ZT 0235...a true Modern Traditional

[stabman]

On July 20th I received an amazing new knife, courtesy of Thomas...the ZT 0235.

This knife had been on my radar since I first saw it; I really liked the idea of an elegant slip-joint with modern steel and materials that also had a pocket-clip...but fret not haters of clips! If you remove it, there are no ugly holes left to ruin your enjoyment.

Here it is with other knives to give some idea of size and all that:

You can see the nice carbon fiber scales, and also that the stock thickness is not out of line with other traditional knives (although on the thicker side of the spectrum):

The packaging of ZT knives has evolved too.
I liked the "Proudly Overbuilt" and "A Real Beast" messaging, but as their product line now includes more office-friendly and elegant offerings, a change was inevitable. Still the same great quality of knives, just a different candy wrapper, so to speak:

And a couple more shots with a Northwoods traditional pattern knife:

 

[stabman]

Here it is with a Spyderco Urban, another great modern slip-joint:

It will open your mail...

In which there was a big chunk of Nitro-V steel.
It also helps cut out the templates for the Nitro-V project...but that's all secret for now.

It also opens blister packs containing Dremel sanding drums for said secret project:

And cuts carrots.

But enough with all that.
What you care about is how it will help on your adventurous woods adventures, am I right?
Of course I am.

So out to the woods.

At least this time out the last folks who used the site didn't ruin everything, so it was off to a nice start.

It was raining though, so the first order of business was getting the large tarp strung up to provide shelter. The ZT 0235 cuts paracord with extreme ease:

It also looks good when paired with the ZT 0102:

Shelter up!

Fire good:

Beginnings of work on epic walking staff:

 

[stabman]

Walking staff at right length, but needs the handle area thinned way down. This was a good section of tree, rather than a mere branch, so lets get to work.

You can see that it cuts quite nicely.

You can also see that a shelter was a good idea due to all the rain!

The steaks were cooking at this point (more photos of set-up later), but while sheltering in place, my brother noticed that the support stick he set up to hold the tarp up on one side due to weight of water collecting was directing a nice stream of water that could fill a bottle for drinking, which is what he did:

The ZT 0235 will also keep you company as you chronicle your harrowing adventures for future generations to read...

 

[stabman]

Here is the steak set-up.
My brother brought a grill rack thing with a handle, so all we had to do was set up some "Y" shaped sticks, and cut two poles. This allowed us to suspend the rack at the right height over the fire, and simply flip it around every so often:

Steak and the ZT 0235 will help you carry logs too.
"It's log, it's log, it's big, it's heavy, it's wood..."

You can see the thinned out handle section of the walking staff. Actually, I'm calling it a "walking bat" because of how ridiculously stout it is! I had originally thought the ZT 0235 would be used a bunch for carving the head of it, but it ended up being used for heavy material removal, which it worked really well for.

Doing a bit more work on the walking bat:

Knives of the woods adventure:

Knife on the stick:

And...TOAD!!!

And a rare "behind the scenes" photo of taking a photo of the toad on the trail out. The trail out once the woods themselves have been exited is the best place for finding toads.

So there you have it.

Will this knife make your life better? I say the answer is yes.

Is it worth the price? Well, it is in line with other modern traditionals with upgraded steel and fancy handle material, so I'm going to say yes.

It looks good and will be as handy in the office as in the woods. My dad is actually thinking of buying one to wear with a tuxedo at an upcoming wedding after I showed it to him yesterday.

The half stop is nice, but one of my favourite things is that with the dual detent system to hold it open and closed, there is no backspring to slam the blade closed on your finger, or to bash the blade edge like on most Laguiole designs. If I need to cut my finger, I can do it myself, and if I need ugly blade damage I can handle that task too.

The clip is held on in a different way. There are pockets milled out on the inside of the handle in the carbon fiber, and the clip sits in there. To reverse clip position, one would remove the rear two backspacer screws, loosen the third, swing the spacer out, put the clip on the other side, then swing the backspacer in place and replace the screws. This also means that if you hate clips, you can simply take it out completely and have no empty holes to piss you off.

