ZT 0393glcf--Talk me out of it

soc_monki said:
When I say reprofiling I mean taking the edge bevel down in degrees. In the case of ZT and Kershaw, they tend to have more obtuse bevels (over 20 degrees per side). Reprofiling it to 15dps just takes time and a coarse stone. The resulting cutting ability and edge holding more than make up for the amount of steel removed.

I know my Hinderer xm-18 has benefitted greatly from being taken down from whatever obtuse angle it had from the factory down to 15dps. I've seen Hinderers as high as 24dps, which is almost 50 degrees inclusive. Even on a hard use knife that kind of angle is ridiculous imo!
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Thanks. That makes sense. I think I effectively ended up doing that to the 620, and it appears that I'm having to do the same thing on the 462.
 
OrangeBlueOrangeBlue said:
A glow-in-the-dark knife? Are you 12 years old? Be an adult and get a non-GITD version.
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GITD is always cool.

My yojimbo.

AJWPWZs.jpg


Anyway, I liked the design of the 0393, but when I handled one, I was not impressed. The one I handled was a GLCF too. Could be I tried a bad example, not sure.
 
Texas Spenser said:
I had wondered about the steel..again being new to this i have tried to learn about various steels, but it now appears that even same steel from dlifferent makers can be different. Does the heat treatment potentially make the blade more fragile if incorrectly done? The cts204p on the 620cf was a bear to sharpen, but seems to holding its edge well. The 20cv on the 462 is even tougher to put the shaving edge on. But theres reports of zt's being fragile with that steel?
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There are groups of individuals who test edge retention on knives. Some of them have tested a bunch of Kershaw 20CV and some ZT 20CV, and it didn't appear to perform any better for them than decent S35VN.

But don't just take random people's word on the internet on the performance; if you really want to find out, buy the ZT you want and do some comparative cutting tests. After being disappointed with how my ZTs were sharpening and holding up in casual use, I finally got around to testing my 0308 in 20CV and it didn't noticeably outperform a Spyderco Tenacious I had on hand under identical conditions in cardboard cutting tests.
 
Texas Spenser said:
Thanks. That makes sense. I think I effectively ended up doing that to the 620, and it appears that I'm having to do the same thing on the 462.
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Ive done it to nearly every zt or Kershaw I own. The only brand I've not had to reprofile almost immediately has been Spyderco.
 
K.O.D. said:
GITD is always cool.

My yojimbo.

AJWPWZs.jpg


Anyway, I liked the design of the 0393, but when I handled one, I was not impressed. The one I handled was a GLCF too. Could be I tried a bad example, not sure.
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Yes, my inner 12 year old giggles when I see this. It's just cool. Nobody has accused me of being overly mature yet.
 
soc_monki said:
Ive done it to nearly every zt or Kershaw I own. The only brand I've not had to reprofile almost immediately has been Spyderco.
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I have noticed that the blades are dang near perfect on the 2 spydercos that I have acquired so far. Very slicey. They are incredibly sharp and I don't seem to have to fight them to touch up sharpness the same way these ZT's have behaved. The blade stock appears much thinner, however. It seems there's always tradeoffs. Years ago I broke the tip off an old Endura, which had soured me for awhile on Sypderco. But that was an extreme use in an emergency, and different steel way back then, 1996 or so. I honestly couldn't say I was surprised when it broke. But it did successfully accomplish the needed task. I suppose the holy grail here is an extremely tough knife that is incredibly slicey as well.
 
Texas Spenser said:
Yes, my inner 12 year old giggles when I see this. It's just cool. Nobody has accused me of being overly mature yet.
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We can do things to keep our inner child happy without being immature. Being mature isn't the same as being a "fuddy duddy stick-in-the-mud". In some ways, it's easier and much safer to have more fun, the more mature you are!
 
