Uses of the Almighty SAK

[batosai117]

In searching and hunting for my favorite variation of the Alox SAK a thought came across to me upon the arrival of my new black Alox Pioneer:

What are the minimal amount of tools to have on a SAK and how to maximize their uses?

I understand that there is a SAK for all of us depending on our daily uses, jobs, hobbies, etc...However, if you had to choose the bare minimum of tools on a SAK what would you choose and how would / could you implement them to maximize their uses?

So basically pick your Fantasy SAK with the thought of keeping it minimal and list how you would / could use each tool to get the most from it.

I'll start with the SAK that has grown on me recently, the Alox Cadet.

Blade - this is a given it can be used for virtually anything you can think of to cut.
Nail File - this I've come to use for several things, filing nails, ice pic, fire starter, untie knots.
Large Flathead / Bottle Opener / Wire Stripper - I use this as a mini pry bar, screw driver of course, bottle opener for Dos XX
Can opener / Small Flat head / Philips - besides the three listed uses I've used the hook shaped feature to pick things up after reading about someone on the forums using to to lift up hot pots from a fire, light scrapper such as scratch off tickets.

As most of you know I'm in waiting for my Cadet Plus still and once that arrives the addition of the Saw will complete my list for compact uses and bare minimum of what I would want to carry. The saw would be used for wood work, traps, fishing, hunting, camping, etc...

I would like to add scissors for their usefulness but I think they are more of a luxury and would make the added thickness too much for my pockets.

 

[Dangerously]

The alox bantam. I use the blade to open boxes from the various delivery guys feeding my retail therapy, and after beer o'clock, I use the combo tool to remove a cap or two. The ultimate light-duty sak.

 

[Student762]

main blade, pen blade, saw and awl. Donezo. Pen for whittling, main for heavier stuff and the sw to get the branches for the whittling. Awl because I use it for centering the drill bit when woodworking.

 

[8steve88]

Forrester in black, locking blades.

lock blade
corkscrew
can opener with
-small screwdriver
lockable cap lifter with
-screwdriver
-wire stripper
punch, reamer
key ring
woodsaw
tweezers
toothpick

Just about all I need in a SAK - My first.

 

[Spiggles]

Farmer- blade to cut whatever and to open wine bottles (those still with corks), reamer for reaming leather, wood, plastic, popping blisters and striking sparks from a fire steel. Saw for cutting wood and plastic, and the cap lifter- flat screw driver- wire stripper for all those purposes.
The scissors on the Huntsman are great for bonsai trimming, but it gets no pocket time.

 

[Alnamvet68]

Farmer- blade to cut whatever and to open wine bottles (those still with corks), reamer for reaming leather, wood, plastic, popping blisters and striking sparks from a fire steel. Saw for cutting wood and plastic, and the cap lifter- flat screw driver- wire stripper for all those purposes.
The scissors on the Huntsman are great for bonsai trimming, but it gets no pocket time.

I'm not aware of a Farmer with a cork screw.

 

[jackknife]

The bottle opener has multiple uses, like a lot of the SAK tools. Tonight, I was making a tuna casserole for dinner, and I had to open a jar of Jalapino peppers to dice up. It was a new jar, and for the life of me, I couldn't get the lid off. I took the SAK in the kitchen drawer and used the bottle opener to just lift the edge of the lid enough to break the vacuum and unscrew the top.

I also find the large screw driver tool to be very useful when cleaning my guns after a range session. Or light prying like the lid of a plastic spackle container, a can of Plastic wood, can of Minwax stain and sealer, and numerous other light pry open jobs. The small flat screw driver on the can opener make a great small flat phillips driver. The awl makes a great chisel ground second cutting edge for plastic zip ties and fine detail whittling and woodcraft.

Most SAK tools have many uses, limited by your imagination. You just have to think outside the box a bit.

 

[SAK Guy]

Have used the can opener to snag the recessed zipper on pairs of jeans. The zipper used to slide further down the front seam (and lock flat) while in the washer and I would only discover it after pulling them on...the zipper was down so far, it was impossible to pull up but was easily retrieved with the "hook" of the can opener. I always had my old Pioneer handy back then.

 

[Spiggles]

I'm not aware of a Farmer with a cork screw.

No cork screw- the blade does a great job of drawing a cork. Insert the blade down through the centre of the cork, two thirds of the way up the blade. Slowly twist and pull back the cork out of the bottle neck. Remove cork.

 

[Alnamvet68]

No cork screw- the blade does a great job of drawing a cork. Insert the blade down through the centre of the cork, two thirds of the way up the blade. Slowly twist and pull back the cork out of the bottle neck. Remove cork.

Ahhhh, I see it now...

 

[mg357]

Tinker large blade for whittling and overall general cutting tasks like cutting open boxes and envelopes screw drivers for tightening or loosening screws, reamer tool for woodworking small blade hardly ever used due to fear I would cut my fingers while I was opening or closing it.

 

[collim1]

I am a big fan of the Tinker and the alox Bantam. I really want to get my hands on an alox Lumberjack, but its a custom and the prices are outrageous.

The Bantam is the bare minimum, but is surprisingly capable IMO and the Tinker is the perfect combo of tools and size. The Lumberjack is essentially just a Bantam with a saw, which for me comes in handy around the hunting camp.