Swiss Army Knife's scissors: serrated vs regular

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daoman

Joined
Dec 30, 2022
Messages
14
Hi all,
I've never had scissors with serrated blades before in my SAKs.
What are the pros and cons of them as compared to the regular scissors?
Do they cut paper worse than the regular scissors?
Do they cut nails better?
How do you sharpen them? Will sharpening destroy the serrations?
I would imagine, serrated scissors would be more comfortable to cut something that slips out of the regular scissors, like paracord, right?
Thanks!
 
By serration, I am assuming you probably mean the scissors from Delemont series, and they are different in many ways when compared to regular Vic 91mm scissors.

1) To some extent, I think they are basically are 'shears' and can cut thru thicker material is needed to. Having said that, the regular scissors are plenty strong by their own right, I could cut thru coke can aluminum sheet easily. Personally, I always prefer Vic scissors over the Delemont/Wenger scissors, since they felt sharper and more precise.

2) No, delemont scissors cut just fine with paper. But due to their construction, they tend to 'move' up and down when scissoring, so I felt they are a little less precise than the regular Vic scissors.

3) You could say it cut nails "better", but many use Vic scissors to cut nail just fine too.

4) Good question, I don't use my delemont scissors enough to know about their sharpening. I too would like to know, maybe it is similar to sharpening shears?

5) Not really, if the scissors is sharp and precise, I think they will cut just fine.
 
Thanks! Yes, I meant Wenger style scissors.
One thing to add is that it is claimed that the serrated ones are also self-sharpening, so should last longer initially.
 
I’m not sure about the modern delemont series but I liked them in the past for cutting fishing line as the serrations stoped mono and old fashioned fused braid and Dacron sliding in the jaws. But they were made of of thinner stock and more easily deflected (blades bending to allow stuff to stick between) when cutting certain materials (small wound dressings, gauze, etc,

Not to mention discomfort of thin handle on pressing thumb.

Self sharpening: an enormous stretch if you ask me, although well adjusted scissors will knock any burr off each time they are used.
True of any scissor.
 
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For some idea of uses, trauma shears are serrated. They cut denim better, and I imagine many other fabrics. The thinness of SAK scissor would would really stink for this though. For small patch jobs in gear, I could see the serrated scissors being preferable. My go-to SAK for unsupported travels backpacking or bikepacking have serrated scissors, but that's more coincidence that anything as I wanted a fairly specific tool set of saw, pliers, scissors in the smallest possible package and that really limited the offerings for "reasonable" sized SAK's that didn't weigh as much or more than a pliers based MT.
 
Wenger Scissors are still on some 65mm models and they work just fine with the right expectations. I like that they don’t come with springs that wear out like Victorinox scissors.
 
daoman said:
I would imagine, serrated scissors would be more comfortable to cut something that slips out of the regular scissors, like paracord, right?
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You'd think but no. You'll be chewing at paracord, for a while. Nor will you cut denim.
The scissors just aren't strong enough.
If your expectation is regular paracord or canvas or dressings, or gauze add real scissors to your edc.
 
I carry Wenger and Evo Victorinox with the Wenger scissors quite a bit because I like having a tool with both scissors and a nail file. The Wenger Traveler is my most carried SAK and I also carry it's Vic counterpart the Evo 14 quite often. Still, I prefer Victorinox scissors, both in construction and in lack of serrations. I'm typically using my scissors an an impromptu tool for quick cuts when I don't have proper scissors handy. Think of how often when you're quickly cutting paper and just use a push cut with the scissors partially closed. Can't do that with serrations without tearing. Furthermore, while in theory Wenger's serrations should work better for paracord, in practice that is not the case whatsoever. In fact they struggle mightily and mangle. Trust me I just tested. I can see how they would work well for fishing line though. In the end however, I think both styles of scissors are sufficient for what they are: a pair of scissors for when you otherwise would not have scissors. We as enthusiast just tend to nit-pick one or the other in the elusive search for the one perfect SAK.
 
Wenger scissors make me feel like I’m a left-hander using right hand scissors. 😛 As if I don’t know how to put the ‘correct’ lateral pressure to make or help them function properly. Great for harder materials and they even cut stainless foils…but I rarely choose them over Vic scissors.
 