 

[Planterz]

I've been eyeballing this since it was announced. I liked the look of the 0230, except the tipless sheepsfoot. This one looks like it's right up my alley.

 

[stabman]

I've been eyeballing this since it was announced. I liked the look of the 0230, except the tipless sheepsfoot. This one looks like it's right up my alley.

I'd been thinking the same way.
The ZT 0230 looked pretty good, but I generally like a tip on my blades; often turns out to handy.

With this one they got a very useful all around great little knife.
Totally non-offensive, legal just about everywhere, and capable of getting actual work done.
I was surprised at how well it worked with a full hammer grip when shaping that walking stick. Other slip-joints have often not fared as well in tasks like that due to handle design. This one feels good.

 

[Boggs]

Thank you for the review/write up and photos

 

[metsfan]

stabman the 0235 is awesome, I love mine. The 0230 is great, and having an alternate version with a drop point and pocket clip is fly. I love the action on mine, the double detent system makes for fun fondling, and it’s performed amazing for me in all the uses I’ve put it through. So glad you are enjoying yours.

Thomas? Thomas from KAI USA?

 

[MolokaiRider]

Good stuff, thanks for posting your thoughts and uses.

Nice to see that old Ontario RD too.

Stay safe and well over there in Motor City!

 

[stabman]

Thank you for the review/write up and photos

It was fun doing it.

stabman the 0235 is awesome, I love mine. The 0230 is great, and having an alternate version with a drop point and pocket clip is fly. I love the action on mine, the double detent system makes for fun fondling, and it’s performed amazing for me in all the uses I’ve put it through. So glad you are enjoying yours.

Thomas? Thomas from KAI USA?

It does have a nice action.

That would be the Thomas in question.

Good stuff, thanks for posting your thoughts and uses.

Nice to see that old Ontario RD too.

Stay safe and well over there in Motor City!

That RD-9 is a beast. Been through more than any knife should ever see.

Doing a decent job of staying safe over here so far.

 

[metsfan]

stabman Thomas W is the GOAT. The only thing I’m upset at Blade being cancelled this year is that I can’t see him in person and shake his hand.

That makes that 0235 even more special!

 

[stabman]

stabman Thomas W is the GOAT. The only thing I’m upset at Blade being cancelled this year is that I can’t see him in person and shake his hand.

That makes that 0235 even more special!

For sure.
Never made it to Blade yet, but meeting the various knife folks and makers would be a good time.
The times I have met fellow knife enthusiasts and makers in person has always been great; there is a certain sense of community due to the shared passion for knives.

 

[jacksterp]

Thomas? Thomas from KAI USA?

Sure sounds like it.

Man, I miss that guy...

 

[JeremiahWeaver09]

great review, the knife seems to have a similar blade shape to the zt 0357 which i love

 

[rxavage]

I need that cf hawkbill spyderco, what model is that?

 

[JeremiahWeaver09]

I need that cf hawkbill spyderco, what model is that?

its the spyderco superhawk, discontinued but they pop up on ebay quite often, in fact theres two on there right now

 

[stabman]

its the spyderco superhawk

It sure is.
Another great knife.
Sadly, sales dictate continued availability, and for whatever reason it just didn't sell enough to keep going.
A solid performer though if one can track it down.

 

[rxavage]

its the spyderco superhawk, discontinued but they pop up on ebay quite often, in fact theres two on there right now

thanks. Awesome knife, not so awesome price.

 

[archieblue]

I played with one a few months ago at a B&M and was impressed! I’m not much of a ZT guy and I don’t love the idea of detent balls being the hold open mechanism. I will snag another modern slippy sooner or later and it’s high in the running for sure.

 

[stabman]

I played with one a few months ago at a B&M and was impressed! I’m not much of a ZT guy and I don’t love the idea of detent balls being the hold open mechanism. I will snag another modern slippy sooner or later and it’s high in the running for sure.

I wasn't sure about how well that would work, but I ended up liking it.
Has enough spring tension to make them engage quite well.