Victorinox blade steels?

vwb563 said:
Same for me. If I were limited to only carrying 1 knife it would be a SAK. Right now as I type this I have a Vic Executive in my left pocket which I always carry everywhere everyday no matter what kind of larger knife that I may have clipped in my other pocket. I may go days without using the larger knife but the little Executive gets used multiple times per day either filing down a broken fingernail or using the scissors to cut or clip something. The tweezers are very useful as is the toothpick. If I encounter a small cutting chor I use the Executive's blade rathar than using and dulling the larger "clip on" knife's blade. To me the little SAK is indispensable.
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Yeah, if I were limited to just one pocketknife, it would be a SAK, hands down. There simply isn't any other single item that has the versatility that lets you address such a wide range of things. Very often in my life, a SAK in my pocket was my only knife, and right now, after a 1500 mile drive to spend Christmas with the daughter and her family in California, it's a SAK alone that's in my pocket right now. On Christmas morning the ability to not only cut open packages, but to deal with the Phillips screws on the "Some assembly may be required" gifts for the granddaughter. The thin almost scalpel sharp small. blade was good for slicing the end cap off some good cigars for the son-in-law and me, and popping open some cold Modelo's.

SAK, it's not just a knife, but a solution to a lot of those little jobs life throws your way!
 
jackknife said:
...But to exaggerate and say SAK's go dull after one or two uses is pure bullhocky. I've seen people who say this and when I look at their knives, they have done a botched up job of sharpening in the past and put way to steep an angle on the edge. I've seen more jobs of poor owner done sharpening screwing up of edges and then they blame the tool. If the thing goes dull after one use, the last amateur hour shaping job you did is more to blame. :rolleyes:
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Ah c'mon now. A little redirect please.

I'm not as old as you are, but I do know how to put a proper edge on a SAK. (It's not hard)

This being the internet, I can't prove it. The OEM edge from Victorinox has a pretty wide angle bevel. I use the 40° angle on my Sharpmaker, 20° per side. No micro bevel, because the primary bevel is so steep and the steel's so soft.

As you said, the edge comes back quickly. But I stand my ground that it sometimes dulls on one job. Maybe I have higher standards for sharpness than you? When I cut a piece of thick plastic wrap, I like it to fly through with almost no effort. I don't like having to force it, relying on the thin blade stock and full flat grind instead of a properly sharp edge.

I like to be able to cut a bunch of boxes into pieces (not just cutting tape and folding it) and have it still fly through a pork chop or plastic wrap. Or, put another way, it shouldn't need touch-up.
 
Also jackknife, please be respectful.

Just because I haven't been using SAKs for 50 years doesn't mean I don't have anything to add.
 
Smaug said:
I like to be able to cut a bunch of boxes into pieces (not just cutting tape and folding it) and have it still fly through a pork chop or plastic wrap. Or, put another way, it shouldn't need touch-up.
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I would say that any knife steel could be dulled on just one job depending on whats being cut. I don't care what your blade steel is if you use it to cut something like drywall it's going to dull quickly. I've used my SAK One Hand Trekker to cut up a large amount of cardboard and it would still shave arm hair so I'm pretty confident it will still "fly through a pork chop" also. SAK's are not as bad at edge holding as some people make them out to be.
 
vwb563 said:
I would say that any knife steel could be dulled on just one job depending on whats being cut. I don't care what your blade steel is if you use it to cut something like drywall it's going to dull quickly. I've used my SAK One Hand Trekker to cut up a large amount of cardboard and it would still shave arm hair so I'm pretty confident it will still "fly through a pork chop" also. SAK's are not as bad at edge holding as some people make them out to be.
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Plain edged Trekker or (the standard) serrated? 'Cuz it makes a difference.

It also makes a difference that a Trekker's blade is much longer than a typical 91mm Sam's.
 
Smaug said:
Plain edged Trekker or (the standard) serrated? 'Cuz it makes a difference.

It also makes a difference that a Trekker's blade is much longer than a typical 91mm Sam's.
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Plain edge. I'm not a big serrated fan.
 
