The ZT Model 0006 is on target as a worthy military or camp blade.

TheZero Tolerance is no stranger to making tough combat ready blades. The new 0006 is a military-inspired design with elements of the original ZT-9 bayonet. The Triple Aught Six isn’t a bayonet though, and it won’t lock up on a rifle. It does carry over the ruggedness and utility of that tool though, which makes it well-suited for survival and outdoor use.

ZT MODEL 0006

The “six” in the name comes from the knife’s 6-inch blade. It has a drop-point blade with a high flat grind. The 0006 is made from CPM 3V tool steel treated to a 59-61 Rockwell, which is a great choice for toughness and edge retention. The 3/16-inch-thick blade is plenty sturdy but not so thick that it adds unnecessary weight. The blade has a bead-blasted finish covered in a clear Cerakote for durability and corrosion resistance. A section of jimping is present on the spine of the knife to allow for better control when doing detail work with the knife.

“Zero Tolerance has a champion of a field knife…if you’re in the market for a camp and survival tool that won’t let you down.”

The Six has a sturdy steel cross guard with holes that can be used as lashing points if you think you need to add some reach to your blade. The handle scales are of textured olive G10 with angled grooves to provide a positive grip even under adverse conditions. Handle length is 4 1/2 inches, which was plenty big enough for my hand even with a glove on. The handle is capped with a heavy steel pommel that would work well for hammering or for impact strikes in a defense situation.

Zero Tolerance provides an excellent and versatile Kydex sheath with the 0006.

The 0006 comes with a Kydex sheath with a sturdy nylon frog. There’s a drainage hole at the bottom of the sheath, and a series of slots and eyelets on the sheath’s perimeter that would allow for lashing or strapping the knife to a pack or tactical vest. The frog is removable as well, although you lose the secondary retention strap if you do that. The Kydex offers excellent retention on its own though while still being easy to draw. I don’t think I’d carry the 0006 upside down without the retention strap, if that’s even still a thing, but otherwise the primary Kydex retention is good to go.

The ZT 0006 is made in the USA and carries an MSRP of $400, although ZT is showing it at $320 at the time of this writing.

IN-HAND IMPRESSIONS

When you pull the Triple Aught Six from its scabbard you immediately get a sense of solidity. At 10.3 ounces, it isn’t overly heavy, but there’s a comforting heft there. You know you have a blade that will stand up to hard use. The handle is quite comfortable. The scales have all of the sharp edges broken, and in fact, the whole knife is like that. The guard, the pommel, and the spine of the blade have all been dehorned with nothing there to cause a hot spot to irritate your hand during use, no matter what grip you decide to use.

“If you need a pocket cutlass, the (Cold Steel) Mayhem is the blade for you.”

The guard is big enough to keep your hand of the blade, even during stabs, but still short enough that it doesn’t interfere with you choking up on the grip for more controlled, detailed cutting. I can lay my thumb on the jimping on the spine directly over the guard without having to contort my hand to do so.

The Zero Tolerance 0006 is a military-inspired blade, but one that will serve perfectly for the outdoorsman.

The lashing holes are big enough to fit paracord through. They’d work for lashing the 0006 to a stick to increase your reach or to make a full-sized spear. If you do feel you need a spear for some reason, I don’t recommend throwing it, and your only knife, away. You’d be better off just hanging on to your knife and whittling a point onto your spear shaft, which the 0006 can accomplish nicely.

The 0006 has a subdued finish with its olive drab handle scales and bead-blasted metal hardware and blade.

The 0006 excelled at camp chores, such as prepping tinder for the fire, light chopping, and making stakes and notches for camp implements. It’s comfortable in the hand and easy to control. I had a number of trees come down during recent storms, so I had a lot of material to work with to give the ZT a workout.

The 0006 would work just as well as a military field blade as it would in a camp and survival situation.

I limbed some of the larger branches with snap cuts and could get some extra leverage by choking back on the handle. I did miss having a lanyard at times, especially during the snap cuts. I could probably rig something up with the holes in the guard but that seemed awkward to me.

As the name implies, the 0006 has a 6-inch, drop-point blade with a high, flat grind.

After limbing some of the branches in the 1- to 2-inch diameter range, I chopped them free from the trunk. I then proceeded to cut those up into more usable lengths of about a foot or so. Some of them I chopped, and others I batoned cross-grain to give a cleaner cut.  I turned a few of these into stakes by whittling a point and adding a notch to the other end.

The 0006’s sheath provided excellent retention while still allowing for easy draw and resheathing of the knife.

