Swiss Army Knives
I Would Like To Know What Swiss Army Would Be Better On The Trail. Would You Take The Small One With Knife And Scissors Or The Large One With Everything
Large one with Everything. I have 2, a camper/hiker which is the knives, screwdrivers (-/+), openers, minisaw and toothpick/tweezers.
The other one an Explorer has all that plus scissors and a magnifying glass. A little heavier, but more toys to play with.
Many would just go with the very small set, but I like tools and this is one I don't leave home without.
For years, I carried this one, A Wenger Ranger, but it is bulky and heavy in the pocket of a pair of light shorts. I keep it in my Kayak bag now.
Last edited by Toolshed; 06-04-2007 at 10:15. Reason: Update photos
.....Someday, like many others who joined WB in the early years, I may dry up and dissapear....
Just to be difficult, I'm going to go with the opposite of Toolshed and say bring the little one. I've carried one of the tiny ones with just knife and scissors on many a trip, and haven't ever needed more. I've always felt that most of the other tools can either be done without, like breaking branches instead of mini-sawing through them, or improvised, like carving the cork out of the wine bottle with the knife instead of using a corkscrew.
Now brace yourself for the onslsught of "Swiss Army Knives suck, real hikers carry...." posts.
neither IMO
ginzu or box cutter for me.
You are so right, brother. Actually, a knife is a very personal choice, greatly influenced by your hiking style. I don't see any use for the gee-whiz sort of knife. Instead, I generally carry two knives. One, in my first aid kit is quite dinky. The other is a little larger, and stays in my pocket. Between the two I can attend to small sewing and first aid tasks, get dinner cooked and put the occasional beer bottle in it's place without any difficulty. Well, actually, the beer goes in it's place and the bottle gets emptied, but I'm sure you understand.Originally Posted by rusty075
. . . Now brace yourself for the onslsught of "Swiss Army Knives suck, real hikers carry...." posts.
The extreme is like this, but I think that's a toy and can't see any reason why anyone would carry it. Unless they've lost their ever lovin' mind, that is.
However, fooling around on Victorinox's website, I ran across one with a cigar cutter. Yeah, I don't smoke a cigar that often, but every once in a while . . .
I went years without carrying any kind of knife, my Bic lighters would cut whatever cord I was carrying for emergency tie-outs, etc. Now I carry a tiny one inch lockable blade thingie but I only use it to cut cheese for meals, etc. I used to carry a Swiss Army knife but tired of the extra weight for stuff I never needed. It's all personal though, I mean, I think I need to carry a couple of books and several candles so what's the extra weight of a Swiss Army knife?
I have owned several Swiss Army knives over the years and the tools I have used most often are the scissors & corkscrew then the bottle opener. Rarely did I use any of the other tools on the knife despite me being a tinkerer by nature.
Go by the functions you need:
small blade?
fingernail clippers?
file?
scissors?
screwdriver?
tweezers?
Make a list of NEEDED functions and then determine how to best satisfy it. In other words, don't carry a corkscrew if you don't drink wine.
Swiss Army Knife
I would definately take a Swiss army Knife on a thru-hike. I have one made by Wenger. I believe it's called the "Hiker". It has sisors, knife blade, cork screw, can opener, bottle oprner, screw driver, tweasers and nail file. It served me well on my thru and I now carry it daily.
Don't think you need the bigger ones with a lot of extra stuff.
Grampie-N->2001
As another data point:
I "thought" I needed a bigger knife and purchased the smallest Mora available (2 1/2 in. blade sheath knife)
The sheath was a big pain in the neck. I first let it dangle from a pack strap, that was too unwieldy.
Then I put it on my belt. That interfered with the pack hip belt.
I finally just put it in the outside pack pocket.
The heavier blade was valuable in shaving some dry wood from the center of a stick to get a fire started one rainy afternoon. I'm not sure a swill army knife would be up to that job.
I'm still in search of the optimum.
