Zero Tolerance ZT0300 Review

Very good review and great feedback. I have not been a fan of the ti/G-10 construction method and in fact sold the ZT0301 shortly after receiving it. But now I have decided to give it another chance as I like most everything else about it. I am going with the newer 0300 version, with black blade instead of tiger striping, although I do not mind the striping finiash, just like the all black better. Knife will arrive tomorrow so I will poat some thoughts about it shortly. Again, good review.
 
cutter17 said:
Very good review and great feedback. I have not been a fan of the ti/G-10 construction method and in fact sold the ZT0301 shortly after receiving it. But now I have decided to give it another chance as I like most everything else about it. I am going with the newer 0300 version, with black blade instead of tiger striping, although I do not mind the striping finish, just like the all black better. Knife will arrive tomorrow so I will put some thoughts about it shortly. Again, good review.
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Excellent! I look forward to your thoughts.

As I've been cutting more things with it the G-10/Ti handle is less of an issue for me, though if I could get a Ti scale for the other side I'd do it because it's just so cool.

yavol
 
eric3272 said:
Thanks for the review. This knife has features that usually turn me off like the recurve, coated blade and assisted opening. For some reason I still find it appealing though.

-Eric
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Could someone enlighten me on what the Tungsten DLC coating is on the blade? Are there any disadvantages of it over other coatings or a plain nekkid finish?

From what I've seen, the coating is incredibly hard and feels a bit rougher than a polished surface. It reminds me of a hard adonized nonstick pan yet smoother. I haven't had any trouble cleaning up staining, acidic, or sticky/sappy materials off it. It's really easy to clean.

yavol
 
DLC stands for Diamond Like Coating and is a product of the Bodycote Corp. It is VERY hard with a RC (rockwell hardness) in the 80's. Compare that to the blade's RC of 59 to 60, and you have somemore hard coating. Many times people will complain about how easy it is to scratch when actually it is not the coating being scratched, rather the substance being cut is rubbing off onto the coating itself. This is probably one of the hardest coatings in the industry.
 
I just picked a 301 up last week. I couldnt help myself it is just such a cool knife. I moved the clip to tip down TI side carry. I carry it right side front pocket in jeans only and its no worse than my Marlowe. I try not to carry too much in the right pocket when I have a knife. For cargo shorts the carry options are numerous.

I didnt find the G10 too grippy and the combo TI/G10 feels pretty good. Try carrying a Cold Steel Hatamoto...you know you have that knife in your pocket and it tries to tear the pocket out of your pants when you try to pull it out.

Good review...cant wait to see what they do with the design.
 
Mine came in earlier today and here is what I posted over on the Kershaw sub-forum,
OK, so the ZT0300 has arrived. Right now it is riding in my right front pocket, tip down. First things first, and there is no doubt that this is one more heavy duty folder, just what I like! Overall it is fairly flat and wide and doesn't make itself hard to carry. Though it weighs 8.6 oz's, it feels lighter. The fit and finish are excellent as is the action and the lockup, with about 1/3 of the blade tang being covered, thus leaving room for any wear that might occur. This framelock is as solid as the one on my Tyrade as in lockup this lock stays put and you ain't going to push it over any farther than where it already is. The lock has enough tension so that you should not push it over to unlock accidently.

I'm still undecided about the titanium/G-10 construction method, but in holding and using the knife it dosen't seem to make any difference and you tend to forget it. I'm glad that Kershaw went with a full steel liner on the G-10 side, but it does make that handle thicker than the all ti handle, again no effect in actual use I wouldn't think. I do wish it had a higher mounted clip as in the tip down position about 3/4's of an inch sticks out of the pocket. Being summer and the fact I weart cargo shorts now, it is an easy ride and really not that noticable, but come jean season......

All in all I'm pretty pleased with this purchase and I do like this folder more than I dislike it. I'll be carrying it for awhile now to see how it works out. It certaintly has more positives than negatives, at least in my eye's!!
 
Just carried mine all day on a hiking fishing trip. I love it even more. No problems getting to the knife out of my jeans. It loves to cut! I made short work of some brush and rod holding sticks and even used it to cut food. The handle fits my hand so well that I dont even notice the difference between the G10 and Ti. Granted I will not be carrying this thing in my suite but I have other EDCs for that. I
 
Thanks cutter17 for the coating info. That makes sense. hehe, all of the sudden I got this wicked idea to try to sharpen other knives off the coating of the blade! Could you imagine? ...

So i just tried it and you know what? It worked! I got a rough shaving edge w/ light passes of a Benchmade Ares 154cm. omg, so ridiculous. Sharpening it this way feels kinda similar to the the Sharpmaker. Although the Sharpmaker will always be superior I think it's hilarious to have such an odd "backup" available. I could see it now: some hyped up marketing junkies spinning this new amazing "feature"! lol

Has anyone else tried to sharpen other blades off a Tungsten DLC coat? Come on, I can't be the first here.

yavol
 
gotta give ya that one yavol. it is a very interesting bit of info for sure. i may try it for the fun of it :D
 
I have found that the combination of the flipper/A.O. and a big frame lock creates the first folder I can reliably operate one-handed with heavy leather work gloves. Also the handle is large enough to work well with gloves on. The ZT301 rocks!
 
