ZT cutting cost? Skeletonized liners & milled lightening pockets on Ti scale

Its no cost cutting measure. If anything, it adds cost. I think companies should be mindful of cutting weight where reasonable.
I carried a 4 oz light, 7 ounce folder, 3 ounce pen, a zippo (2.5 oz?), keys, phone etc. That made for quite a bit of weight and me needing to tighten up my belt to prevent sag. I tried going for a lighter route light/folder/pen/lighter only weighed 7 ounces. More comfortable to walk around and I didn't feel like i had a tennis ball in my pocket.
However, trade off with skeletonizing is that more gunk will get trapped in it.
 
The cow said:
Its no cost cutting measure. If anything, it adds cost. I think companies should be mindful of cutting weight where reasonable.
I carried a 4 oz light, 7 ounce folder, 3 ounce pen, a zippo (2.5 oz?), keys, phone etc. That made for quite a bit of weight and me needing to tighten up my belt to prevent sag. I tried going for a lighter route light/folder/pen/lighter only weighed 7 ounces. More comfortable to walk around and I didn't feel like i had a tennis ball in my pocket.
However, trade off with skeletonizing is that more gunk will get trapped in it.
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The point made was that by zt ceasing to weigh relief their scales and liners they have saved money and thus cut costs. No one is saying that extra machining is a cost cutting measure.
 
PURPLEDC said:
The point made was that by zt ceasing to weigh relief their scales and liners they have saved money and thus cut costs. No one is saying that extra machining is a cost cutting measure.
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Yeah i dont see how anyone can cut cost by machine away more material, unless you are talking about recyclable material or gold/silver. Less material on your knife doesn't mean less cost.
 
hkyew said:
My 0909 for one could definitely benefit from having skeletonized liner without sacrificing any strength, as the solid liner on the non-locking is just dead weight.
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Just as a point of fact, removing material reduces strength.


Not to use that to belittle your lighter knife preference. People like what they like and that's cool! Not every knife is for everybody, but everybody can probably find a knife that they like... :)





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Les George said:
Just as a point of fact, removing material reduces strength.


Not to use that to belittle your lighter knife preference. People like what they like and that's cool! Not every knife is for everybody, but everybody can probably find a knife that they like... :)





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Well yes, of course a solid bar of steel is obviously gonna be stronger than one with holes, there is no arguing about that.
I should have worded it better and say "without sacrificing too much strength or compromising its structural integrity".
Not sure if you would agree, but i think there are other part of the knife that would have broken first before the skeletonized liners break. It's like you can use a 4mm Ti slab or a 6mm one for your framelock, but that probably matters less when you have a 1mm lockbar cutout, that's probably where it would fail first.
 
I am all for milling and lightening within reason. I have bought many knives that went down the road because of weight.
More than once I have fallen in love with a heavy knife, told myself I would on carry it certain times with specific pants and it invariably does not work out.
As RamZar stated, there are weak links in any folder that will give long before weakness from scale milling becomes a a structural issue.

Russ
 
Not that I own any, but I'd always thought the major selling point for ZT was that they are built like tanks? If that's been a successful approach for them, why change it?
 
I actually contacted ZT about this a few years ago when the changes were first made I got one of the early non-skeletonized 0560's and was worried it was fake, their response to me was that they stopped milling the handles as a cost saving measure. So the OP is right they stopped doing it to save money. I would add that a knife that weighs less and is therefor easier to carry while still doing all the same stuff is measurable better as you're getting equal performance for less weight. This is also why blade to handle ratio matters only in that case it's more performance for less size.
 
if your going to make a titanium knife mill it out or just use steel.
 
Well fast forward 1 year looks like ZT had started implementing internal milling for all the new models. They should apply this retroactively to all the older models as well. I bet they are doing this without increasing the price due to the increased competition from companies like Reate and WE.
IMO ZT0909 could have sold better with the internal milling to reduce a lot of the unnecessary weight. If Les likes solid liner/scale so much why does the 0920 comes with the internal milling, quite self-contradicting.. :cool:
 
This is making me think I might want to send my 456 off to get customized, mill the handle out, regrind the blade, and get a green ano.
 
It's great to see internal milling on many more ZTs these days. ZT 0456 is definitely a candidate for an upgrade for internal milling. As is now, it weighs a whopping 6.6 ounces for a 3.25" blade length.
 
hkyew said:
Well fast forward 1 year looks like ZT had started implementing internal milling for all the new models.
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So I guess the speed holes side won... :rolleyes:

Oh well, the knife I have been carrying the last few months the most weighs a tad over 10 ounces, so perhaps that helps balance out the speed holes versus solid knives equation. :D
 
hkyew said:
They should apply this retroactively to all the older models as well.
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I agree, at least as it applies to the 0801. I was disappointed they stopped at speed holes on the 0801Ti. I was hoping for the 5 oz mark.
hkyew said:
I bet they are doing this without increasing the price due to the increased competition from companies like Reate and WE.
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That may be partially true, although perhaps evolution of CNC equipment/technology makes it easier/more cost effective too. Whatever the cause, I AM A FAN!!,
 
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