Everyone compares striders and sebenza's. But ultimately you end up just saying "Striders are more for hard use, sebenza's are for more classy, every day use."
The zero tolerance knives, with their ergonomic handles, beefy framelocks and comparable materials are a real rival to the strider knives. And I'd like to hear what you have to say.
I've owned a ZT0302 and 0200 and they were both great knives. I'll compare the 0302 and the strider SMF i've owned due to similar size, framelock, etc.
The materials are virtually identical. The only real difference in materials in a liner (Steel or TI?) supporting the G10 on the Zero Tolerance. They both have a thick TI framelock, massively strong pivot, thick blades and S30v.
What I think the ZT has over the strider is price. You're getting a knife as strong as a strider, with fit and finish very comparable to a strider, for $200 less. You also get assisted opening, which to me is a plus. I have no need for it, but it's a welcomed bonus. (By the way, the blade on the 0302 snaps out with authority, very quickly.)
What you lose is the pride of ownership you get with a strider knife, and in my opinion the versatility of the strider handle design. The SMF handle is very ergonomic, but you have to ability to choke up and do fine work, to choke down and get more reach. The ZT handle is essentially a glove. Your hand fits in one place and there really isn't much else to do.
They easily could've put a finger choil in the blade and I wish they had. Losing that ability to choke up just makes the whole knife much less versatile.
Overall I think the 302 is a great knife. But it simply can't and won't replace my strider.
What do you guys think?