Zero Tolerance folder reviews

well... pics are worth a thousand.

first off, i *had* to pull this baby apart as soon as i got it. i dunno why i always do that, but here she is..

open.jpg



i'd like to comment if you want to remove the speedsafe mechanism, or if you want a lighter, simpler knife, you can remove the spring and the metal liner and the knife fits back together just fine. but no ball detent hole to hold the blade shut. :(

here's some pics, in case you were curious


back.jpg


lock.jpg


side.jpg
 
here's some slightly more glamourous shots, with the knife fully assembled.


zt1.jpg


zt2.jpg


zt3.jpg


zt4.jpg


zt5.jpg
 
compare2.jpg


hand.jpg





initially... the knife has outstanding fit and finish. clip is movable to 4 positions. titanium and g10 sides are very grippy, and the handles are *enormous*. blade thickness is the same as the strider SNG, although top to bottom it's considerably wider... blade length is 4". speedsafe is snappy and responsive, although not as fast as kershaws speedsafe on smaller knives. but it fires very hard and in a solid fashion. the recurve is delightful, and factory sharpness is superb.

one thing to note is the knife is REALLY heavy, which kind of bothers me. it's thick and heavy, and arguably very tough. from the box, the blade is completely centered in the handles.

when the knife is closed, there is NO blade stop. that is to say, with the blade closed, you could squeeze the blade/handle together, and the blade would make contact with the G10 back spacer. i don't get why kershaw made the knife like that but... hmm.

lockup is rock solid, about 40% travel across the blade tang. no bladeplay, side to side or up and down.

now that i've already disassembled the knife, i have to admit disassembly/reassembly is a snap. only 3 screws to remove (torx) and a crescent wrench necessary for takedown.

um...... i've only done some light cutting on netting with the knife, so i don't have much to say about performance. it's pretty sharp.



those are my random, initial thoughts on the knife. it's definately a keeper. i'm really warming up to this knife, although i hate how heavy and enormous the handles are. i'm very tempted to remove the speedsafe + metal liner to save on weight and simplicity.


oh, did i mention the ergonomics are fantastic? very grippy, great traction, great shape for solid handling (the choil is excellent). thumbgrooves are well done. blade to handle ratio is respectible.


any specific questions you all might have?
 
Midget,

I agree with you 100% I bought a ZT300 three weeks ago been carrying it every day, only drawback is the weight. It will hold it's own to any big folder out there.
 
Beautiful pictures! I'd like to see a little more lockup on it though, but it looks good nonetheless. Thanks a ton. I'm more and more realizing, unfortunately, that the zt300 is just too much knife for me. I'm looking for a full sized knife, but it needn't be a tank. Now I just wish you would buy an 0200 and compare them head to head.
 
I’m really interested in the 0300, but how much are people paying for it?
It’s a great knife for sure, I just don’t think it’s worth the $300 MSRP.
Does TAD Gear already give the standard market discount? Or am I going to have to wait a while for prices to drop.
 
I want that knife so bad, and I think it is a good deal considering the features like the Ti liner, flipper, Hinderer Lock Stop, etc. But at almost 9 oz, it is just way too heavy.
 
I really like the ZT 0300 .. I just whished it had a different pivot screw, serviceable or not, it looks a bit silly to me :-/

-Connor
 
That is a lot of knife. It would be interesting to see it side by side with a Hossom Retribution folder.

Looks like they did everything right on it from the pics but I've seen lots of pics that look great but then the hand doesn't agree.

Sure made that SNG look small didn't it?

STR
 
Joshua J. said:
I’m really interested in the 0300, but how much are people paying for it?
It’s a great knife for sure, I just don’t think it’s worth the $300 MSRP.
Click to expand...




well, it's a matter of preferance. for 300.00, i could be holding a sebenza, a strider PT, two BM skirmishes... but when i compare the 0302 to any of those framelocks, this one just wins out. you get more knife in the 0302 than you do w/ the strider PT (but you don't get the awesome warranty). the skirmish is comparable in blade length, thickness, and titanium thickness, but the ergos on the 0302 are spot on. and the sebenza? well, ok ok i'm not going to start any flamewars.

the point is, you can look at the 300.00 price tag and cringe, or you can look at the detailed texturing of the g10 and titanium (fantastic traction), the speedsafe, that beefy chunk of S30V, and the best of both worlds from strider and ken onion, and know that some things in life are worth the spare change. ;)
 
also, as an update...

i carried my 0302 today w/o the speedsafe and w/o the metal liner. if you can live without speedsafe (which i don't care much for), the weight difference is considerable. not that i'm recommending it or anything.... i'm sure doing this voids the warranty or makes the handles weak or etc etc etc (knife physicists, add input here). without the metal liner and speedsafe, it's still a damn nice, tough, high end framelock.
 
The price won't drop. Kershaw has already said that it is a limited run and that they will all be sold at MSRP. I have the 0301 and I love it, I honestly don't feel it when I carry it.
 
Hey Midget, does the blade stay closed without the spring in place. I tried to do the same thing with my Kershaw Leek. Without the spring in the Leek, the blade action was just loose, and there was no tension holding the blade in a closed position.
 
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