I use my Z-Cuts every single day, literally. I never take special care of them. I wash them by hand and let them air dry. I have no rust whatsoever, and so far no issues with breaking...and I would think if they were going to break they would have, given as much use as they get.
Same. I keep one at home and use it most times I cook, and keep another in my knife roll at work. Both have held their edge quite well. I've experienced no corrosion. Mine will flex in denser foods but I've never seen any damage at the edge or elsewhere.
I think they're one of the best deals in the line-up.
Where is the break? I assume if it’s mechanical failure and not something like the glue or molding coming loose over time it’d be covered. Also have you ran it through the dishwasher before? That tends to loosen handles and create pockets of inaccessible rust.
No dishwasher; I hand-wash all of my kitchen knives. There does appear to be some corrosion on the tang, however.
Where is the break? I assume if it’s mechanical failure and not something like the glue or molding coming loose over time it’d be covered. Also have you ran it through the dishwasher before? That tends to loosen handles and create pockets of inaccessible rust.
No dishwasher; I hand-wash all of my kitchen knives. There does appear to be some corrosion on the tang, however.
What drying method do you employ?
Dishtowel; I'm reasonably thorough.
My collection so far: 52100 Military (2); 52100 PM2 (2); 52100 Para3; Stretch2 V-Toku; KnifeWorks M4 PM2; BentoBox M390 PM2; BentoBox S90V Military; Police4 K390; S110V PM2; SS Delica AUS-6; Wayne Goddard Sprint VG-10 Wish list: Hundred Pacer; Sliverax; Mantra; 52100 PM2 SE; Kapara
One more data point: My single example has been through the dishwasher a few times, does not get towel dried ever, and shows no corrosion to date. I think certain foods can be the major contributor to corrosion, not simple moisture.
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“Maybe the cheese in the mousetrap is an artificially created cheaper price?” -Sal
Posted this already a little while ago. Have several Z-cuts and like them a lot. Always reach for one in my kitchen drawer. This one my wife broke (really :D ). Don’t know how she did it. Maybe to much lateral pressure? I can’t imagine how one can break such a knife with normal use in the kitchen. No corrosion on them either.
Where is the break? I assume if it’s mechanical failure and not something like the glue or molding coming loose over time it’d be covered. Also have you ran it through the dishwasher before? That tends to loosen handles and create pockets of inaccessible rust.
No dishwasher; I hand-wash all of my kitchen knives. There does appear to be some corrosion on the tang, however.
What drying method do you employ?
Dishtowel; I'm reasonably thorough.
I wonder if some water seeps in between the tang and the handle, which, of course, would be out of reach for a towel. Corrosion sets in, and then you've got yourself a problem.
No dishwasher; I hand-wash all of my kitchen knives. There does appear to be some corrosion on the tang, however.
What drying method do you employ?
Dishtowel; I'm reasonably thorough.
I wonder if some water seeps in between the tang and the handle, which, of course, would be out of reach for a towel. Corrosion sets in, and then you've got yourself a problem.
it's entirely possible
My collection so far: 52100 Military (2); 52100 PM2 (2); 52100 Para3; Stretch2 V-Toku; KnifeWorks M4 PM2; BentoBox M390 PM2; BentoBox S90V Military; Police4 K390; S110V PM2; SS Delica AUS-6; Wayne Goddard Sprint VG-10 Wish list: Hundred Pacer; Sliverax; Mantra; 52100 PM2 SE; Kapara
This shouldn't happen.
I have a Spyderco utility knife that hasn't had any problem like this.
Among my other kitchen knives, it is machine washed frequently, put aside dirty, abused by my wife on ceramic plates.
Is it possible that the high temperatures during injection molding of the PP-handle,
which might be around 250 to 270 °C, reduce the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance around the tang area?
If I remember correctly that is what happens if you heat up a hardened blade too much.
At least the tang should see the full temperature of the molten Polypropylen during over-molding.
I have four Z-Cuts. No issues here. Haven't used them for hard cheese, yet.
For the interested folks out there, here how the Z-Cut blade tang looks like.
(I plan on putting on some nicer CF or wood scales, so I removed the original handle.)
There seems to be a date code on the tang like on the Golden folders.
Interesting. Based on the photos from Jon and Worm, it appears that Jon’s tang broke at the first stress riser it found, the front edge of the “tooth” that hangs down to lock the tang into the polypropylene handle. I wonder if rounding that transition to the “tooth” would reduce the stress riser there (almost certainly) and weaken the bond to the plastic (unsure). A tooth that looked like a head on a neck like a jigsaw puzzle piece might provide a secure anchorage with less of a stress riser.
I'm leaning towards some issue with the batch heat treating of the blades. Some few are getting over hardened.
I think this is the most likely answer.
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