Just can't warm to SAKs

stargawker said:
When I was young, I thought all the gadgets on Swiss Army Knives were cool. But now that I use knives more, I really appreciate knives that are single purpose with 1-2 blades rather than multitools.

Yes, I can see the benefit of having a multipurpose tool in my pocket, but a regular traditional pocket knife with 1-2 blades just feels more stable and less thick in my hands when I use it for cutting or whittling.

Am I the only one? Or are there some others out there that aren't drawn to SAKs?
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I have grown to really love having a SAK in my pocket because I actually use quite a few tools on it almost daily. However, I can appreciate what you're saying. Without reading the entire thread (so I don't know if this has been mentioned) I think a Victorinox Pioneer or Farmer might be a good compromise. It's very minimal and only has about 4 or 5 tools on it--including a very nice blade.

Personally, I'm the polar opposite of you. I can't imagine carrying a knife that is only a knife when I know I can carry a tool that is a knife and so much more. If/when I need a blade, I have a blade...but if/when I need a screwdriver or pliers, I have those too. I like knives but I like multitools 10x more.
 
I've tried and I can't like SAKs or traditionals. They just don't do anything for me, mostly because I like being able to open my knife one handed as often times I'll have something in my other hand, along with the convenience associated with not having to use two hands to open my knife.
 
Link to non-BF Dealer for a one-handed opening SAK Removed.
1) Do not post links to non-BF Dealers.
2) Do not post about modern designs for one-hand openers.
 
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As far as I'm concerned, character isn't built into a knife with fancy scales or polished metal. The more times I use a knife, the more scratches I put on it, the more I become accustomed to its feel in my hand, the more character it has. I love how the glossy new cellidor dulls with pocket time, accumulating pits and scratches, wearing faster than the Swiss Cross emblem so that the metal sits proud on an old knife. The knife also is a fine example of Swiss practicality, precision, and ingenuity. I will always carry a Classic on my key ring. It is a trusted tool I use every day.
 
Cory Hess said:
To me SAKs have more in common with modern flippers than traditional slipjoints. I really don't care how long something has been made. It's a set of blades/tools sandwiched between two ugly slabs of metal/plastic. There's absolutely no art or character to them. They are mass produced with no love or care put into them at all. They are pretty much the opposite of what companies like GEC and CSC are trying to be. They seem to line up more with the business model of Spyderco or Kershaw. There's nothing traditional about that. I'm sure that they come in handy, just like I'm sure thumb studs come in handy, it's just not for me.

It doesn't really matter to me what anybody else carries or prefers. If a SAK works for you, I'm happy that it does and I am in no way trying to knock that or convince you otherwise. The thread was simply asking for opinions, and stargawker made a good point in saying that we're not really getting much in the way of people saying why they don't get into SAKs. Likewise, trying to convince me that I'm wrong and listing reasons why I should like a SAK is probably wasted time. I respect everybody's opinion, and hope that you can respect mine. I'm going to go crawl into my bunker now and wait out the fallout. :cower:
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I'm trying hard to find the flipper and ugliness...

:)

 
link2derek said:
Carry a blade and a multi-tool, and you'll be covered:

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Nod. That's my approach as well. Nice combo. Mine...
EDC Pair by Pinnah, on Flickr

Alnamvet68 said:
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The Alox models are like that old gospel hymn, "Almost Persuaded". I like the thin metal construction. It's more classic looking to me as it harkens back to the old US military "demo knives" which preceded them. I could almost pull the trigger on one but don't for the same reason I don't carry a demo knife nor my Ulster BSA knives...

For me, the tool selection falls flat.

I use all of the tools on my Micra on a regular basis. There's not a single one of those tools that I would to not have in my pocket every single day. The problem with the thin, light and pretty demo-knife looking Alox models is that they just don't offer a matching tool selection to match the Leatherman Micra.

The Bruins weren't on last night so I was bored and because of this thread, I dug around the Victorinox site looking for a knife that could offer me the same functionality as a single blade knife + Micra combo.... I couldn't find one. The Super Tinker was sort of close but gives up the super small driver and nail file. Going bigger than that and I'm getting into pocket brick territory and definitely getting into the odd ergonomics of a thick block with a blade off-center (I dislike knives on MTs for the same reason, btw).

