Is an SAK all you need?

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Truth.

 

99.999% of the time a SAK is all you need on a day to day basis, anything more is just overkill. My Champion or my Hercules have pretty much done it all.

 

If I were forced to carry one knife for the rest of my life it be an SAK, does that answer your question. But fortunately I am not forced to do such things so I have GEC, Rough Rider, Victorinox, Wenger, Kershaw, Spyderco, etc to choose from.

If I had to choose 1 knife though it be a Victorinox Waiter Plus if I could find one, or a Compact. Preferably with the scissors removed and replaced with the bit driver. If you let me go overboard I get the main blade made out of a different steel too.

SAK's are just well made, have good blade geometry and several other small useful tools that make them extremely useful. It's hard not to love them.

 

We don't carry knives, SAK or otherwise, because we need to. Most use they see is opening packaging you could have opened by hand with a little effort or with some other random object laying around.

It's the same when people see my collection and ask me why I need all those knives. My answer typically doesn't get any more meaningful than: "eerhm..because I like them?" I mean, really what can you say?

We carry and collect because we're all strangely attracted to knives. That's it. Maybe it's a caveman thing, I have no idea..

 

Probably but that wouldnt be any fun.


.01% story:

Last year I was at a going away party for a friend. We forgot to pack a knife to cut up the meat (ribs, chicken, steak)

A friend pulled out a smaller SAK, I produced my Benchmade 912. My 912 was used the rest of the night to cut and serve BBQ

 

A SAK will suffice for most anything urban...you could live a full urban life with only a SAK.

However, once in the bush a SAK can be overwhelmed.

 

I really started appreciating my Vic Signature at work. The blade for boxes, the nail file for tiny prying tasks, the scissors for plastic straps, and the pen for when I can't find one around. It's definitely everything I need and nothing more. It makes me question why I waited so long to get one.

 

I think a sak would do for many things. I edc a leatherman rebar and use that for at least 80% of chores, but I always carry a folder for quick access to a blade.

Multi-tools aren't exactly great on Ergos, edge retention, and locking mechanisms anyways...

 

Before I found BladeForums, all I had was an SAK. If I was forced to get rid of all but one of my knives, it would be the same SAK I started with. One knife can't be good at all things, but the SAK is a pretty solid, all-around product.

 

I find that I need pliers rather often, so my multi-tool and the blade in it are pretty much all I need on a daily basis; but I still carry an additional folder every day, usually a Kershaw Tension.

 

For a company to remain this long -
they must be doing it right...
Perhaps it's "army knife" nomenclature, must have help many with the decision making.
Many schools of thought exist with regards to which SAK model to settle for.
The general idea is probably to go minimalist.
Alox is a good choice for overall strength of construction and portability.
However it would certainly be far nicer if there was a real lock with that...

 

my sak's cover 99% of my knife needs... but my knife lust is never statisfied with any knife

 

Yup I have a different school of thought I want Alox scales with the pen, toothpick, tweezers. Slim it down as much as you can, if that means making those things smaller and tossing it all on one scale I think they should do it. Sadly I don't think that ever happen.

 

Most of the time a SAK will do it. Many posters have pointed out that a small percentage of the time you want something more out of an EDC and I think there is a flipside to that. I think a lot of the time the other tools on my SAK do things for me that a normal folder couldn't and I use those tools often. My SAK of choice for urban carry is the super tinker. The bottle opener and screwdrivers get used a lot. The tweezers see regular use. The scissors and punch awl see occasional use. The toothpick sometimes gets used to clean dust/gunk that gets in small crevices but the hook doesn't really serve a purpose for me.

My main point is a SAK does a lot, it's more than just a knife. If you need more than carry more but don't be afraid to try carrying just a SAK.

 

Using your argument the only tools I'd need are one pliers and one screw driver. The reason I carry a knife, particularly a SAK, is because it's the proper tool for so many applications.

 

Peter Hathaway Capstick wrote in one of his Africa books ("Safari: The Last Adventure" 1984, pp 85-6) that he'd "as soon go on safari without my rifle as my Swiss Army Knife......" and "once, on a bet (provided I was permitted to sharpen it twice), caped a bull buffalo, using only the large 2 1/2-inch blade." He goes on a couple more paragraphs extolling its virtues. While my Vic Spartan hasn't had quite those levels of adventure in its 20 or so years, it has performed above its expected weight class many times, and almost never leaves my side. I've got lots of knives, but the SAK is the only one I always carry.

 

Exactly!

 

Depends on the job at hand. I was doing window installation, vinyl siding, and basic carpentry for a few years as my bread and butter and all I needed and used was a craftsman utility knife. Always sharp with swapping out the blades on occasion. For everyday walking around, I can get by without carrying anything but sure an sak would work fine as would a simple barlow. Just wish they made an SAK with a main blade clip point or sheepsfoot blade. I'm not a big spearpoint carrier.

 

The basic camper pattern is a classic. I still keep several Ulster BSA style campers kicking around. But two counter points.

First, any multi blade knife/tool is a compromise between convenience of carrying just one compared to better utility of more dedicated designs. I use my knife for food prep and making wood shavings and find slip joints frustrating. The blades are usually too short to reach into the peanut butter jar and the ergos hurt my hands. I find this combination much more to my taste.


EDC Pair by Pinnah, on Flickr

Second, ever since Tim Leatherman produced the first PST out of being frustrated by the lack of pliers on his SAK when trying to fix his VW when traveling in Europe, the multitool vs SAK debate has raged. If the constraint is one tool only (silly given the utilty packed into the tiny size of tools like the Micra), then the choice boils down to the highly person decision between size weight and tool choice.

 

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Sorry. The Leatherman is superior in far to many ways. LOL Thanks for trolling me though.