I did a little test between the Leatherman Micra, standard 91 mm SAK scissors in a Climber, and the serrated Wenger scissors in the Vic Evolution 14.
First, I did a couple of cuts on thin cardboard, i.e., not as thin as paper, but not very thick either. All three did fine cutting paper/thin cardboard. Then I did some cuts on a zip tie. I've used the Micra extensively to cut zip ties and its a zip tie cutting machine. The standard SAK scissors cut it, but not easily or well. The SAK scissors wanted to squirt the slick plastic out. They took a lot of pressure and then the cut piece rocketed across the room. The serrated scissors, otoh, gripped the zip tie and snicked right through it. Took less pressure and had way more control.
micraclimberevo14 1.JPG

I was ready to proclaim the serrated scissors vastly superior, and was going to start a new thread, then I thought, "use the search function" 💡 and found this thread. After reading the comments about paracord, I went and got an old boot lace that I've used to make a couple of lanyards. Interestingly the standard SAK scissors cut it without drama or effort. The Micra and Evo scissors, otoh, mushed it around and took more effort to make a less clean cut.

micraclimberevo14 2.JPG

I also saw comments about denim thinkingsmall2.jpg
I didn't have any denim I wanted to cut, so an old sock had to stand in. The Micra had a hard time cutting the sock. Really didn't work very good at all, The Evo did a better job, but the cut was ragged. The standard SAK scissors just snicked right through without problem, making a clean cut.
micraclimberevo14 3.JPG

My conclusion is none are clearly better than the others. If you're going to be cutting a lot of zip ties, get a Micra. Cloth or paracord, then the standard SAK scissors seem to work the best. I like the feel of the Evolution scissors better, and they certainly work better on hard, slick stuff like zip ties than the standard SAK's, and work better on cloth than the Micra, so not a bad compromise.
 
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Jrgn said:
Wenger Scissors are still on some 65mm models and they work just fine with the right expectations. I like that they don’t come with springs that wear out like Victorinox scissors.
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Can anyone say what other current models have the Wenger style scissors beside the Evolution 14? I like that style of scissors much more than the typical Victorinox style.

Thanks.

Joe Mamma
 
Joe Mamma said:
Can anyone say what other current models have the Wenger style scissors beside the Evolution 14? I like that style of scissors much more than the typical Victorinox style.

Thanks.

Joe Mamma
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Any of the Delemont made 85mm, and 65mm knives with scissors, will be that style. You can find more info at SAKWick under Delemont collection.

O.B.
 
Regular Victorinox scissors cut better than Wenger/Delemont scissors. Regular Victorinox scissors are very easy to sharpen if they go dull. Wenger/Delemont scissors wiggle up and down when you cut with them because of the design of the spring. Regular Victorinox scissors do not have that problem.

Word to the wise: absolutely do not attempt to cut medium or large plastic zip ties with the Victorinox scissors. You can damage the cutting edges so badly that they will be extremely difficult or impossible to fix without ruining their geometry. I have seen this happen many times. Zip ties are bad for scissors, but they are even worse for Victorinox scissors.
 
Guy McVer said:
Word to the wise: absolutely do not attempt to cut medium or large plastic zip ties with the Victorinox scissors. You can damage the cutting edges so badly that they will be extremely difficult or impossible to fix without ruining their geometry. I have seen this happen many times. Zip ties are bad for scissors, but they are even worse for Victorinox scissors.
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OTOH, I’m sure there are others besides me who haven’t had an issue with zip ties, large or otherwise.

It does take some measure of skill or experience to fix damaged or dull Victorinox scissors, but it it neither impossible nor rocket science. I find that there’s a lot of material to work with for reprofiling and resharpening. Just need to follow the original profiles and curvature when removing material. The scissors on my Cadet X mod are a repaired set. While I only can imagine what used knives have been though before I (attempt to) fix them, I believe scissors are sometimes damaged when they are not prevented from twisting while operating/cutting.

My hint: Polish, but DO NOT BEVEL the interior surfaces after correcting any surface imperfections. Match the original grind to sharpen. DO NOT operate to remove any bur or wire edge.
 
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