Opinions on Victorinox Climber/Spartan

D

davide

Joined
Apr 5, 2009
Messages
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I'm thinking of getting one of these two. They seem pretty similar save for the Climber having scissors and a hook. Does anyone have opinions on either of these? How much thicker/heavier is the climber than the spartan?

Also, how is the 125th Anniversary Edition finish? Is it metal or plastic? Thanks.
 
I have no idea about the finish on the anniversary edition. However, if I were forced to EDC only one SAK for an indefinite period of time in a non-rustic setting, it would be the Climber.

I have no use for the hook, but having a blade, an awl, lifter/driver, opener/driver, cork screw, and a pair of scissors is just too dang useful to pass up:thumbup: I can get by with just a Spartan no problem as well, but the scissors just come in so useful when in a situation where even a small blade would be frowned upon.

I am planning on picking up a stay glow version of the climber for a trip to Europe this fall. It should be all I need for the week.:thumbup:
 
I'd go with the Climber. It was the second ever SAK I had and it still sees a lot of pocket time. I have nothing against the Spartan, I own a couple, but I very rarely carry one. Once you carry and use the scissors you'll wonder how you ever lived without them.

PS I believe the 125th scales are printed on, not metal.
 
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Thanks for the opinions. Is there any SAK with the features of a climber but a locking blade? I'm not sure if that's a feature I want or not. I had a Swiss Army knock off as a kid and never hurt myself with it, but after reading stories here about guys getting their fingers chopped by improperly closing slip joints I'm really wary of using one. Maybe an SAK would be a good way of easing myself back into using slipjoints.
 
Interesting site. According to that there aren't any locking blade models with scissors. I guess I'll go with the climber then.

edit: Just used that site to find the Wenger Traveler in Stainless Steel. Looks to be similar to the climber except instead of the small second blade it has a nail file, and it ditches the hook. Interesting. Edit2: looks like the traveler is slightly smaller than the Climber and more expensive. If I like the Climber maybe I'll pick a stainless traveller up down the road.
 
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As to the dangers of slipjoints, I'd not worry. Just so long as you remember that it can fold in the middle you won't do anything that will lead to it happening. TBH I don't know of an action that you would want to do that would put you at risk.
 
Gareth UK said:
As to the dangers of slipjoints, I'd not worry. Just so long as you remember that it can fold in the middle you won't do anything that will lead to it happening. TBH I don't know of an action that you would want to do that would put you at risk.
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I see what you're saying. My fear is mostly in closing it on my fingers as I close the blade. I'm used to closing liner locks and opinels which I do without even looking one handed. I know that there will be a learning curve in adjusting to closing a blade that snaps shut.

In terms of doing things that would force the blade to close, I was cutting some extra holes in my leather belt today using my opinel and then my leatherman wave, both of which locked. If I had been using slipjoints the blade may have snapped shut. Of course, if I had had the swiss army climber with me I could have just used the reamer/awl for that job.
 
I going to break my own rule and throw in a knife that you haven't ask about. The Victorinox Explorer. It has scissors, but also has an in-line phillips screwdriver and magnifying glass. Yes, I know ..but the Swiss Champ also has ... x, y, & z. The Explorer is still comfortable for pocket carry and the phillips is well worth (to me) the extra layer.

My 2 cents,
 
Nuke_Spook said:
I going to break my own rule and throw in a knife that you haven't ask about. The Victorinox Explorer. It has scissors, but also has an in-line phillips screwdriver and magnifying glass. Yes, I know ..but the Swiss Champ also has ... x, y, & z. The Explorer is still comfortable for pocket carry and the phillips is well worth (to me) the extra layer.

My 2 cents,
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The Explorer (+) has a very nice set of tools for an around the town EDC. I have one and it or my Juice S2 are my light alternatives when i don't want to strap on my full size multi-tools. I do prefer 2 layer SAKs for the slim profile, but the Explorer (+) offers some great tools :)
 
Thanks for the tip on the explorer guys. My only issue with the explorer is that it has the screwdriver instead of the corkscrkew, and I figure that the corkscrew will come in more handy.
 
I stand corrected. I must have been thinking about another SAK. Sorry about that. There I go spreading misinformation. I feel like wikipedia.
 
I just ordered a Climber from Chelsea Watches via Amazon.com. Here's hoping I assumed correctly about what tools I'll find most useful.
 
You'll be hard-pressed to find a tool with a better selection of basic tools:thumbup: Now, if I am stomping around in the woods, I pack a Farmer or a Fireman. In that setting, a saw is very handy.

However, in the standard day to day urban environment, the Climber does just about everything I need:thumbup:
 
The Swiss Climber came in today and boy are my finger nails tired. It's a bit thicker than I expected but for $19 shipped it feels like a great deal. The main blade came super sharp, but the secondary one seems like it needs a little touching up.

I'm not really sure what to do with the hook. It's really hard to open, which is just as well since I don't expect to ever use it.

I guess only time will tell how much I like the Climber, but it's off to a good start. Thanks for all your recommendations.

But wow, I'm gonna have to get used to my nails being torn up.

edit: I noticed that the can opener is not as tight as the bottle opener to open and close. The BO is extrememly rigid, whereas the CO feels a bit smoother/looser. Is this the same on your guys' models? I just finished trying to open up some cans so I'm not sure if I loosened it up in the process,
 
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Maybe what you're feeling is the bottle openers to 'locking' open positions? It locks in half way open so that it is perpendicular to the handle. I believe it also has a stronger backspring, so it takes more force to disengage the spring from the open position.

Honestly, SAKs are a really neat and fun way to collect knives/tools while not breaking the bank :) I started with just getting an Explorer+, but I quickly picked up a Rambler for my keyring. In the next few months I added a Compact, Camper, Cadet, Super Tinker and Rally... With their low price point, you never feel too guilty when you add another to your collection :D
 
Lock1454 said:
Honestly, SAKs are a really neat and fun way to collect knives/tools while not breaking the bank :) I started with just getting an Explorer+, but I quickly picked up a Rambler for my keyring. In the next few months I added a Compact, Camper, Cadet, Super Tinker and Rally... With their low price point, you never feel too guilty when you add another to your collection :D
Click to expand...

I know what you mean. I got my first one less than 3 hours ago and am already thinking about which next ones to get.
 
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