Zero Tolerance Sinkevich Flipper Knife Review

Zero Tolerance is a brand of Kai USA Ltd. The ZT brand first made its appearance in 2006 when they saw a place in the market for a Made-in-the-USA lien of hard-use knives that would meet the needs of professionals in the military and law enforcement, as well as other first responders, such as firefighters and emergency medical personnel.

The initial products were combat knives, but since that time, the line has expanded to include a variety of general use and premium knives. From larger and heavier outdoor knives to slimmer and lighter every day carrying knives that are built to ZT’s high-performance standards, ZT knives always provide knife owners with top-of-the-line quality.

Zero Tolerance Knives are manufactured of premium materials such as S30V, S35Vn, or CTS-204P blade steel and G-10, titanium, and carbon fiber handle scales. Operation is conspicuously smooth and ZT fit and finish is second to none. Their customers have described ZT as a “Real Beast” and “overbuilt”, which is something that ZT is very proud of. All of their knives are built in their Tualatin, Oregon manufacturing facility by their most skilled workers.

Kai USA Ltd., the makers of Zero Tolerance Knives, is a member of the Kai Group. Kai is a major manufacturer and distributor of disposable razors, surgical tools, personal care products, and housewares in Japan.

Today we will be going over the Zero Tolerance Sinkevich Flipper knife which has been one of BladeOps best sellers this year.

 

The Blade:

The blade on this knife is made out ofCPM-20CV steel. This steel is super premium steel made by Crucible. This is their version of Bohler’s popular M390 steel, which also influenced Carpenter to copycat with CTS-204P. This is a Powder Metallurgy (PM) tool steel, which means that you will get a combination of impressive wear resistance and edge retention, plus because of the higher levels of chromium, you will get the added benefit of being high corrosion resistant.

The blade has been finished with two separate finishes. Its stonewashed on the flats and satin finished on the grinds. A stonewashed finish refers to tumbling the blade in an abrasive material, which is usually small pebbles. This finish easily hides scratches, while also providing a less reflective nature than a brushed or satin finished blade. The biggest advantage to this blade finish is how low maintenance it is because the finish works to preserve their original look overtime. This finish easily hides the scratches and smudges that will occur with use overtime. The stonewashed finish gives the knife a rugged, well-worn look.

A satin finish is created by sanding the blade in one direction with increasing degrees of a fine abrasive, which is almost always a sandpaper. A satin finish shows the bevels of the blade, showcases the liens of the knife, while also reducing its reflective glare. The finer the abrasive and the more even the lines; the cleaner the satin finish blade looks. This is one of the most traditional blade finishes that you are going to come across because its luster is relatively medium in scale.

The blade itself has been carved into a custom blade shape that most resembles a sheepsfoot. A classic sheepsfoot blade is for cutting and slicing while also minimizing the chances of anything accidentally being pierced by the point because it has a false point. With a regular sheepsfoot blade shape, the knife has a straight edge and a dull back spine that curves to meet the edge. This is where this custom blade shape begins to differ. This Zero Tolerance knife does have a slight belly, although when being compared to a drop point or clip point, its belly is a little shallower. The spine of the knife is almost like a sheepsfoot and a clip point put together. It does curve down to meet the edge, but it does have more angles than a typically sheepsfoot blade does. And while the point is not as sharp as a point on a clip point blade shape, it is also not a false point like a sheepsfoot blade.

The Handle:

The handle on this knife is two toned, just like the blade, with satin and stonewashed finish. It is made out of titanium. Titanium is a lightweight metal alloy that offers the best rust resistance out of any metal that you are going to find a knife handle made out of. This material is similar to aluminum, but is often considered the older brother, because it is the superior material. It is much stronger and a little bit heavier, which unfortunately means that it is more expensive to machine. Titanium has a unique quality where it feels warm to it, which is a huge advantage in a knife handle. Especially if you are going to be using this knife during the winter, you won’t suffer nearly as much as with aluminum. Unfortunately, titanium is prone to scratches.

The pivot hardware that shows up on the face of the knife has been anodized bright blue, adding contrast, and matching the pocket clip. The handle has been striped in a sun ray pattern. The middle of these ‘rays’ is the satin finish, which also means that it is the lightest of all the rays. Then, the next two on either side are stonewashed finishes, getting darker towards the edges. One of the benefits of the stonewashed portions is that it will hide the scratches that titanium is prone to getting.

The handle has a deep finger groove to give you a comfortable grip as well as a lanyard hole for convenience.

 

The Pocket Clip:

The aluminum pocket clip has been anodized a bright blue to add a unique aesthetic to this knife that you are not going to find on many other knives. The clip is kept in place with two silver screws that match the rest of the hardware on this knife. The clip is designed to only be a tip up clip, but it is reversible, helping make this knife truly ambidextrous.

 

The Mechanism:

This is a flipper knife that features a KVT ball-bearing opening system as well as a titanium frame locking mechanism.

