Favorite Swiss Army Knives?

[Avali]

I got a AK01 Lileep swiss army knives gifted to me recently but I just can't bring myself to replace my SAK Ranger with it. My old Ranger is half the size, half the weight, and has all the same use cases covered except the pliers. This is probably going to wind up on glovebox duty in my car. I've tried several different flavors of the Swiss staple but the Ranger is my personal sweet spot. What's your favorite?

 

[grizzlypath]

I have a SAK Hiker, it's small and has the basics.

 

[Trail Talk]

I take this Wenger "Roller Skater" on all my bike rides.

 

[EMrider]

I've tried many SAKs and my favorite is the work champ. It is more of a multi-tool and one of their larger offerings. That said, it is smaller than a Leatherman Wave + and IMHO, a more useful tool too.
R

 

[tirod3]

In the normal line, anything with scissors. Then I added a woodsaw blade. One or the other will trim nosehair.

The Swisstool has bailed me out more than once in a tight spot. I had to file the rivets off a locker padlock where the car keys were securely contained. I immediately added a spare key to my dogtag chain.

Sometimes you have to relive mistakes and learn them again. That file is still sharp and useful.

 

[slomatt]

I'm a big fan of the Bantam Alox, I carry one almost everywhere I go. They are small enough to disappear in a pocket, have a minimalist but usable set of features, and are cheap enough that if I loose one I'm not bummed.

I didn't write this review, but it gives the Bantam Alox 20/20. https://www.everydaycommentary.com/www.everydaycommentary.com/2023/12/16/victorinox-bantam-review

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Huntsman. Fieldmaster.

My first was a Super Tinker from the 80's. Then a Tinker Deluxe. Then a vintage Explorer. Then I went down the rabbit hole and now I have a dozen, all different.

 

[RDinNHand AZ]

I carry an Ambassador every day along with my Leatherman wave. The Ambassador is a larger version of the tiny Classic and has a full sized toothpick and tweezers. It’s good for fingernail trimming and filing, removing ticks and slivers, cutting small stuff, getting that broccoli your wife points out to you and nose hair removal! They last a very long time too. I used to carry a Classic but found their lifetime was about a year as i overstressed them.

 

[Pacific Northwest yetti]

For me, and my life; the Leatherman wave. They hold up well, and take a lot of abuse.

I am enjoying this thread to see all the swiss army variations however.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

For me, and my life; the Leatherman wave. They hold up well, and take a lot of abuse.

I am enjoying this thread to see all the swiss army variations however.

Along with whichever one of the Victorinox swiss army knives I listed above, I carry a Leatherman Rebar. Between the two, I have what I need.

I wouldn't mind an OG Leatherman Wave. I hate bits that can drop out or get lost. I have an OG Surge that handles everything. Great scissors, great saw, great plyers, beefy. I could carry that alone and be all set, though it's awfully heavy on the waist, so I leave that for the truck center console or the pack.

Back to swiss army. Victorinox, I have an old 111 mm Rucksack with side slide lock which is cool. 2 hand open, though, not like my newer Forester. I don't often seem to carry them though.

One that I keep in a box in another box is the Bayern/Bavarian- scales Spartan Mrs. Beagle got for me while she was on a river cruise down the Danube a few years ago:

 

[jgaz]

I use and love my Pioneer X for my volunteer work at the Grand Canyon. Scissors are a must for treating blisters.

I added the pocket clip to better retain my SAK in my pocket organizer that rides in a cargo pocket on my shorts or pants.

Ive never liked a Leatherman under the padded hip belt of my backpack so that led me to the SAK.
I carry a Leatherman, just not close at hand.

 

[BritKLR]

Love SAK's and the original Leatherman. They were the original "tactical knife" (them and the classic Buck knife) long before the whole tac knife thing came about. Heck, they were always super sharp and made cutting kilos to test easy.
I probably had, used, gifted, broke or lost 12-15 SAK's over the years. I only have two that survived.
You won't be disappointed with the functionality and classic capability of a SAK.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Love SAK's and the original Leatherman. They were the original "tactical knife" (them and the classic Buck knife) long before the whole tac knife thing came about. Heck, they were always super sharp and made cutting kilos to test easy.
I probably had, used, gifted, broke or lost 12-15 SAK's over the years. I only have two that survived.
You won't be disappointed with the functionality and classic capability of a SAK.

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Also a big fan of the original Leatherman. I have one or two, still with original leather sheath. But I also really like the Lestherman PST2. I have a beater and one still in clamshell plastic packaging...the addition of the combo edge knife, diamond coated grooved file for fish hooks, and scissors was a good move, and that's a good pair of scissors if you don't have a Micra and unlike the scissors that came on the Squirt. That one was a solid little tool except for the scissors spring.

Back to SAK's, I've got an old, black-scaled Tinker with the metal inlay for the Boy Scouts of America. Got it at a flea market. Unfortunately some (kid?) Not knowing any better tried to sharpen it literally in a circular motion leaving Mark's halfway up one side of the blade but oh well. I also have two slightly different models, both red-scaled with the Camping metal inlay. Sad that they went to hot stamping those types of decorations

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Love SAK's and the original Leatherman. They were the original "tactical knife" (them and the classic Buck knife) long before the whole tac knife thing came about. Heck, they were always super sharp and made cutting kilos to test easy.
I probably had, used, gifted, broke or lost 12-15 SAK's over the years. I only have two that survived.
You won't be disappointed with the functionality and classic capability of a SAK.

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That's certainly a collection. What's the shelf life of that stuff? Just casual interest...

 

[BritKLR]

That's certainly a collection. What's the shelf life of that stuff? Just casual interest...

Crack or coke? .....The provider's shelf life was usually shorter then the product's shelf life back in the day...