Useful picnic knife?

C

csp20108

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Sep 9, 2002
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I've been looking for a good picnic knife for a while that can cut fruit, cheese, dried sausage and bread without hassle, and also has some kind of fork for serving (not necessarily eating). I like 4" or larger blades for food prep but I've yet to find anything that seems reasonably useful, until I came across this. Does anyone know anything about this knife:

http://www.internationalcutlery.com/picknif.html

It's called the "italian travel/picnic knife" and has two 4.5" blades and a combination fork/bottle opener. It looks pretty handy for picnic (although a corkscrew would be nice), but I've never heard of "International Cutlery" and I'm suspicious of the knife's quality. Can anyone offer any info?
 
From the link: "International Cutlery, formerly Hoffritz for Cutlery, has been America's premier cutlery retailer for over 60 years."

csp20108, thanks for the memories! I bought an almost identical knife from Hoffritz many years ago -- and I still have it, in my utensil drawer. I used to carry it in my pack or briefcase, just in case. It didn't get a lot of use but it worked fine when I needed it.

Actually, I did use the serrated sheepsfoot blade as my usual breadknife quite a bit.

Hoffritz was always pricey. I guess $50 is what you will have to pay for anything like that. The fit and finish on mine is pretty good, and it is sturdy. If they're still made the same, it will serve you well for years. Mine has the fork, but no built-in bottle-opener.
 
As soon as I read your description I thought of the knife that lives in my picnic cooler. Then I saw the picture and was slightly amazed. Mine is the same knife w/o the fork. I've had it for many years and it gets used exclusivly for the fruit, cheese, dried sausage and bread my family loves to munch on while hiking or fishing for a day.
I expect one day my son will use it on his family outings.
 
Ya' know, I'm trying to solve the same problem. I thought I had it fixed when I bought a Buck Alpha Hunter. It has the lines more of a bocho than a drop point hunting knife. Alas, it was still to big for a rough and ready camp chef's knife, but a great 'walk around in the woods' knife. I wound up giving it to an elder in my church who hunts in Canada.

Then, I was still short a workable knife. I talked to my buddy (a Buck salesman) and he is getting me a deal on their mini-Alpha Hunter. It has all of the great feartures of the big knife, but it's ina reasonable, and useable size. I'll get it next week, sharpen it on the Edge-Pro, and let you know how it whacks vegetables.
 
The Buck sounds good. Of course, the archtypical "picnic knife" -- in your own choice of sizes -- is the Opinel.
 
Originally posted by csp20108
I've been looking for a good picnic knife for a while that can cut fruit, cheese, dried sausage and bread without hassle, and also has some kind of fork for serving (not necessarily eating). I like 4" or larger blades for food prep but I've yet to find anything that seems reasonably useful, until I came across this. Does anyone know anything about this knife:

http://www.internationalcutlery.com/picknif.html

It's called the "italian travel/picnic knife" and has two 4.5" blades and a combination fork/bottle opener. It looks pretty handy for picnic (although a corkscrew would be nice), but I've never heard of "International Cutlery" and I'm suspicious of the knife's quality. Can anyone offer any info?
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Fork? That little "thingy" looks like a golf divot repair tool. Although the blade is shorter than the length you prefer, you might be better off with a Case Hobo. (At least the "fork" looks a little more efficient than that Italian job). My favorite picnic knife is a one-hand opening SAK Trailmaster. (It has no fork--so you'll have to have a separate fork or, better yet, eat with your hands).
 
csp, A.G. Russell sells a fruit testing knife which looks similar to the knife you're looking at but without the fork. You can always use the narrow knife blade like a toothpick for serving the cheese and sausage.
 
My Dad and I always have fun with people at picnics and potlucks with our novelty Rambo knives. As a retirement gift and a joke, my father was given a set of those Rambo movie knives. They're not really functional imho, but they are big and scary looking to people who don't know any better. We each bring one and set up a mark.

The shtick is that he'll start serving food with his huge scary looking blade and inevitably someone will complain about the big knife. So then I come along with "Dad stop using that ridiculous knife; use a sensible knife." and I hand him a knife that has saw teeth on the spine of the blade and is about an inch longer than the one he was using :D

Works every time :D
 
Thanks for the helpful info everyone. I might just get this knife and try it out based on Esev's and Len's comments. The way I see it, the ideal picnic knife has to be more than just a blade - it should be a combination bread knife, paring knife and serving fork, be pocketable and have a corkscrew and bottle opener. For some reason, I.C. has the only thing that comes close to this. The rest fall short either because they are just solo blades or designed for eating and not serving. If anyone knows of anything else that might fit into the "picnic knife" category, I'd love to hear about it. I just can't believe there isn't a SAK with this use in mind. It seems like all they'd have to do is make some longer blades, throw in a lock, include the classic corkscrew and bottle opener, and voila. They could even call it the P-SAK, although Emerson might have some problems with that. Maybe the SPK?
 
Originally posted by csp20108
I just can't believe there isn't a SAK with this use in mind. It seems like all they'd have to do is make some longer blades, throw in a lock, include the classic corkscrew and bottle opener, and voila. They could even call it the P-SAK, although Emerson might have some problems with that. Maybe the SPK?
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Victorinox has the Picniker model, http://www.swissarmybrands.com/webstore/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=2351&category=41 , but there's no fork.
 
Thanks for the suggestion, M. Case and a few others have offerings with forks and knives, but most of them would be useless for cutting up a loaf of bread or other larger foods. A 3" blade just can't get through a 10" diameter round bread without a major effort, or a big wheel of cheese without a major cleanup. I know. I've tried. Did you ever try picking brie out of a slip joint? Not fun.
 
I second the Opinel recommendation.
The Opinel No. 12 has a 4.5 by 1 inch blade.
BTW the N0. # tells you the length in cm of the blade.
 
I have a V'nox knife called the "Picknicker" (serrated version). It's one of the larger locking models. As the name implies it's perfect for such an endeavor. Check it out, you may like it.
 
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