The flipper is a part of the blade that protrudes at the knife spine when the knife is closed. When opened, the protrusion forms part of the finger guard. To open this knife, you hold the knife handle in one hand with the butt end resting firmly in the palm of your hand. You will place your index finger on the highest point of the flipper and push down strongly and quickly on this piece. The blade will move out of the handle and lock into place. If you are having trouble moving the blade fully out of the handle, add a slight flip of the wrist. The flipper on this Sinkevich knife is less triangular than the common flipper that you are going to come across. It also has a short of thin jimping on one of the sides so that you can get a better grip when you are trying to open this knife. One of the biggest benefits about a flipper is that it keeps your fingers out of the path throughout the entire opening process.

The KVT opening system is a manual opening system that enables smooth, easy blade opening with the use of a spring or torsion bar to “assist” the blade out of the handle. Instead, the KVT system uses a series of ball bearings that surround the pivot point of this knife. As the user pulls back on the flipper blade protrusion, the ball bears rotate so that the blade glides out of the handle and then locks into place, ready for use.

This knife’s locking mechanism is a frame lock, which is when the knife handle, or the frame, consists of two plates of material on either side of the blade. To ensure a secure lock up, one or both of these plates is usually metal. When the knife is opened, the metal side of the frame, the lock bar, butts up against the backend of the blade and prevents the blade form closing. To close a frame lock knife, the user pushes the frame to the side, unblocking the blade, and folds the blade back into the handle. Like locking liner knives, frame locks are manufactured so that he locking side of the frame is angled toward the interior of the knife, creating a bias toward the locked position. Both the blade tang and the lock bar are precisely angled so they fit together for a secure, reliable lockup.

 

The Specs:

The blade on this Zero Tolerance knife measures in at 3.25 inches long, with a handle length of 4.5 inches long. When the knife is opened, it measures in at an overall length of 7.7 inches long. The Sinkevich flipper knife weighs in at 6.6 ounces. And, like all Zero Tolerance knives, it was made in the United States of America.

 

The Pros of the Zero Tolerance Sinkevich Flipper Knife:

• The steel chosen is a super-premium steel.
• The steel chosen will give you crazy corrosion resistance while also maintain an edge for long periods of time.
• Because of the high carbon content, you will also get good corrosion resistance.
• Two toned finish means that you get low maintenance as well as traditional.
• The stonewashed finish is one of the lowest maintenance finishes you are going to come across.
• Made in the United States of America.
• The slight point won’t let you stab anyone with it accidentally.
• There is a slight belly that a typical sheepsfoot blade wouldn’t sport.
• The flipper enables fast and easy one handed opening.
• The flipper mechanism is ambidextrous, which means that it will be comfortable for left or right handers.
• KVT Ball Bearing Opening system is a manual opening system, so there will be no weird laws around it.
• The KVT system enables smooth and easy one-handed opening.
• This opening system uses ball bearings to enable the blade to glide out of the handle.
• The lock bar locking mechanism is an extremely strong locking mechanism.
• Pocket clip is ambidextrous.
• Titanium is very strong, while still remaining lightweight.
• Titanium is the most corrosion resistant metal out of all.
• Features a lanyard hole.

 

The Cons of the Zero Tolerance Sinkevich Flipper Knife:

• This is a heavier pocket knife.
• The slightly false point won’t let you have full piercing or stabbing capabilities.
• The slight belly won’t be able to make slicing a breeze.
• Sometimes the flipper opening mechanism takes a couple of tries to really get the hang of it.
• The titanium handle is going to add a decent cost to the handle because of how tricky it is to machine.
• The titanium handle is also prone to scratches.

 

Conclusion:

Zero Tolerance and Belarusian custom knife maker Dmitry Sinkevich have teamed up to produce the 0456. The 0456 offers the premium cutting power for which ZT is well known in a knife with standout looks that are just waiting to be shown off.

Based on Dimitry’s popular custom knife, The Pole, the 0456 features the 3-D rayed handle contours and custom blade shape that defined the original design. The high-quality CPM-20CV blade steel is wear and corrosion resistant and takes an exceptional edge. The blade’s premium quality is matched only by its good looks—with an appealing two-tone finish that’s stonewashed on the flats and satin on the grinds. The 0456 opens with ZT’s KVT ball-bearing system for a quick, easy blade release. A titanium frame lock, with a hardened steel lock bar insert, firmly secures the blade open during use.
The 0456 deftly balances handsome appearance and solid utility. On the appearance side, the pivot hardware, custom aluminum back spacer, and left/right reversible pocket clip are finished in a brilliant blue. On the utility side, the 0456 offers top cutting capabilities and excellent edge-holding performance making it the perfect tool to take along with you on any bold adventure.
Pick up this phenomenal everyday carry knife today at BladeOps, it won’t disappoint you.