Wenger or Swiss Army Whats the Diff ?

Normark

Normark

Joined
Nov 7, 1999
Messages
6,651
Hey Guys..

Whats the Diff between Swiss Army and Wenger knives...

I have a Wegner that is slightly bigger with more "stuff" in it than the Swiss Champ...

Would this model happen to be called the "Tool Chest" ??

If not,, which is the Tool Chest ??

Any help would be Great..

Thanks much..

ttyle


Eric...
 
Wenger and Victorinox are two completely different companies that fight for sales each year. They are on opposite sides of Switzerland, and they even speak different languages.

Victorinox uses flat springs on all of their tools, while Wenger uses a bar that receives power off of the backspring. Wenger also has "toothed" scissors and a locking flat screw driver that is pattented. The can opener on Wengers is of a traditional style in which you pull towards yourself, while Victorinox has an opposite style that you push away with. The later leaves a less toothy edge on the can lid. Victorinox's are longer and the QC and fit and finish is #1. Wenger has alot of pattented great ideas, but I like them a lot less. I own both, and always go back to the Victorinox, which, by the way, was named after the founders mother "Victoria" and their word for stainless "inox" thus, Victorinox.

The only large Wenger model I could find is the Tool Chest Plus with these features:

The Tool Chest Plus includes:
Large blade, Scissors, Cap lifter, Locking screwdriver, Wire stripper, Posi-drive® screwdriver, Magnifier with precision screwdriver, Nail file, Corkscrew, Can opener, Toothpick & Tweezers, Slip-joint pliers, Wire crimper, Wire cutter, Reamer/Awl, Metal file, International wrench, Wood saw, Hook disgorger/fish scaler, Line guide, Compass/Ruler, Ring w./short chain

The Swisschamp has fewer tools, but is thinner and equally useful, in my opinion.

These two companies have fought tooth and nail for specific rights concerning who was first, blah, blah, blah...

The outcome, Wenger is the "Genuine" SAK, and Victorinox is the "Original" this pleased both parties

Tlchst1.gif

Above is the Wenger and below is the Victorinox.
SwissChamp.gif
 
Great post by Wire Edge. Each brand has it's devotees. I also prefer Victorinox. I just find the general QC to be a bit better. I'll even go down to the inlaid Swiss Cross on the scale on the Vic. I much prefer that to the stamped-on logo of the Wegner. OK, that's sort of hair-splitting, but "what the"?
 
I also prefer Victorinox to Wenger. They seem to be less innovative, but their quality is generally better.

Just wanted to mention that the SwissChamp is no longer the "biggest and baddest" Victorinox. Take a look at the SwissChamp XLT! It is an impressive package, but the next version will need to come with its own trailer... ;)

--Bob Q
 
SgtMike88 did some head to head comparisons of Vics and Wengers a few months back. Seems to me the Vics won all around (edge durability, etc.). A dig through the archives should produce his posts regarding this.

EDIT:
I prefer Victorinox, too. Wengers just don't look and feel right to me.
 
I have also both brands but - like most of the others - I do also prefer the Vitroinox SAK's. In the shorter Versions of each brands because of the a little big longer blade of the VIC's and in the bigger ones (with lockable blades) also the Vic's because of the blade shape. Besides these reasons the heat treating seems to be better in the Victorinox Models - just my impression, but not verified! BTW,.... some of the tools in the Vic's are better styled and more convenient, especiallly the reamer with the sewing eye!!:)

greetings
sniper66
 
This whole tangent on Wenger vs. Victorinox is completely lopsided. Everyone owns "Vics" but hardly anyone owns Wengers; at least that is the way it seems to me. Does anyone out there actually have both, and prefer the Wenger to the Vic?

It reminds me of Hydrox vs. Oreos. Oreos get all of the publicity and advertising now.

I actually think Hydrox are superior to Oreos. And I am in a very small minority.
 
Up until a month ago, I owned only Victorinox SAK's, usually the larger ones that were appropriate for camping and heavy Jeans use. However, I recently got into slipjoint knives and wanted to carry one of those around in my front right pocket, along with the SAK and Small Sebenza to allow me to have a choice of tools for any occasion.
When I started doing the slipjoint thing, I realized that my Vic SAK's were altogether too large to share pocket space with a small Stockman or Trapper. Hence, the search for the perfect SAK began. My "must have" criteria were: blade, tweezers, toothpick, can opener, screw driver, scissors, nail file, and corkscrew. Now, many of the Vic's had those tools in one unit, but they also usually had every other tool under the sun. This did not make for a small package.
I finally found the perfect SAK, a Wenger, at Ramsey Outdoor. It has: large blade, scissors, can opener, cap lifter/screwdriver/wire stripper, nail file/groomer, on the back is the cork screw and awl. Additionally, the eyeglass screwdriver from my Vic SAK fit in the Wenger's corkscrew with minor mods. Finally, the Wengers have the little chain which is perfect for getting a little extra reach with myh Photon light. QC is very close to all the Vic's I've had. I miss the small screwdriver that the Vic's have on the can opener. The Wenger's scissors are vastly superior to the Vic's and I never have to worry abour replacing that damn spring. The knife is the bare minimum of essential tools that I need, is a good size, and operates smoothly. In summation, if Vic had made this combo of tools, I would've bought it instead as I've been a longtime fan of theirs. But I am quite surprised at the quality of the Wenger, plus, it seems they offer more variation in their tool combos.
Lenny
 
I carry a Wenger Handyman as my daily SAK , not because I think it is a superior knife to a comparable Victorinox, but also because of the tools offered on the model.I like the saw blade, the philips head screwdriver and of course the scissors.
 
