Spyderco Southard vs ZT0801 - Your Opinion

The 801 is better at flipping and I prefer the stock deep carry clip on it. If you flip and play with your knife more than you would actually use it, get the 801.

The Southard is better at everything other than flipping once I put an STR clip on it. I personally think the stock clip is one of the worst ones I have ever used. Just get a deep carry clip for it.
 
In all honesty though, will you notice a huge difference between the two steels in day to day use? Probably not. So it's really a toss up between the two. If you can get your hands on a Southard and check it out than I'd do that. (waiting for the Ion myself)
 
Hairlesstwinkie said:
I own both and I love both. However, I prefer my Southard more because of sheer performance. CTS-204P and hollow grind makes it a ferocious slicer. Elmax on the 0801 is no slouch, but it's thicker behind the edges so it's not as great for slicing. I don't question the strength of either knife since I've abused my Southard quite a bit and it's still holding up. Although I'll have to admit that 0801's action is much better. KVT is just superior for some odd reason.
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I have both and pretty much agree with this assessment. If I had to keep one it would be the Southard. The southard carries better in the pocket due to slimmer profile and lighter weight and with the hollow grind I think it just plain cuts better. The grind on the 801 is a bit thick for my tastes. A regrind might vault the 801 from a great knife to an amazing knife. The 801 probably has the best flipping action of any production folder out there.
 
Once again, I call BS on the slimmer profile statement. If there is any difference the 801 is hair slimmer. Check the pics about 5 posts earlier. I don't know what grind the 801 has for sure, but it is no less of a slicer than the Southard at all. It has slightly thinner blade stock, FWIW. As to in the pocket, I actually like the 801 better there too, due to the fact that it doesn't have the asymmetrical G-10(ycch) scale which grabs at my pocket on the Southard.

OK, bullshit over, I went down to my shop a grabbed a caliper. Mitotoyu digital accurate to 1/2 100,000's. The 801 miced out at .5050 and the Southard was .528--That is all.
 
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Maybe they are referring to the thickness in the other direction (top of closed blade to back of handle). The Southard is visibly thinner in that regard.
 
asmith001 said:
Maybe they are referring to the thickness in the other direction (top of closed blade to back of handle). The Southard is visibly thinner in that regard.
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asmith001, I stand possibly corrected--or educated at least, There are so many variables on what one person to the next means when discussing things, but to me thickness of a knife is how THICK it is from one side to the other.

Good thinking brother.
 
This is my thought, If I wasn't clear enough. See how the 0801 is sticking up in the back?

I found this image on google. It belongs to a thread with a comparison between the Southard, Domino (which I don't care about), and ZT0801. I think I'll read through it completely, later.

unJVjof.jpg
 
Interesting. The 0801 doesn't look like it's that much bigger than the Southard. But the weight difference is significant . . . 4.1 ounces for the Southard vs 5.8 ounces for the 0801. With a 3.46" cutting edge, I'm really impressed at how much knife Sypderco managed to pack into a lightweight folder. :thumbup:
 
Good pic asmith, I followed you, and that pic exemplifies it perfectly. Actually if you look they are very close in size, perhaps the Southard is a tad longer.

bld522, I don't know what titanium weighs, I always thought it was very light, but the G-10 scale surely weighs less than the matching ti sides of the 801, I don't know if that could make up for such a big difference in weight.
 
What's really impressive is how much lighter you can make the knife by switching to a lighter handle material than G-10. I took the clip off and swapped out the G-10 scale for an Ivory Snake Juma scale and the weight on my Southard dropped to 3.8 ounces. :eek: :thumbup: :thumbup: And I don't know about anybody else, but Ivory Snake Juma looks stupid cool to me. Check out evilgreg's Southard:

3R2nueC.jpg


:D
 
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^^ That looks so good. Not only is the Southard more expensive, but a new scale is also tempting. I wish I had a place to put my hands on one.
 
If I was going to go for a Southard I would save another $200-ish more and buy the AVO Mid-tech from the man himself. The 0801 is just about the only way you can get anything of Todd Rexford's without spending at least a grand.
 
You could certainly do that, of course. On the other hand, production collaborations are getting to be so good that you're not giving up a whole lot by going with the licensed copy.

If I'm going to spend the big bucks on custom knives, I'm going to look for talented makers who haven't cut production deals yet . . . guys with last names like Davis, and Laconico and Gedraitis. To my way of thinking, they need my support a whole lot more than the Todd Rexfords and Brad Southards of this world. And they make great knives on top of it! :)
 
i had a southard and thought it was great. it has a very small footprint and the blade shape is great. but alas, i sold it. i just couldn't get a feel for the asymmetrical scales (as others have mentioned). if they came out with a symmetrically scaled version....i would be all over it.

now meanwhile, i have been eying the ZT0801, so this was a good thread to find. thanks all.
 
Yep. Funny thing is, when I've got the Southard in my hand, the fact that the scales are asymmetrical just seems to fade away. What I can't pry my mind away from is how much knife I've got in my hand for what it weighs, how comfortable it is, how nicely it flips, and how low the profile is, particularly for a knife with a Spyderhole in the blade. It's really an impressive piece of engineering if you ask me.
 
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bld522 said:
Yep. Funny thing is, when I've got the Southard in my hand, the fact that the scales are asymmetrical just seems to fade away. What I can't pry my mind away from is how much knife I've got in my hand for what it weighs, how comfortable it is, how nicely it flips, and how low the profile is, particularly for a knife with a Spyderhole in the blade. It's really an impressive piece of engineering if you ask me.
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yup. i can't argue with that. the other part of it for me was this question, "Is this 200 dollar knife really that much better than the CRKT ripple (e.g.)?" comparing craftsmanship (etc)...the answer is probably "yes." but, the fact is that a $30 knife flips real good, has a comfy handle shape, and if i am just looking for a knife to flip and cut stuff with...the ripple will probably do.

i understand this is rather another conversation. and, i don't mean to get off topic, but i think at some point, everyone has to answer this question for themselves.

honestly, i have considered getting a southard again...ya know...just to doublecheck myself. :D
 
TPVT said:
yup. i can't argue with that. the other part of it for me was this question, "Is this 200 dollar knife really that much better than the CRKT ripple (e.g.)?" comparing craftsmanship (etc)...the answer is probably "yes." but, the fact is that a $30 knife flips real good, has a comfy handle shape, and if i am just looking for a knife to flip and cut stuff with...the ripple will probably do.

i understand this is rather another conversation. and, i don't mean to get off topic, but i think at some point, everyone has to answer this question for themselves.

honestly, i have considered getting a southard again...ya know...just to doublecheck myself. :D
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I'm with you. I love the Ripple. It was my first bearing knife and I still have it in my collection. Still, my Southard seems to get more carry time than my Ripple does. All I can figure is that, for some reason, I like my Southard better. ;) To be honest, I like my Southard as well as some knives in my collection that cost a lot more than it did. The only thing I didn't care for was the brown G-10 scale. But the Southard just LOVES to be pimped, so that was an easy fix.
 
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