Truth of the matter is that Victorinox's steel used in SAKs and its heat treat are more than adequate for 99% of needs of those carrying pocket knives. Even 99% of knife snobs' needs. They're a great company making iconic products with the model of what quality control should be. Buy and use them with confidence.
 
This may be a new model release. Blade, scissors, corkscrew and screwdriver/cap lifter/wire stripper. A small pen has been added to the usual tweezers and toothpick. I immediately removed the lanyard ring and eyeglass screwdriver.

asroLC1.jpg


Victorinox Compact
 
The compact has been around for a while. One of my favorites. Even has a nail-file.
 
I'd been worried about the SAK steel reading about how soft it was and after bad experiences edge holding with Case Tru-Sharp, Leatherman's 420HC and 1095. My EDC had been D2 or 154CM for years until that point. The idea of using the SAK steel as an EDC was rather worrying. Then I found out about an incredible model, the Pruner. A perfect blade combo for my purposes. For the price (really low) it seemed a no brainer to try one. I bought one and two years ago today put it to trial as my EDC. A month of carry and use, no sharpening or stropping. First task was a competition between it and my Opinel 6 INOX in dealing with a couple of large briskets. The Opinel was dull by the end of it, the SAK was not. Then it dealt with boxes, cutting up my food daily, packaging, etc for a month.

At the end it wouldn't shave or cleanly cut paper but in the real world it was still gliding through anything else I tried to cut with it. I learnt then that geometry trumps steel and that SAK's were incredible value for a reliable, well made pocket cutting tool. I gave the trial Pruner away to a friend and bought myself a nicer one. It's been in my pouch the majority of the time since. It's on my belt right now, you can prise it from my cold dead fingers.... :D

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Now if only they'd bring back the Settler. :)
 
leghog said:
Truth of the matter is that Victorinox's steel used in SAKs and its heat treat are more than adequate for 99% of needs of those carrying pocket knives. Even 99% of knife snobs' needs. They're a great company making iconic products with the model of what quality control should be. Buy and use them with confidence.
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Absolutely agree. Since they have been around for over 130 years now I would say their products are adequate and work for 99% or more for most people. The only people i know who say their steel is too soft or their products perform poorly are steel snobs. These are the same people who just a few years back were praising S30V as a super steel but now say its merely adequate since stuff like S110V and REX 121 have come out. I've used some of these new super steels as they're called and I can say this, they do keep cutting and cutting but, they can be super chippy. For example I once used a Vic Trekker's blade to open a can of soup. The edge was turned and rolled in several places and certainly would no longer shave arm hair but about 15 minutes on my diamond flat stones it was back to hair shaving condition with no visible damage to the edge. I did the same thing on another can of soup with a S90V blade and the edge was so chipped out it looked like a serrated edge. I had to bring out the Apex Pro sharpener to repair the edge which took well over an hour of hard work. So which is better? A blade steel that holds a decent edge and is very durable and easily sharpened and repaired or one that holds an extreme edge but is brittle and much much harder to sharpen and repair? For me I will take the more durable steel everytime.
 
leghog said:
Truth of the matter is that Victorinox's steel used in SAKs and its heat treat are more than adequate for 99% of needs of those carrying pocket knives. Even 99% of knife snobs' needs.
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This is such a great statement. It should be quoted in practically every thread. :D
 
That is why in the "one knife for the rest of your life threads" SAKs get high marks for folks that use them and depend on them. I personally don't need to latest and greatest new steel. I am certainly interested, but the importance is not significant enough for me to buy a knife specifically to try it out. My SteelWill Mini Cutjack in M390 was the last knife I purchased to try out a newer steel and that is likely not going to change for a while.