Tom
Victorinox actually has a neat little gadget on their website called Toolmatch where you select which tools you want on a knife, and they point you to what product most closely matches. Pretty nifty, and the list of available tools is mindboggling. Can't say I've ever said, "Boy, I wish I had a Pharmaceutical Spatula right now" while sitting around a campfire, but its nice to know I could get a knife with one if I really needed it.
But yeah, like Two speed said, knives are like underwear...whatever works for you, works for you - there are no right or wrong answers. One of the nice things about the AT is that things like this are not life-or-death decisions. If you decide at some point that what you are carrying isn't right for you, within a few days you will likely be walking past someplace where you can buy something different. Can't do that on some other trips.
I carry the SAK Champion with all the stuff, its weight is not even a factor, if I ever need it it's got it.
I carry the Bantam. It has just one blade and a Can/Bottle opener and screwdriver (only two blades.) The officers edition is much lighter, but does not have the tweezers and toothpick. I can always make a toothpick and tweezers out of a twig.
For those that don't carry knives, what ever hapened to being prepared?
.....Someday, like many others who joined WB in the early years, I may dry up and dissapear....
I carry the Spartan Lite. It's basically like the Tinker but it has a small, watch battery-powered LED light, and the handle material and the knife overall IS considerable lighter weight-wise than the standard SAK models. I love it. I use the LED light all the time. The only problem is the batteries are not easy to find, but I order them online and it's possible to switch the light on accidentally in you pocket draining the batteries.
For those that don't carry knives, what ever hapened to being prepared?
Being prepared for what, if I might ask? We're talking about very specialized hiking, on a safe, well-used trail with resupply every couple of days. The smallest SAK gives me the most useful tool on the trail -- small scissors -- along with a nail file and a small, sharp knife blade. After many years of carrying a large lock-back knife, I finally realized that I never used the thing.
I'm not going to be skinning small game, defending myself against a marauding bear (a rifle is better anyway), spearing fish, cutting wood for snares, or hacking off my own arm to free myself from a boulder. Except for cutting apples and slicing cheese, there's not much call for a longer blade on the A.T. (and apples and cheese can be eaten whole).
If you're talking about trekking across the Canadian wilderness, then sure, you might want to make a different choice of knife. Heck, if you *want* to carry your favorite knife on the A.T., go right ahead. I like knives, and I sure won't tell you not to carry one. But there's no reason for you to suggest that I'm somehow unprepared because I don't carry a large, heavy knife. (And no, I'm not one of those mythical ultralighters who just "borrows" from other, better prepared, hikers.)
Happy trails, whatever you decide to carry.
one with a corkscrew. some good cork wines at the stores these days
Corkscrew?...
Wine comes in corked bottles?
I thought it just came in gallon size plastic bags in a cardboard box!
BC, That's not what I said - Please re-read my post "For those that don't carry knives, what ever happened to being prepared?". It appears You are projecting "....for those who don't carry knives..." into "...for those who don't cary big heavy knives..."
I am not speaking of you, but again for THOSE (AND ONLY THOSE) who do NOT carry knives........
Last edited by Toolshed; 06-05-2007 at 09:53.
.....Someday, like many others who joined WB in the early years, I may dry up and dissapear....
An every tool swiss army knife is to heavy. A pen swiss army knife is not enough. This swiss army knife has everything I need and nothing I don't need.
WENGER SWISS ARMY KNIFE: TETON MODEL, NIB
2.5" 100% Serrated large blade
1.65" Clip point utility blade
2.4" Springless scissors with serrated, self-sharpening design
Phillips head screwdriver
Can opener
Patented locking screwdriver, cap lifter and wire stripper
Reamer, awl
Toothpick
Tweezers
Key ring
Actual Size: 3.25"
Weight: 2.6 oz
Limited lifetime warranty
Made in Switzerland
Buy your knife on eBay, you will cut its cost in half. Here's one that I use and it is $15 including shipping. No I am not selling this. This is the eBay guy I bought mine from.
http://cgi.ebay.com/WENGER-SWISS-ARM...photohost ing
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