I too prefer the Wenger to the Vic. I carry a small one w/ scissors,nail file,pen knive,etc every day in addition to LM Micra and the knive du jur. The Wenger is use the most by far.

Bob
 
I own several Swiss Army Knives from both Wenger and Victorinox. I like both, but I believe Victorinox's marketing and distribution (in Canada and the United States) has always been better than Wenger's. Incidentally, Victorinox and Wenger are the only factories authorised to use the Swiss cross on their knives.
 
I have both brands, but prefer the Victorinox. The blades just seem to take and hold the edge a little better. The wegner has a few better designed tools, but the wood saws on each brand are like night and day. Big difference. The wood saw on the Wegner basically wont cut butter, much less wood effectively. The wood saw on the Victorinox is wickedly sharp and cuts on the pull stroke. You can literally saw through a branch in seconds.
 
I'm one of the like 5 people on here who have both, and
think Wengers are a lot better designed, I just get tired
of the losey "springs" on the Vic, I can't even count how
many times I've fixed someones Vic "spring" with my Wenger! :)
and It's a lot easyier to keep your toothpick in a Wenger.

I should note tho. that I stoped carrying any SAK about a
year after I got my LM WAVE (I just wasn't useing my SAK)

Oh, and If you can look at SwissBucks, They are some of Wengers
better models made for Buck, Better handle design, and No "Pen"
knife blade, both are the design of the smaller blade. (IMHO)
 
Hey Guys...

Thanks for all of the info..Very impressed with the Trivia...

Wire..

The first picture is a Wenger correct ??

What is the model name of that one ??
Is it also called the Swiss Champ ??

I made a trade for a black one of these a couple months back, and really like it,,but haven't found a way to carry it until now that is...
Hang on,, I got pictures coming..:)

Kodiak a month or so back ran a contest, and a buddy won a Swiss Champ.. Thats the knife I'm using right now,,well anyway..

Thanks for the info...

BTW.. How do you guys like that new Vic one hander ??
I'm thinking about getting one as well..

ttyle

Eric....
 
I own about half a dozen Wengers and a maybe 20 or so Victorinoxes. Both have excellent designs, but I like Vics better. I even like the scissors better, although the Vic's scissors spring is weaker...I only use it very lightly anyway, and it makes finer controlled cuts better for me than Wenger's scissors that nod up and down and are serrated.

I find the backsprings of Vics are stronger and more smoothly operating that the Wengs. Also the knife blades on Vics seem tougher and better edged/polished. The Vics feel more streamlined in design, although Wengs have some more innovations in the tools. I much prefer the Vic can opener too.

Jim
 
I own quite a few of both brands and they're both outstanding in quality, fit and finish, and utility.
Overall, I prefer Wengers to Vics. I did'nt always feel this way but after you carry a Wenger for awhile, the Vics just feel bulky and too long.
But each brand has it's advantages to be sure:
Victorinox:
Best cutting scissors (but worse spring design).
Very useful reamer and sewing-eye punch (but bulges out from the knife when closed).
Most models have a useful small pen-blade.
Toothpick is very strong and tweezers are superior (but location is bad. I've lost plenty of toothpicks because they're on the outer edge of the knife).
The phillips on certain models can be used as a can-key (church Key?).
The can-opener also has a useful small falt screwdriver.
Most models are longer than the Wengers (good for very large hands, bad for pocket-carry).


Wenger:
Best scissor-spring (but does'nt cut as well as the Vic).
The punch makes a more uniform hole and sits flush when closed (but does'nt have a reamer or sewing-eye).
Most models have a useful nail-file/cleaner.
The flat-tip screwdriver locks when pressure is applied.
Toothpick and tweezer locations are better than on the Vic (less likely to come out. But the Vics have better tweezers and toothpick).
I personally prefer the Wenger-style can opener for opening cans and the sharp beak can also be used to score or scrape (but it has no small screwdriver).
Most models are more compact than the Vics (good for pocket-carry, bad for very large hands).

The exception: Both the Vic Soldier and the Wenger Standard Issue are nearly identical and both work very well.

And if you like the Soldier/Standard Issue, then you MUST check out the Victorinox Cadet!

Just my opinion and I hope it helps,
Allen.
 
The Wenger in the picture is the Toolchest Plus. I copied this from the http://www.wengerna.com

The Tool Chest Plus includes:
Large blade, Scissors, Cap lifter, Locking screwdriver, Wire stripper, Posi-drive® screwdriver, Magnifier with precision screwdriver, Nail file, Corkscrew, Can opener, Toothpick & Tweezers, Slip-joint pliers, Wire crimper, Wire cutter, Reamer/Awl, Metal file, International wrench, Wood saw, Hook disgorger/fish scaler, Line guide, Compass/Ruler, Ring w./short chain
 
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