I suspect I am turning into a "modified" jackknife (the person, not the knife) as my needs change. The first step is not caring if your regular carry knife has red plastic handles. ;)
 
vwb563 said:
Absolutely agree. Since they have been around for over 130 years now I would say their products are adequate and work for 99% or more for most people. The only people i know who say their steel is too soft or their products perform poorly are steel snobs. These are the same people who just a few years back were praising S30V as a super steel but now say its merely adequate since stuff like S110V and REX 121 have come out. I've used some of these new super steels as they're called and I can say this, they do keep cutting and cutting but, they can be super chippy. For example I once used a Vic Trekker's blade to open a can of soup. The edge was turned and rolled in several places and certainly would no longer shave arm hair but about 15 minutes on my diamond flat stones it was back to hair shaving condition with no visible damage to the edge. I did the same thing on another can of soup with a S90V blade and the edge was so chipped out it looked like a serrated edge. I had to bring out the Apex Pro sharpener to repair the edge which took well over an hour of hard work. So which is better? A blade steel that holds a decent edge and is very durable and easily sharpened and repaired or one that holds an extreme edge but is brittle and much much harder to sharpen and repair? For me I will take the more durable steel everytime.
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Great post.

Not too long from now, S110V, M390 and all the super steels of today will be seen by many in knife-related forums as "junk steels" and yesterday's news, in the same way that many now view S30V and S35VN (which, in context, are not "old" steels at all).

I've read posts from some people who favor super steels that after use, whether it's needed or not, they touch it up in order to delay or avoid having to do a bear of a resharpening job. So what's the difference between that and a "lesser" steel that works nicely for its purposes, yet is extremely easy to touch up or outright resharpen, without the stress of worrying about the inevitable?

There are also videos of people using their one-handed knives for things like opening cans, etc. The kicker is supposed to be if there's little or no tip or edge damage. With a standard SAK, you can simply use the can opener (which works like a charm), with zero edge or tip damage to any knife blade, AND have a much quicker, cleaner (and more sanitary) cut to boot.

I'm not saying that "super steels" are bad. I own and use knives in some myself. But they cannot displace SAKs. As others have mentioned, if I absolutely HAD to have one knife and one knife only, it would be a SAK. I've done it before and could do it again if I had to. Even with a clip knife in my pocket, I would still feel "naked" without my SAKs with me, because no matter how good a single-blade knife is, in comparison it's still a one-trick pony compared to a good SAK.

Jim
 
jackknife said:
A week later a new Victorinox pioneer arrived in the mail. I was blown away. Totally unexpected. Outright abuse admitted and they still sent me a new knife.
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well done, perhaps it was a reward for the obvious years of use you gave their product, and that to them was such a compliment, that they rewarded you with a new one, because the obvious wear, tear, and abuse showed you took the knife everywhere and anywhere which showed respect to the company, that their tool has truly served you well, and every knife making company wishes the same years of service for every customer which buys from them; and so you got a new one. this reminds me of a time where someone showed me their spydie endura, totally used and worn, he told me it was 15 years old, the snap was still crisp, no play, a truly beautiful machine. i guess this goes to show you folding knives don't really break all too often. sorry for the rant :p
 
James Y said:
Not too long from now, S110V, M390 and all the super steels of today will be seen by many in knife-related forums as "junk steels"
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just like gaming computers, they come out with a better one each year, but to be fair, many steels that are over 10 years old and more are still decent, in my opinion anyway, for example. 8Cr13MoV, i have since abandoned that steel and all others related, but in one of my past jobs i abused a folding knife in that material and it put up with me, later gave it to someone there when i left the company. maybe i was lucky, but it was the kershaw brawler
 
James Y said:
Even with a clip knife in my pocket, I would still feel "naked" without my SAKs with me, because no matter how good a single-blade knife is, in comparison it's still a one-trick pony compared to a good SAK.

Jim
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And that boys and girls, is the bottom line.
 
I carry sak because of the convenience of having other tools along with a blade or two which are adequate for every day use. Compared to almost any other knife steel it is cheap junk stainless.
 
Id pick Victorinox or Wenger sak as my only knife anytime,they cant be beat,and steel is pretty good,easy to sharpen and touch up,and blades are thin and cut like razor.Other tools are very useful too.One of best knives ever!!!
 
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