Zero Tolerance, Strider, Chriss Reeve?

geohans said:
CRK offered to replace the knife purposely destroyed on Youtube.

If the CRK feels best to you, don't let the warranty blow it for you.

I think the three are so different, it's awkward to compare them-- do you want an SUV or a pickup?

Good luck tho, it's fun.
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:thumbup: :thumbup:

One more comment on edge retention. CRK's edges will dull more quickly than other high end steels but are quite easy to hone/sharpen and still excellent.
 
I'm starting to gravitate more towards the ZT or CRK. I think Strider makes great knives, however I feel that if I were to spend the money for a strider, I would rather go for the CRK. I know that a lot of people say "You need to own at least 1 CRK" however I have seen some scary stories on the internet relating to CRK warranty and customer service. Which is making me somewhat hesitant. I just spoke with a CSR from Chris Reeve Knives relating to a Sebenza developing blade play throughout it's life, and she said that it would be covered by the warranty. Also, another thing I learned after speaking to both KAI and CRK, is that with KAI/ZT, proof of purchase is not required (the knife is all that is needed) however CRK requires proof of purchase. Anyone here able to share some experiences with either CRK's Customer Service or with KAI/Zero Tolerance and their Customer Service.
 
oXObsidianXo said:
I'm starting to gravitate more towards the ZT or CRK. I think Strider makes great knives, however I feel that if I were to spend the money for a strider, I would rather go for the CRK. I know that a lot of people say "You need to own at least 1 CRK" however I have seen some scary stories on the internet relating to CRK warranty and customer service. Which is making me somewhat hesitant. I just spoke with a CSR from Chris Reeve Knives relating to a Sebenza developing blade play throughout it's life, and she said that it would be covered by the warranty. Also, another thing I learned after speaking to both KAI and CRK, is that with KAI/ZT, proof of purchase is not required (the knife is all that is needed) however CRK requires proof of purchase. Anyone here able to share some experiences with either CRK's Customer Service or with KAI/Zero Tolerance and their Customer Service.
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I've dealt with Kai/ZT on a couple of occasional and they definitely go above and beyond for the customer.

PS - was the article helpful?
 
Rolex John, why do you have to ask if the article was useful here on Bladeforums? You two have communicated via email, further conversation on the matter should remain there.
 
moshow9 said:
Rolex John, why do you have to ask if the article was useful here on Bladeforums? You two have communicated via email, further conversation on the matter should remain there.
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I would say his input has been more useful than your snide comment.

Back on topic. I wouldn't let what you have heard about the CRK warranty sway your decision. Use it the way a knife was intended and it will serve you well for years to come. I would recommend, if possible, to handle all three before making a decision.
 
If you look at Rolex John's own post you will see the reason for my comment:

Rolex John said:
I wrote an article a couple of years ago (I'd link to it but BF frowns on that sort of thing - PM me if you'd like to read it)
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He has a habit of wanting to generate traffic (and interest as his posts in this thread have been) to his site without paying for the proper membership to advertise.
 
moshow9 said:
If you look at Rolex John's own post you will see the reason for my comment:



He has a habit of wanting to generate traffic (and interest as his posts in this thread have been) to his site without paying for the proper membership to advertise.
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Gotcha.
 
moshow9 said:
Rolex John, why do you have to ask if the article was useful here on Bladeforums? You two have communicated via email, further conversation on the matter should remain there.
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Well, since you're asking (and being rude in the process...) I sent and email and don't know if he got it. Since I can't PM him, I'm just checking to make sure he got it and am seeing if it helped.
 
moshow9 said:
He has a habit of wanting to generate traffic (and interest as his posts in this thread have been) to his site without paying for the proper membership to advertise.
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You're incorrect. In an attempt to be helpful to the community, I've shared links from my own website here on a couple of occasions and been told it's against the rules...hasn't happened in years since. If it had, I'd be banned. So how about getting back on topic, hmmmm????
 
d0nut said:
Wow. I almost don't even want to believe that.