Texas Spenser said:
I have noticed that the blades are dang near perfect on the 2 spydercos that I have acquired so far. Very slicey. They are incredibly sharp and I don't seem to have to fight them to touch up sharpness the same way these ZT's have behaved. The blade stock appears much thinner, however. It seems there's always tradeoffs. Years ago I broke the tip off an old Endura, which had soured me for awhile on Sypderco. But that was an extreme use in an emergency, and different steel way back then, 1996 or so. I honestly couldn't say I was surprised when it broke. But it did successfully accomplish the needed task. I suppose the holy grail here is an extremely tough knife that is incredibly slicey as well.
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Well, knives usually aren't for prying, which is how I see most tips broken. Sometimes you cut into something and hit something hard and the tip snaps. It's possible to have a slicey edge and a strong tip, but like anything else there are trade offs. I think one of the best examples I have of a grind like that is the spanto grind on my Chinese Kershaw Thermite. It's actually pretty thin stock, hollow ground except for the tip. If it were made out of better materials it would be a really tough knife. As it is, I bent one leaning against something! Bought a 2nd and had to swap the blade out because of lock rock. It was cheap though. If hinderer spantos were ground like that Kershaw it would probably be almost perfect.

Spydies are all about performance though. Some say they are still too thick behind the edge, but all of mine, including my shamans, cut so effortlessly.
 
I avoid ball-bearing knives. Phosphor bronze is pretty much self cleaning and can be very smooth when polished.
 
Texas Spenser said:
I have noticed that the blades are dang near perfect on the 2 spydercos that I have acquired so far. Very slicey. They are incredibly sharp and I don't seem to have to fight them to touch up sharpness the same way these ZT's have behaved. The blade stock appears much thinner, however. It seems there's always tradeoffs. Years ago I broke the tip off an old Endura, which had soured me for awhile on Sypderco. But that was an extreme use in an emergency, and different steel way back then, 1996 or so. I honestly couldn't say I was surprised when it broke. But it did successfully accomplish the needed task. I suppose the holy grail here is an extremely tough knife that is incredibly slicey as well.
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The Spydercos I've gotten recently have been thin grinds, but very uneven. Typically one side around 17 degrees and the other around 20.
 
rje58 said:
We can do things to keep our inner child happy without being immature. Being mature isn't the same as being a "fuddy duddy stick-in-the-mud". In some ways, it's easier and much safer to have more fun, the more mature you are!
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A relative once said to me "Men have children so they can play with toys again."

I can't have kids, but I still collect stuff that could be called (and sometimes are) toys. Before disability, I used my income from work to collect all sorts of stuff. With the nephews over almost every weekend, Nerf swords and guns are the go too, and I'm glad I had a collection already (which has grown exponentially with 3 nephews).

There are other knives with GITD scales, and like with my Yojimbo, you can always get custom ones.
 
ferider said:
BTW, there is a new Hinderer Eklipse showing up as we speak, with a Bowie grind (my favorite grind). Photo courtesy of SE (great shop !). Just saying :)

HINDEREREKLIPSE3.5BOWIEBLUEG10SWSTONEWASHBLADE2_1024x1024.jpg
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I've seen these...if its non triway im gonna cream my jeans
 
For me, one thing I like about the 393 is that it has a frame lock but still has scales on both sides. The GITD looks cool, but you don’t get the grippy g10 scales on both sides. If that isn’t a concern though, the cf scales certainly look great.
 
My response may surprise you.
1. you already like the ZT line, so buy it. I have one or two of the 350 and I don't carry them - too heavy. I wear running shorts all day and now it 8 p.m. and I still am wearing shorts.
2. I like the 3.5 inch length. At the front door, I currently have 4-5 Spyderco Enduras in a basket in the same blade length. I buy them used and broken and restore them or modify them. A few months ago, I bought a closeout of kershaw 3655s at a delivered price of under $25 each, including tax. So there were that model in the basket by the door a while back.
3. The old mantra is that you go with what you have on you. So, if you looked in the suitcases, the windbreakers, the coats, you won't find a $280 knife. You won't find any of Benchmades. They are all Kershaw or Endura blades.
 
I have really liked the Hinderers designs... seems like a cheaper way into the design quality. But its probably a gateway drug to the more expensive actual Hinderer, as has been warned of herein...there are worse things i could be into.

Blade length and overall size do seem to fit my typical carry choices.
 
I cannot honestly say one should not buy a ZT unless they would be bankrupt because of the expense.
 
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