I have bought to date. But it is a pretty sweet looking toy.

My biggest problem is my wife just doesn't seem to get it. She can not understand my interest in collecting knives. She can't understand why I would pay over $200 for a pocket knife. It's not as much the money as the fact that the knives are getting bigger and bigger. Makes her a bit nervous. Hope she doesn't see the price of the WE Sharpener if I get it.
 
ZT has a molle knife pouch.

photobucket-6000-1344913480025.jpg

photobucket-5735-1344913366509.jpg
 
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