Today makes the third day I've carried the 0300 and it is starting to grow on me.:thumbup:
 
yavol said:
Abusive cutting seems to be a main design parameter for this knife. Sure the S30V steel can handle narrower edge angles for most uses. I wouldn't go below 30 deg inclusive because at that point you're better off getting a smaller knife that handles more like a pocket scalpel. Weight, balance, rotation and control are big indicators of what the blade was designed to do best. IMO, the ZT0300 is too cumbersome to fill that role as well as the more traditional designs.

Uses? Mine loves a steady diet of old speaker cables, CAT 5, parachord, rope, tree trimmings, fruit, jeans, steak, boxes, sandpaper, and junk mail. I've cut all of the above and it still pops hairs. Tougher stuff is on the horizon for me: razorwire, cans, hoses, ...

After the factory edge wears down a bit I plan to differentially sharpen the blade (cf: Joe Talmadge). The inside of the recurve will be a slightly rough, micro-serrated edge for cutting harder, thicker materials. The belly up through the tip will be more finely polished for cutting softer, thinner materials.

cheers,

yavol
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I tried that sharpening method with some Kershaws I used to own and didn't see much of a cutting performance gain compared to sharpening the whole thing how I normally do (Bring the edge to around 1000 grit finish then strop some). I expected different results. If you go through with your plans or have done this before I'd like to hear how it works for you.

I'd personally take the edge to 20 degrees inclusive with a 30 degree microbevel for abusive work. Point taken and understood about the intended use of this knife, but thicker than that based on my use and testing doesn't seem to have that much of an affect on edge strength. Do you have any knives you've damaged before doing cutting?

Any idea what the edge angles were from factory?

Have you seen any sort of damage from what you've cut? I've cut everything you've listed with S30V knives besides the razor wire and it's held up great for me. S30V works well for me. I've never had issues getting it sharp or had it chip cutting thick cardboard like some members have reported.

One more question, what's the tip look like when you're looking down on the spine? Any chance we could get a photo?

Thanks for your time.
 
New to the forum, just today, I bought the 301 just last Saturday, and must say this is a heck of a knife. Big, robust and overbuilt. Probably not a EDC; but for a tactical collector or user, to me it is a must have. This thing really thwacks when it opens and is razor sharp. I too could not use the thumb stud until one of the guys in this thread gave me the secret, and success! I love this knife, wish they made one a tad smaller, is my only negative remark.
 
Anyone have this and the Strider? Is the strider worth the extra cake? I love the way it looks. I'll carry it in a back back or fanny pack hiking, maybe use it as a hunting knife. It looks like a decent skinner too. Thanks for the great pics...
 
summerman said:
Anyone have this and the Strider? Is the strider worth the extra cake? I love the way it looks. I'll carry it in a back back or fanny pack hiking, maybe use it as a hunting knife. It looks like a decent skinner too. Thanks for the great pics...
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I'm not sure how much this will help, but i own the ZT0200 and was lucky enough to be in a passaround where i got to use a Strider for a week. The strider was a great knife, and i would buy it, but i would rather buy the ZT first because of the price and i can do anything the strider can with it. Both are worth it though. it depends on how much you want to spend for sure.

hope that helps.
 
I've handled the knife again, and i just cant get around the frame lock "feel", it just feels like plastic to me. I dont know how else to describe it?

I do like the knife though, 95% in favour of it, and i'll prolly buy it anyways...
 
Bushman5 said:
I've handled the knife again, and i just cant get around the frame lock "feel", it just feels like plastic to me. I dont know how else to describe it?

I do like the knife though, 95% in favour of it, and i'll prolly buy it anyways...
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ya know, this just occured to me, and i dunno if it has been said, but maybe the finish on that side is whats causing it to feel that way. i get that feeling from other framelocks.
 
on some knives i have noticed that the finish that they put on the metal (be it a DLC or similar coating or just plain beadblasted) can give it that texture and feel. TI is so light as it is, if the finish is a certain way it could definatily come off as a plastic like feel. not the most common thing, but it has happened. if you were to scratch that side up, you would see it to be metal definatly.

kinda weird how finishes do that.
 
love The Knife But The One Big Problem For Me Is That It Is To Wide I Have To Change My Grip Position To Close The Blade....just A Bit But The Frame Is Just About 3mm To Wide. Still Once I Got Used To The 300's I Was In Love. Not Quite A Real Strider But Close Enough. All Above I.m.h.o.
Stay Safe!
Major Rick
 
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