The fit and finish on the 0006 really impressed me as I was working with it. As noted earlier, all of the edges are rounded off on the knife, barring the blade edge itself, of course. I could run my hand along the handle, guard, and spine of the knife and not encounter a sharp edge or anything that was going to cause a hot spot during use. The handle itself is a nice balance of texture and grooves that give a good grip with bare hands or gloves but not so aggressive as to be uncomfortable.

The 0006 has a 4.5-inch-long handle of olive drab G10 with a subtle texture and series of grooves for a solid in-hand feel.

The sheath is worth noting too. While fairly basic looking, it’s very functional. The belt slot is big enough for a heavy work belt or even a military web belt. While using the knife I would resheath it between activities and just rely on the tension of the Kydex to retain it, which worked fine. It’s also fast to draw that way should you need it in a hurry.

The 0006 is built around a 3/16-inch-thick full tang slab of CPM 3V steel.

When I wanted more security, I used the retention strap around the handle. It’s the small details that ZT gets right and the snap is an example of that. I’ve had other knives where I’ve had to really stretch the strap around the handle and fight the snap to get it in place. The 0006’s sheath gets it just right. It fits snugly enough to keep the handle secure, but it’s easy to affix the snap and undo it with one hand while it’s on your belt.

PERFECT FIELD KNIFE?

If I lived in a horrible world where I could only have one knife, the Zero Tolerance 0006 would be on my short list, especially if I intended to spend a lot of time in the outdoors. About the only thing I’d give it is a lanyard hole, and that’s not a deal breaker for me. It’s also very subjective and probably not something many folks will care about. In fairness, none of the classic military knives I used in the service had lanyard holes either, so I should probably get over it.

The Triple Aught Six is a “just right” size that’s easy to carry and small enough for doing detail work yet big enough and with enough mass to do some reasonable chopping when needed. The fit and finish are on point and the knife is amazingly comfortable in hand. It’s fitted with a quality sheath, and made in the USA with top-end materials. Zero Tolerance has a champion of a field knife that’s well worth consideration if you’re in the market for a camp and survival tool that won’t let you down.

The steel pommel of the 0006 is suitable for hammering or impact strikes.

The 4.5-inch handle was plenty big for the author’s hand.

The 0006 was comfortable in hand both with and without gloves.

The guard on the 0006 has a pair of lashing holes so that can attach the knife to a pole to extend your reach if you feel it’s needed.

The 0006 has a 6-inch blade of CPM 3V tool steel for a combination of strength and edge retention.

The factory edge on the 0006 was excellent, and it worked well even for basic carving tasks.

At 10.3 ounces, the 0006 had a solid heft to it but wasn’t overly heavy on the belt.

The ZT’s guard was big enough to keep your hand off of the blade, but not so large as to inhibit different grip choices.

The 0006 has a section of jimping on the spine of the blade to add extra control when choking up on the knife.

 


A 21ST CENTURY PILOT’S SURVIVAL KNIFE

Zero Tolerance says the 0006 is military inspired specifically from its ZT-9 Bayonet. When I first saw the 0006, it reminded me of another military knife, the old military Pilot Survival Knife. The PSK initially had a 6-inch blade, although it was changed to 5 inches fairly early on. It had a steel cross guard with holes for use in lashing the knife to a pole, a stacked leather handle over a stick tang, and a hammer pommel. It was a handy size, and many found their way into the hands of troops other than just aircrew members. They also proved popular as outdoors knives with civilians. I carried one in Boy Scouts for a while.

The author found the ZT 0006 to be a worthy successor to the venerable military issue Pilot’s Survival Knife.

The 0006 has a 6-inch blade, steel cross guard with lashing holes, and a steel pommel that can be used for hammering. It really ups the ante over the old military knives though with its tough CPM 3V steel, a full tang with G10 handle scales, and Cerakote blade finish. The Kydex sheath should prove to be a lot more durable than the PSK’s leather sheath as well. It’s close in size and similar in design to the PSK, and it can fill much the same role but should prove to be a lot more durable.

The 0006 would fill the role of an aircrew survival knife wonderfully today. As a private purchase item or something bought on a unit level it would provide a top-notch upgrade over the original knives. It would also work quite well for private pilots, especially bush pilots who fly over remote areas.

 


SPECS

Model: ZT 0006
Type: Fixed blade
Blade Steel: CPM 3V
Blade Length: 6 inches
Blade Finish: Bead-blasted finish and Cerakote coating
Blade Thickness: 0.19 inch
Handle Material: G10
Handle Thickness: 0.7 inch
Overall Length: 10.7 inches
Weight: 10.3 ounces
Origin: USA

MSRP: $400


SOURCEs

Zero Tolerance Knives

18600 SW Teton Ave
Tualatin, OR, 97062
800-325-2891

ZT.KAIUSA.com

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