If there was an Alox (or any) SAK that matched the Micra + single blade knife combo, that would become more interesting to me. Charm aside, for me and my needs, the SAKs don't even deliver on the utility front.
 
dogstar said:
As far as I'm concerned, character isn't built into a knife with fancy scales or polished metal. The more times I use a knife, the more scratches I put on it, the more I become accustomed to its feel in my hand, the more character it has. I love how the glossy new cellidor dulls with pocket time, accumulating pits and scratches, wearing faster than the Swiss Cross emblem so that the metal sits proud on an old knife. The knife also is a fine example of Swiss practicality, precision, and ingenuity. I will always carry a Classic on my key ring. It is a trusted tool I use every day.
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I'm right there with you on the character thing. I think this is a more elegant way of saying what I attempted to. To me character is a measure of the time that has been spent with a knife. I prefer a knife that somebody spent time on. Somebody sat and planned out the ergonomics. Somebody spent time considering the dimensions and materials and how it was going to balance and feel in hand and look. Then somebody sat and actually made the knife. GEC uses over 200 hand operations to produce a knife. When I open a new GEC knife I know that it took somebody with decades of experience hours and hours to complete this knife. It doesn't roll off an assembly line and get sandwiched into a clamshell without ever having been touched by human hands. I can come here and read about the love Charlie has for his old jack knives and see that he spent time trying to recreate them in my Washington Jack. I'd imagine designing a new SAK involves some focus group studies on which tools are wanted and a computer calculating the ideal size for those tools. Of course there is no need to worry about design or ergonomics, because every one of them is identical in those regards. I guess what I'm saying is that to me a traditional is a knife that already has that character, meaning time cared for, built into it before it ever leaves the factory. SAKs and modern knives don't have that. You prefer a blank slate that you can paint with the character gained through time spent with you. I prefer a completed work of art that I can touch up here and there. One of the great things about the world of knives is that there are so many options out there that everybody can have their itch scratched.
 
I think SAK's are fine and dandy. I've got to admit to liking them more after this thread. :rolleyes: The fact that I'm not as enthused as some probably has more to do with the fact that I really kind of like single blade knives. Got plenty of old Stockmen and other multi-bladed patterns due to bang for the buck but a single piece of sharpened, reasonably decent steel that you don't have to baby is a pretty darn versatile tool in a small package.

While at work I empty my pockets of everything but one knife.

There's this...

shop4multitools_victorinox_swiss_army_knife_solo_blade.jpg


I suppose and very accepted and friendly looking everywhere, which is a big thing.

But, how's the steel? I really don't know. Never heard accolades.

I like SAK's and have two. One is sentimental and one gets carried occasionally. Perfectly decent respectable knives with good grooming habits and a clean record. :)
 
davek14 said:
But, how's the steel? I really don't know. Never heard accolades.

I like SAK's and have two. One is sentimental and one gets carried occasionally. Perfectly decent respectable knives with good grooming habits and a clean record. :)
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The steel in SAK's is fine, and it's maybe the most under rated knife steel in the business. Like I said, I've been using SAK's since 1969, and I haven't had one go dull or self destruct while cutting on anything a pocketknife will be used for. People get too hung up on the steel issue. A SAK blade will do whatever you need to do in 99.9% of your daily life just fine. If it gets a bit dull, it can be sharpened up on just about anything from a coffee mug bottom, top edge of a car window, cardboard back of a legal pad or any notebook pad, smooth stone from a creek. And it will only take a few minutes of your time.

Every knife knut needs a SAK or three around. They really are great pocket knives with a ton of versatility built into them.
 
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jackknife said:
the steel in sak's is fine, and it's maybe the most under rated knife steel in the business. Like i said, i've been using sak's since 1969, and ihaven't had one go dull or self destruct while cutting on anything a pocketknife will be used for. People get too hung up on the steel issue. A sak blade will do whatever you need to do in 99.9% of your daily life just fine. If it gets a bit dull, it can be sharpened up on just about anything from a coffee mug bottom, top edge of a car window, cardboard back of a legal pad or any notebook pad, smooth stone from a creek. And it will only take a few minutes of your time.

Every knife knut needs a sak or three around. They really are great pocket knives with a ton of versatility built into them.
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+1 :)
 
davek14 said:
But, how's the steel? I really don't know. Never heard accolades.
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I think it depends on what era you're talking about.

Older SAKs were hardened to around 54Rc according to Victorinox's literature and in practice on the stones, I found it to easily produce a tenacious wire edge.

Current SAKs are advertised as being hardened to 56Rc, which puts it in the range of Case's Tru-Sharp.

My understanding is that the steel is similar to Sandvik 12C27 (used by Mora and Opinel - both of whom take it to 58Rc), which is to say it's a low carbide steel that takes a keen edge, can be sharpened easily but won't hold an edge as long as, say, 440C.
 
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