I'm going to search around on google for any stories like this. Did this happen with someone on this forum?
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Honestly I dont think anyone has anything to worry about. In the cases where warranties were voided CRK provided examples of pics of lock faces that were seriously seriously jacked up. SO messed up that the only logical assumption (still an assumption though) is that the knife was seriously abused or it was possible that a few fakes or frankenfakes ( legit blades on counterfeit handles) made it back to CRK. Honestly even as a customer and consumer I would not have blinked if those were my knives and CRK didnt warranty them. CRK throw a lot of blades and handles away every year for not meeting specs. These rejects that get thrown away many times have better tolerances than the first rate knives of the competition. As such they are much more expensive per unit to produce and though the warranty is quite good it is no doubt provided for the average user. My recommendation is if you want to be able to beat the snot out of something and never have to answer to anyone as to why your blade is snapped off at the pivot and why your lock face looks like you used it as a hammer then get the ZT. If you want a great heavy use folder and blade centering isnt paramount to your needs the strider is a great choice too. When it comes down to it the CRK is going to win in the fit finish and tolerances department. The ZT wins in value and options and the strider is just a no nonsense beast that you look at as a tool.
 
Owned a couple of all three, they all have their pluses:

If you want the best fit and finish: Reeve
Want the best cutting bang for the buck (of the three): ZT
Want something that screams tactical: Strider

For me, priorities, and my samples of those knives, ZT is a good knife for the money, Strider is overpriced for the fit/finish but perfect for the crowd they cater to, CRK is the only one that still impresses me every time I open it with amazing fit/finish but the aesthetics/ergonomics are nothing special. I still own and enjoy all three brands for their own reasons.
 
No experience with Reeve personally. Haven't wanted to fork over the clams, as the ergo's just don't look like they'd work for me. OF COURSE, I thought the same of Strider, UNTIL I actually used one. And now I got a whole stable full of them. To your original question: I carry a s110v SnG almost everyday. I live and work on a farm; and for what I require of my knives most of the time, that SnG is the shit. Rarely needs sharpening, too. Just doesn't slice and peel an apple real...umm...delicately.

Also a huge fan of ZT. I've had dozens come and go--and every one of them was perfect. In fact, just picked up a used 0777m390 a couple of days ago and can't friggin wait to give it the torture test. And that new ZT 0562m390cf looks like it should be absolutely awesome, if you can wait until it's released.

Which leads to the next suggestion: watch the exchange for a used model of whatever you are most interested in. Carry it, use it. If you like it: great. If you don't, put it back up on the exchange--and probably get what you paid for it. I'm gotten to play with some pretty cool knives this way. Research... :D A knife may or may not feel good in the hand initially, but perceptions can, and do, change with time and use. Eventually, you'll get one that will simply refuse to leave your pocket.

:thumbup: on the ZT 0560cbcf if you want to go with s110v. Bought a used one awhile back for well under 300. That's a LOT of knife for the money.

Let us know what you decide, and how it works for you. It's all part of the research. (Most most of my friends and family actually call it an addiction, but now I just explain that it's research. And they actually don't roll their eyes as much anymore. Go figure...)
 
As somebody above said...ZT gives you the most bang for the buck. I agree.
Strider and CRK are both excellent. I think of Strider as a maker of "tactical" knives and CRK is in tune with knives used by more conservative people, i.e. gentleman's knives.
 
In terms of quality, as everyone will state and I will happily agree CRK wins easily followed by ZT and Strider will be last. However, which knife is for you depends on your needs and uses.

