Victorinox Vs. Wenger

Modoc ED said:
Gee, this is kinda like your Buck is better than Case thread over in the Traditional Forum.

Can you give us a picture of the Wenger scale chipping so we can get a better idea of what you're talking about? Hadn't heard that the Wenger blades chip easier than the Victorinox blades. Got any references for that? Pictures.
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The only SAK I've ever chipped was an SI, and that was from dropping the blade on the bail. I have a number of Vics and Wengers, and no problems with any bladewise.

I've neither heard nor experienced any problems with the durability of the tools either.

Really the only major difference I can find is that Wenger's springs are a bit softer, and that's not a quality issue. Hell my Buck 301 has the softest springs of any knife I own, and I doubt you'd find anyone complaining about their quality.

I think we make a big deal on these forums about minor differences between knives and tools, and greatly exaggerate those differences. I mean how many "OMG Tru Sharp sucks" comments have I seen, and yet it holds a great edge and gets wicked sharp from my own experiences.
 
I thought I'd give this old thread a bump

Modoc ED said:
Gee, this is kinda like your Buck is better than Case thread over in the Traditional Forum.
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Yep, and I qualified it there too. You're welcome to your own opinion.


Can you give us a picture of the Wenger scale chipping so we can get a better idea of what you're talking about? Hadn't heard that the Wenger blades chip easier than the Victorinox blades. Got any references for that? Pictures.
Click to expand...
No. I gave it away. I'm not sure I'd go to the trouble anyhow, as I have a feeling you're heckling me.


In other news, I haven't given up on Wenger altogether. They do seem to be more open-minded when it comes to new designs than Victorinox. I just ordered another one.

Here's the one I got, the EvoGrip 16:
16800_per_sku.png


Why would I buy a Wenger, if I think Victorinox is generally superior? Because of the specific design:

  • Locking blade, but without being too big for pocket carry.
  • Locking screwdriver
  • Grippy texture will be nice in the hand, and probably also keep it from falling out of the pocket
  • Curious about "self-sharpening, serrated, springless scissors." I assume this means the spring is integral to the knife handle, instead of being between the parts of the scissors, ala Victorinox
  • Polar explorer, Erik Larsen says it's good. ;)
 
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That's a great knife Smaug. Wenger does a really good job on inventing new styles of handles, adding locks to implements on their smaller models, etc. Although most of my SAKs are made by Victorinox, I certainly appreciate the Wengers. Still haven't tried a smaller model with locking blade though, that EvoGrip 16 looks great.
 
There shouldn't be any differences regarding quality, since Victorinox bought Wenger when they were in bad shape economically, in order to prevent foreign investors from overtaking Wenger and produce sub-standard knives with a swiss logo, eventually ruining the reputation of SAKs (no Wenger employees have been fired and Wenger is still allowed to produce as an independent company - swiss solidarity ftw). So it really doesn't matter if the knife that has all the specifications you're looking for is Vic or Wenger - you'll get swiss quality anyway. I own several knives of both brands and personally prefer Wenger's scissors and Vic's can opener.
 
@ Harayasu: if you get one and want the locking blade, be sure to get the Patagonia Expedition model. The "regular" one doesn't have it. I I read the specs on the Patagonia model, then ordered the red one, which is $20 cheaper, and only then noticed that the blade doesn't lock. Since it was Amazon Prime and their included two day shipping, it was too late to cancel. I'll have to return it on my dime.

@ Bilmiyorem: that is an interesting back story on the Wenger purchase. I think it was a wise decision on Victorinox's part. Some Chinese company would surely have bought them up, scrapped their designs, and degraded the image for the majority of folks who don't know the difference until it's too late. On the other hand, I doubt Swiss solidarity had much to do with it. The Swiss are cold business people. I'm sure the decision was 100% business-related.
 
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