Photos First Look: Victorinox Spartan Wood

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Dec 26, 2006
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All good things come in pairs, this time is no exception.
So, after the Huntsman Wood I have the honor to give you:
The Spartan Wood!

Like the Huntsman the Spartan Wood come with well fitted walnut scales and bautiful grain:

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That´s a great pic:
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With his slightly thicker brother:
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I think it´s save to say, that the Spartan is the most be known Vxtorinox. Like ever :)

It comes with all the standard tools, which is no surprise, as the Spartan itself is the successor of the older Standard model, which came without tweezers and toothpick and lacks the key ring. In turn the Standard is the modernized version of the original Soldatenmesser, which was introduced in 1897. Same tools, but a different design.

The old Standard´s on the far left and far right (truth be told, I replaced the original scales sans T&T with newer versions , as the old ones were just worn...):
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As you can see, the black Spartans have seen a thing or two, the scales are scuffed… Maybe time for some new oes as well? On top we have a Spartan PS with blacked out hardware, its realy hard to get a hold of this in pictures...

The Spartan´s tool selection is the quitessential base for all thicker SAK´s. What do we have?
Large blade, snmall blade, can opener, bottle opener (including the small and large flathead drivers), wire bender, awl, corkscrew, tweezers, toothpick and (added by me) the micro flathead driver, and clothespin, hidden in a smal slot behind the corkscrew.

These tools are a solid EDC base, all good here. If it works since 1897, it can´t be too bad, right?


Wether in the woods or in the kitchen, those blades are wicked sharp. Build for effortless cutting. We are in agreement here, right?
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Sure, there are many steels which are harder, stay sharp longer, all those supersteels...
But.
But if you have to sharpen them eventually, four, five swipes with the ceramic rod and our beloved SAK´s are back in business. Try that with ZDP-189. If that stuff is dull, well, that takes a lot more effort, lets keep it at that.


As you might have guessed, I have some Spartans in my collection as well (one is none, two is one, and too many is never enough…) They are so damned usefull!A
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But why a Spartan?
It´s sheeplefriendly, office-approved and light enough for dress pants. Not that I wear any, of course :)
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Socially acceptable as hell and a sheer bauty with wood scales:
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...woooood… me likey!

As you have guessed, I love the Spartan. A classic, with a very interessting heritage!


Great wood, first class fit and finish, topped with the best quality control in the whole business.
Anybody out there who bought a (new) Victorinox, which hab flwas?
Na, me neither.

And that say´s something, as our friends in Ibach turn out a whopping 120.000 knives a day. Everyday.

Chapeau Victorinox!


Have a great week folks and thanks for stopping by!

As always, if you have any questions, shoot!
 
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Are the wood scales thicker than Cellidor? In photos they do look thicker to me.
 
Nice photos and write up, can’t argue with the Spartan. I used to like the tinker more because of the Philips, but it’s usually too awkward with the short T shape on the back layer. The can opener/ small driver fits a lot of philips screws suitably if you’re in a pinch.
 
Nice photos and write up, can’t argue with the Spartan. I used to like the tinker more because of the Philips, but it’s usually too awkward with the short T shape on the back layer. The can opener/ small driver fits a lot of philips screws suitably if you’re in a pinch.

That's true, the can opener/small driver does work well on most ph screws, unless they are countersunk. In fact, these days, when going casual for an evening or something, I carry a Sportsman, basically a small Spartan with a nail file instead of small blade, and sometimes the corkscrew comes in handy. But the Tinker back mounted driver does have another potential use. As a fist load with the driver protruding between the fingers, it can be effective for non-lethal self defense. Guys off duty in Vietnam cities during the war were not allowed to go armed, but were often targeted by snatch and grab thieves, so many of them carried Tinkers for protection. I'm told they worked pretty well.
 
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Does the wooden version have the little hole for a straight pin? I'm thinking about picking one up but for some reason, I gotta have the hole.
 
I wish they would drop the keyring tab. I wouldn't keep a delicate wood item in the same pocket with an abrasive bunch of keys.
 
I believe they are now eliminating the toothpick and tweezers on all their wood knives, including the Swiss Champ.
 
Beautiful knife with the wood scales on it.
I'm such a Spartan fan, when that big river site recently had some Spartan II's on sale for like 12 bucks, I got two. No use for them as I have the one I've been carrying for over year, but hey, they're Spartans. I'll probably get 2 whenever they show up for that cheap.
 
It looks like only bubinga wood versions have toothpick and tweezers.
 

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