Out of the 3, I'm most satisfied with my Strider SnG. I have literally batoned, chopped, pryed, and even thrown this knife. Nothing on it broke, it had just acquired some scratches on the blade. When it did eventually develop a funny lock up problems, I sent it into Strider. The first experience wasn't great, but I contacted Mick himself and he really did take care of me. When I inquired about the repair status of my knife (it was delivered on a Friday) on Monday, Mick apologized that he hadn't got to it yet. Later that evening, I received a shipping notification from Strider. I was pretty impressed. All the issues were addressed and this thing feels like a fixed blade. SnG is not a marvel of engineering like a Sebenza, but it is designed as a workhorse that'll just keep on pushing till it breaks. Fit and finish isn't great on it, but for the performance and the service that I received, I'm quite happy with my SnG. No Sebenza has been able to replace my Strider, and I've gone through 4 different Sebenzas before I settled on my current one. Strider run their steel on the harder side so edge retension won't be an issue. Striders will have the most distinct ergos since nothing on the market is like them. It's an odd cup of tea, but it really grows on you after a while.

I still own a Sebenza because I just recently picked up an inlayed version. I went through 4 other Sebenzas (Small Insingo, Large Classic, Large 21, & 25) before I was finally satisfied with my Micarta inlay 21. Edge retention on Sebenzas are not really that great when compared to other knives with the same steel. CRK run their steel on the softer side to ease sharpening, personally I would rather have an edge last longer, than having to sharpen more often. My experience with CRK customer service was not a pleasant one. I had sent my Large Classic in for lock stick issues. At first they misplaced my knife when it came into them, so it wasn't even being looked at for the first few days. When I had the knife back, it's nice that they went ahead and refinished my handle even though I didn't request the service, but they did not address my lock stick issue. It eventually got worse and worse to a point that I just sold the thing.

I owned a ZT0560 and I was quite impressed with it. For the price point and the features that you get it's quite the bargin. KVT on the ZT is fantastic and the detent is superb. Kai sure knows how to make good flippers, each one is better than the other. The only two reasons why I got rid of my ZT is because I had a XM-18 at the time and the 0560 is too big for what I would like to carry. Elmax is a really good steel. From my personal use I've found it to be an excellent steel, when the elmax controversy was floating around, I tested out my Elmax knives ( ZT 0801 and Lionsteel TiSpine) they both performed extremely well. I would recommend the 0801 as an alternate to the 0560.
 
That's a good point on the for sale forums, you can try a knife and not loose too much $ on it I prefer to think of it as a "rental" fee, however, you also run the risk of buying a subpar sample someone is trying to dump, or one they've messed with. I think there's more of those bouncing from owner to owner in the for sale forums than most suspect. I've had a couple show up with uncommon issues or weak lock bars that were most likely messed with by a previous owner.
 
Thanks everyone for your inputs, they were greatly helpful in making my final decision. In the end I decided on the CRK Sebenza 21 (didn't want to pay $50 more Canadian for a 25 plus it is out of stock till god knows when). I called both CRK and ZT and asked about their warranty policies and was pleased with both their responses. My main reason I am going with the Sebenza, is due to the fact that if I don't get it now, I will likely buy one in the future anyway. Plus I figure, worst case senario, I don't like it and sell it for close to what I paid and just get the 0560.

Main reason I strayed from Strider, was due to the fact that I was looking at an American price, which no longer put it in the same price bracket (Roughly $150 more than a Sebenza 21), and I don't like the proprietary pivot tool.
 
oXObsidianXo said:
Thanks everyone for your inputs, they were greatly helpful in making my final decision. In the end I decided on the CRK Sebenza 21 (didn't want to pay $50 more Canadian for a 25 plus it is out of stock till god knows when). I called both CRK and ZT and asked about their warranty policies and was pleased with both their responses. My main reason I am going with the Sebenza, is due to the fact that if I don't get it now, I will likely buy one in the future anyway. Plus I figure, worst case senario, I don't like it and sell it for close to what I paid and just get the 0560.

Main reason I strayed from Strider, was due to the fact that I was looking at an American price, which no longer put it in the same price bracket (Roughly $150 more than a Sebenza 21), and I don't like the proprietary pivot tool.
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I would suggest buy an used Strider unless it's a special edition. Also, I used a fork for my pivot tool so you don't really need anything fancy. S110V is a pretty high end exotic stuff, so I'm not surprised with the huge price difference.

Glad you settled on something.
 
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