The Victorinox Classic SD is a tiny little lozenge-shaped thing, from which have sprung endless variants that are all known as a “Victorinox Swiss Army Knife.”
They get rave reviews, users love the low prices, and are generally favorably received by weekend warriors and hardcore survivalists alike (despite the fact that they might not be the first choice).
So, regardless of which model has caught your attention, and what you intend to do with it, rest assured you’re going to like what you get.
And these are the top 3 reasons why you will – especially if you’ve never used one before.
The Ergonomics Are Sublime
If there’s one thing you’ll notice about most Swiss Army Knives, it’s that they’re bright red. The next thing will (probably) be the odd shape.
Most of these tools bear the familiar lozenge-shaped inspiration of the Classic SD. They’re almost all nondescript, ovoid-shaped things.
This looks unappealing, and some might even go far enough to say it is slippery and impractical, let alone not comfortable.
Except that isn’t true, which will become apparent the very second you pick one up, open it, and use it.
Victorinox Swiss Army Knife tools, for all their simplicity and their apparent disdain for design trends in the knife community, are really quite functional and have very practical and comfortable grips.
The lozenge thing they have going on is free of hot spots and sharp corners, with a good distribution of surface area for contact points between the tool’s scales and your hands.
The result? A tool with a grip that is both comfortable and surprisingly slip-resistant.
The Steel Actually Holds an Edge Very Well
Victorinox is not as vocal as some knife manufacturers are about the sort of steel they use in their knives and tools.
All the same, they don’t keep it under wraps to hide quality controls the way some may. In fact, Victorinox has released their steel chemistry, if you know where to look for it.
One report in WorldSteel.org disclosed Victorinox’s “recipe” as a martensitic stainless steel alloy with 15% chrome, over half a percent of carbon, and a smidge each (about .5%) of molybdenum, manganese, and silicon.
If you didn’t know it was Victorinox’s steel, you might think that’s a high-quality alloy; and it is.
For those of you already familiar with Victorinox, you know their alloy is low-maintenance, easy to sharpen, and fairly tough. It also holds an edge well.
Once you get it sharp, it’ll stay fairly sharp through at least a few boxes or an equivalent chore, and that’s more than we can say for most other budget steels.
They Are Actually Very Low Maintenance
Last but not least, we aren’t kidding when we claim that a Victorinox Swiss Army Knife is basically maintenance-free. In fact, if they weren’t folding knives, they’d be zero-maintenance.
The worst part about taking care of a Swiss Army Knife is keeping the pivot points clear of dust and grime, which they will naturally accumulate. As for the steel, it’s pretty much good to go in all seasons.
You would really need to try to get this alloy to rust, thanks to its sky-high chromium content. Honestly, these knives can get wet, even be submerged in saltwater, you name it, they’re pretty tough.
That doesn’t even account for utility; any given Swiss Army Knife is likely to have a large and small blade, can opener, bottle opener, screwdriver, corkscrew, reamer, punch, magnifying glass, wire stripper, and even a fish scaler or hook disgorger. The amount of utility boggles the mind.
We’re not saying to do that, but get a SAK and see for yourself just how tough one of these little things can be.
Where to Get Your Next Victorinox Swiss Army Knife
Whether you’re looking for your first or your fiftieth Victorinox Swiss Army pocket knife, visit White Mountain Knives at WhiteMountainKnives.com.
They carry an amazing selection of these multi-tools at great prices and offer free shipping, too. Check out their website today.
