? about victorinox knives

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hankist

Joined
Aug 15, 2007
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hi - i just bought a new old stock victorinox knife , i think from the 70's or early 80's - regular large size, red plastic handles, has a different style swiss cross logo and does not have a tweezers or toothpick, and the awl/punch/reamer does not have a hole in it - the closest modern model i can compare it to is a huntsman , but without the parcel hook - my question is about the liners , they seem to be aluminum - are the newer ones steel or aluminum ? - it also feels a little lighter than i think it should - i do not have any regular red plastic handled victorinox knives to compare it to - the alox soldier model is the only other victorinox i have - so, does anyone know if they always used aluminum ? or do they use steel now? - could anyone tell me the years they made them without the tweezers and toothpick and with a different style cross logo ?( i am guessing at the age based on things i have seen and the packaging ) - any help would be great - thanks - marc
 
i thought someone may say that - but i dont know how to put pics up - could someone tell me ?
 
IMG455_zps31c6fa10.jpg.html
 
sorry they are so big - i just went to photobucket and signed up and tried to figure out how to do it - dont know why they are so big - and sorry for so many posts , but i have never done this before and just decided to wing it without instructions- marc
 
There are still 2 apparent grades of SAKs; with embossed crests and with inlaid crests. Older inlays were gold coloured and nowadays (past 40 years) they're silver colour. I've bought SAKs new since the early 1970s and did notice at that time that the embossed versions said Elinox instead of Victorinox on the big blade, the scales were matt instead of shiny, and the corkscrews did not have a groove along the coils. My first SAK (found in 1965!) did not have a toothpick or tweezers but very few models of the past 40 years don't. Noteworthy: profile of the smaller knife blade changed considerably in around the late-1970s (I still prefer the older style) and your knife has the current version.
So, no your knife is not an oldie but merely one from their budget line, likely the mid to late 1980s.
In my foolish youth I disassembled quite a few SAKs so as to swap old blades for new ones and corkscrews for Philips bits etc and they've always had aluminum plates as a frame.
 
now that i know it is an economy model - does anyone know the difference between regular and economy models? - i noticed that the screwdriver does not have a half stop - this may be one thing - and the lack of a toothpick and tweezers.
 
I don't know if the handle material is the cellidor of the regular models, or a cheaper plastic.
All of them are good, though.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
I don't know if the handle material is the cellidor of the regular models, or a cheaper plastic.
All of them are good, though.
Click to expand...

Cheaper, but actually better. Cellidor is a legacy plastic, and although more elegant and tough enough, it can react badly to some common chemicals, such as found in many sunscreens. Nylon is impervious to those and is also slightly grippier, more easily handled when wet.
 
hankist said:
now that i know it is an economy model - does anyone know the difference between regular and economy models? - i noticed that the screwdriver does not have a half stop - this may be one thing - and the lack of a toothpick and tweezers.
Click to expand...

I was much younger 40 years ago. But for sure at the time I noticed the lack of a groove around the corkscrew on the budget brands as well as the words Elinox instead of Victorinox on the big blade. And I was quite upset when the small blade profile suddenly changed on all of them. But the embossed crest vs inlaid crest (to me) were the biggies for differentiation. Unlikely there was a difference in quality (steel and assembly) but young bucks like myself did notice the difference in price.
"Victoria-Stainless" makes 'top drawer' affordable pocket knives and I've never had occasion nor purpose to shop elsewhere because of that. I do know that Vic bought out Wenger after 9/11 but their goods (from experience) are just not quite as 'smart' (user friendly).
 
well - the plastic handle is just like the regular vic's i have seen , very smooth - but as far as the logo , i don't know what to call it - it's not just painted on , it's cut into the handle , then painted in the grooves , but has no metal in it (don't think i have seen one with metal in it),so it's not like a shield on a traditional knife, the blades seem thinner to me , don't i don't have anything to compare them to since i know the soldier model i have has thicker blades than the regular models - thanks for the replies - marc
 
hankist said:
well - the plastic handle is just like the regular vic's i have seen , very smooth - but as far as the logo , i don't know what to call it - it's not just painted on , it's cut into the handle , then painted in the grooves , but has no metal in it (don't think i have seen one with metal in it),so it's not like a shield on a traditional knife, the blades seem thinner to me , don't i don't have anything to compare them to since i know the soldier model i have has thicker blades than the regular models - thanks for the replies - marc
Click to expand...

On second look, they are clearly not the nylon scales I thought they were but likely cellidor. At this point I'm out of here.:o
 
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