What is a SAK to you?

[Dimashkieh]

To me, the first thing that comes to mind is MacGyver

The American soldiers start calling it SAK after WWII. Neither Victorinox nor Wenger called it a Swiss Army Knife prior to that.

What do you call this by the way?

 

[Wild Willie]

To me it's one of the first steps in the journey to self reliance.

 

[Storm 8593]

Nostalgia (for MacGuyver shows of my youth) self reliance, carrying on the Engineers practice of always having a knife in your pocket, a reason to not have to walk to the garage/ work van .
In a word : useful.

 

[GIRLYmann]

...What actually is a SAK? ...

its a multitasking assist tool
but since its been termed worldwide as a "knife";
so be it...and thanks to popular culture
it has become the foremost thinking
man's knife...

 

[hsherzfeld]

I like that. "The Thinking Man's Knife".

 

[knarfeng]

Sort of a philosophical question that I have been thinking about. What actually is a SAK? Do you consider it a multitool with a blade, or do you consider it a knife with added tools? And why? To me it is the latter. The way I see it, is that is basically a scout knife pattern that can be had in many configurations.

An interesting question. I've thought about it for several days. I've reached the conclusion that an SAK is a knife with added tools.

Why? Well, I was perusing an online knife store tonight and came across a several pages of Leatherman multi-tools. I looked at then and said, "The knife blades look usable, but they look like they would be clunky to use on that handle" Which is not what I say when I look at SAKs. With an SAK, the very usable knife blade is a given and the only question is which tools does that particular model have in addition to the blade(s).

 

[James Y]

Many great answers here.

I view SAKs as pocketknives with added tools.

A convoluted way to put is they’re pocketknives incorporating features that allow the user to appropriately (and safely) accomplish simple everyday tasks that people with knife blade-only pocketknives often snap their blades or mess up the edges attempting to accomplish. Or simply don’t do as well as an SAK. Turning screws, light prying, opening cans and bottles, scraping, etc.

Jim