ZT or Kizer knives?

XtianAus

XtianAus

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i am looking to get my first "quality" folder and thinking of either a ZT 0562 or a Kizer of some sort - not sure of the model just yet. They will end up costing the same amount once you factor in the cost to get a kizer through to Australia. So disregarding price, if you have used either or both and can share your opinion, don't be shy!

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Particularly interested in any user information regarding the kizer if anyone has owned/used or handle one/a few.

thanks!
 
Kizer are nice, but I would say ZT for sure if you are in the US, for the warranty alone. The 0562 is a perfect EDC, and the smoothest flipper I've owned. Just a great quality blade.

Kizer makes nice stuff, but maybe just a bit below ZT in quality. I guess it depends on if there is a particular design you just love from Kizer or not.
 
I have 2 Kizers and 3 ZTs.
Kizers: Nomad & a Corto. Both are very well made with excellent materials. The Nomad is super cool with really nice machine work on the Ti handles. The designer is a member here and a great dude!
ZTs: 450, 452CF & a 562CF. All 3 are fantastic! Have them for about a year and have carried them plenty! Amazing flippers with great lock up!!
To be honest, I really couldn't complain about anything on any of them, but if I could only buy one.....it would have to be one of the ZTs. I'd give them a very slight edge on build, and flipping, quality.
You really can't go wrong with either brand........so go with the one that really catches your eye!
Good luck!
Joe
 
jstn said:
I guess it depends on if there is a particular design you just love from Kizer or not.
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This holds true for both brands, I think. I have a handful of ZTs, most having been bought because of design appeal. Meanwhile, I own just one Zizer, a Klecker design (I forget the model number) that I bought because it was a big slab of S35VN with very aggressive G10 scales. At the time I bought it, a comparable ZT would have cost roughly $30-50 more than the Kizer, so I decided to take a chance on a then-new manufacturer. I'm not generally big on buying Chinese knives, but nothing about this particular knife has proven to be anything less than top notch. The thing is, there aren't a lot of Kizer knives whose designs really grab me, or I would own more by now. Honestly, the same has been somewhat true of ZT over the past year or two, just due to my personal tastes more than materials or workmanship.
 
I'll echo what has been said, this will come down to comparing specific models from each. In this case the 0562cf just wins out for me.
 
0562CF has a stronger detent, flips way better. Snappy flipper compared to the lazy soft flipping action of the Kizer Escort. 0562 feels better in hand. Both are well made, lock up solid, no blade play. Either one is a good knife, but the 0562 would be my choice.

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I prefer the ZT 801 or 804 over the 562, then again I love Reate, and just ordered a Stedemon, which going by the reviews flips better than any ZT
 
Stedemon flips very well, better than my Kizers but not better than ZT IMO. About the same , because once they flip out fast that's about as good as it gets.

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I would get the ZT. That's just me though. That is because ZT is an american made product.
 
Grandmaster said:
I prefer the ZT 801 or 804 over the 562, then again I love Reate, and just ordered a Stedemon, which going by the reviews flips better than any ZT
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I second the 801, I love mine.. It's one of my go to EDC blades out of my 4 ZT's with my 620 being the other..
 
I like a flipper that has a manual opening option I really don t care how fast the flipping action is .Just not a big flipper fan. So Kizer might be my choice.
 
I have both a ZT and a Kizer in my EDC rotation. I mention that, because I think maybe some people buy these knives and use them as table flippers or safe queens, as opposed to actual carry/use knives.

I love both the ZTs and the Kizers. I have a Kizer in my pocket as I type this, but I love the ZT in my rotation more. The Kizer was considerably less expensive, in my case. The ZT is just higher quality overall - but not by a large margin.
 
XtianAus said:
i am looking to get my first "quality" folder and thinking of either a ZT 0562 or a Kizer of some sort - not sure of the model just yet. They will end up costing the same amount once you factor in the cost to get a kizer through to Australia. So disregarding price, if you have used either or both and can share your opinion, don't be shy!

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Particularly interested in any user information regarding the kizer if anyone has owned/used or handle one/a few.

thanks!
Click to expand...

In agreement with several previous posts - my opinion I would definitely go with the ZT. They're tough, durable, and the warranty is great. Also much better crisper flipper action than the Kizer (at least the ones I've tried in the past) and it's American made through and through.

I EDC'd my ZT560 for several years and still do today; although my collection grew so I switch up with two others. But the ZT has remained over the years where others have failed me. It's my go-to when I need something I can beat up. Also had the 0450CF for awhile, which was a great tough little knife but ultimately just way too small for me and for my purposes.
 
Now the upcoming Kizer feist on the other hand... that is a blade I need. I've wanted a Gareth.Bull front flipper for a long time now. The feist will be a great chance to try this opening method out.
 
Morning Xtian,
I don't think you can go wrong with either if I'm honest. Personally for the same $ I would go Zt every time.

I do worry about the durability of the Kizer pivot as I have had issues with my Escort.

Edit, I should add there is a kizer warranty repair centre in Oz, not sure about zt.

Also might be worth joining Australian Blade Forums as there are resident Kizer and ZT dealers on there.
Matt
XtianAus said:
i am looking to get my first "quality" folder and thinking of either a ZT 0562 or a Kizer of some sort - not sure of the model just yet. They will end up costing the same amount once you factor in the cost to get a kizer through to Australia. So disregarding price, if you have used either or both and can share your opinion, don't be shy!

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Particularly interested in any user information regarding the kizer if anyone has owned/used or handle one/a few.

thanks!
Click to expand...
 
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I hate to get all "Merica" on you but considering KAI's warranty and customer service practices plus being made in the USA this is a no brainer.
 
In my experience kizer is a better value. ZT and Kizer are about the same as far as F&F go, but you're getting better blade steels and handle material for a better price from kizer.
 
My favourite knives are the ZT 0566 and ZT 0560. I prefer them over the 0562, but my experience with ZT's no matter what model you go with it will be amazing. I would trust ZT over Kizer anyday.
 
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