What's your favorite Swiss army knife?

Too many to choose as ONE favorite. The thing I love about SAKs is that you can pretty much have one for every occasion without breaking the bank.

For general work chore carry, I pick the Farmer or my ol' beat up Soldier depending on what I need.

For camping I go with my Fireman. The locking blade and large saw really come in handy.

For general pocket carry, I really dig the Climber. It has all the tools I usually need for day to day carry. I have been burned at a party before because no one had a corkscrew.

For travel, I like to throw my Spartan Lite in the suitcase. The light always seems to get bumped on when I carry it in pocket as they made the switch "backwards" so that as you slide it into a pocket or sheath so that the keyring is facing up the switch gets slid to the ON position. However, as a back up flashlight it works OK, plus I like the longer philips out the front.

I'm debating on picking up an ALOX Cadet or Bantam for dress carry. Maybe a waiter as well.
 
I'm debating on picking up an ALOX Cadet or Bantam for dress carry. Maybe a waiter as well.
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I can highly recommend both the Cadet and the Waiter. The Waiter was the first proper SAK I ever had (and still sees a lot of pocket time), the Cadet is wonderfully slim and just vanishes in the pocket. The Alox Bantam just seems a little to minimal to me.
 
MRpink said:
I was ready to pick up the farmer but I ran across the pioneer harvester, pretty much the same thing but rocks a pruning blade instead of a can opener. It looks like it's great for cutting and opening things.
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I recently ordered a Harvester to toss in my pack for use in the woods. Would never have known about it if not for this thread, and gone with a Farmer instead... the hawkbill will be so much more useful than the can opener. Also got a Compact to replace the Tinker I normally carry in civilization. Need scissors! Not to mention Amazon has a decent promotion going on right now with Victorinox knives.

Now if only they'd get here...
 
Well I was feeling nostalgic and picked up a plain Explorer model off of Amazon for a great price today. The Explorer was the first SAK that my wife bought me 6 years ago back before we were married and i lived in a rat hole of an apartment. Actually, it was an Explorer Plus and she got my name engraved on it. I used it for everything and it really got me into SAKS. Years later, I have found that I really don't need the Plus part for my EDC needs. I also wanted to retire the one she got me and not risk losing it. We're going on a few trips out of the country this year, so I figured a new capable (and inexpensive if lost or stolen) travel companion knife was in order.

For the shipping charge, I was able to pick up a slim Waiter for a paltry 9+ dollars:thumbup:
 
Another favorite is the Victorinox Ranger, which I gave a turn for carry today. It's a bit chunkier than a Tinker, but when I suspend it from a lanyard clipped to a belt loop or from my belt, like I often do with multitools and flashlights, it's much less noticeable. :)

pocketlanyard1.jpg
 
I'm a fan of the ranger as well. I think it actually pairs well with the explorer. It's sort of like taking the Champion and breaking it into two tools. Sure there is a little bit of overlap, but most of my SAK needs fall into the "do I need drivers or a saw" categories. The ranger lives in my cargo vest as my back up tool:thumbup:
 
For right now its the Centurion, same tools as the Tinker, but I can't live without scissors so a Minichamp or Executive rides along.
Cheers,
Rob
 
stevekt said:
The Spartan is my favorite SAK - nice and simple, not too bulky.
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I agree 100%. :thumbup:

The Spartan has become my favorite everyday SAK.

But I did add the tiny screwdriver that fits in the corkscrew.
 
I do not really have a favorite SAK, but the Victorinox Soldier is one of my favourites, it was also one of my first. It is small enough to put into my pockets and it still looks great after years of use. I also carry a Huntsman often, it's got scissors, which I use more than I expected.

For camping I used to take a Centurion (Dutch army model) with me, but recently I bought the new model Victorinox Soldier. It has a saw, which I consider a useful tool when camping, and a one handed opening. It looks and feels nice, I really look forward to using this knife on my next camping trip.
 
I've been carrying a Vic Soldier or Farmer for the past week or two, along with a midnite minichamp. I am really enjoying having that big Soldier blade and the cool awl for brute strength poking/cutting chores.


- Tim
 
Rambler with the aluminum handled Soldier and Tinkerer tied for second. My experience is not extensively broad how ever. I'd love to try the Mini-Champ (extra blade) and the Huntsman (saw).
 
Steely_Gunz said:
Too many to choose as ONE favorite. The thing I love about SAKs is that you can pretty much have one for every occasion without breaking the bank.
For general pocket carry, I really dig the Climber. It has all the tools I usually need for day to day carry. I have been burned at a party before because no one had a corkscrew.
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I agree with this statement.
I own five at this time. Climber is my smallest and I carry that one daily in my pocket.
For other occasions I carry bigger ones on my belt: Forester, Swisschamp, Hercules and Spirit.
When it is time to select which one to carry, I realise " I have nothing to wear", so of to shop for new I go.
 
I do not feel I am completely dressed unless I have my Farmer in my pocket. It is essentially a soldier model with a saw blade.
 
I've fallen under the spell of the Champion, partially influenced by Gareths' great pics.
Cheers,
Rob
 

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My current favorite is the Mechanic; it's basically a Tinker with pliers. For Urban EDC this guy truly has everything that I need and nothing that I don't. It gets carried when I go to places (theaters, museums, etc.) where a regular folder is less appropriate; it replaces my usual setup of EDC folder + LM Squirt P4.
 
Last week I carried a Spartan, I like it very much. It is light, almost as thin as a Soldier and has useful tools. I add this one to my list of favourite SAK's.
 
After carrying it for a couple of weeks now, the Compact is proving to be every bit as useful as I thought it would. Officially my favorite SAK.
 
My favorite SAK currently has been a combo of the Executive and the Soldier; they seem to complement each other extremely well in EDC. I am considering getting a Farmer, though, and when I do, it may end up getting more pocket time than the Soldier. But the Executive is always on me, wherever I can legally carry a knife.

BTW: Has anyone ever found the keyring extension on the Farmer to cause any extra pocket wear?
Jim
 
James Y said:
My favorite SAK currently has been a combo of the Executive and the Soldier; they seem to complement each other extremely well in EDC. I am considering getting a Farmer, though, and when I do, it may end up getting more pocket time than the Soldier. But the Executive is always on me, wherever I can legally carry a knife.

BTW: Has anyone ever found the keyring extension on the Farmer to cause any extra pocket wear?
Jim
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I've been carrying the Farmer/Executive combo since Father's Day. It is working out VERY WELL. Almost perfect. The only vital thing that I feel to be missing is a true phillips screwdriver.

I can't comment on the pocket wear. The Executive has been riding in my change pocket of my jeans, and the Farmer hangs from a leather Victorinox belt hanger into my left front pocket. On days when I'm wearing cargo pants or shorts, I use a lanyard with a quick disconnect, attaching the lanyard to a belt loop.
 
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