Why no Victorinox Steel Upgrade?

The one hand open functionality which it brings to the models it's installed on is also undoubtedly quite handy too
 
Student762 said:
The one hand open functionality which it brings to the models it's installed on is also undoubtedly quite handy too
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I wouldn't have the dexterity to OHO a 58mm knife in any case. My hands don't work that well. What do folk with good hands think of the concept? In any case most of us SAK people don't really care about OHO.
 
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Student762 said:
Pretty sure they're using vg10 models for the spyderco mods.
The thing is though, that those spydernox knives are also relatively quite expensive, which brings us back to the point which has been consistently made in this thread: only knife nuts really care about the steel upgrade, and they're by-and-large much more willing to spend big dollars for stuff like that, but they don't comprise the bulk of Victorinox's customer demographic, so there's not gonna be much reward for the hassle.
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The blade on my Spydernox says China so I doubt it's VG-10.
 
That Spyderco (Spydernox) blade is almost certainly 8Cr steel; it’s definitely not VG-10.

Jim
 
mmm true. I think it depends on the size of the mod you get, whether you end up with a blade pulled out of a vg10 model or an 8cr. Either way a pretty bog standard, almost boring, steel.
 
They are lazy and "profit only" orientated. Isn't a excuse for limited edition with the different materials.
 
Delu said:
They are lazy and "profit only" orientated. Isn't a excuse for limited edition with the different materials.
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I used to think that being "profit oriented" was a bad thing, but then I started working for a company and learned about the basic economics of how a company stays in business. Profit oriented is company speak for survival oriented. In fact, these days I even look cynically at some of my company's charity work and can make a plausible argument for why that is "good for business".

Victorinox has very little competition and thus are not worried about losing the "knife guys" like us. Therefore, I suspect they keep their development team small and, as such, they have to prioritize. Between a new model that we are likely to buy and a special edition that we *might* buy and require changes to the tooling, which one do you think makes more money and they're going for first? C'mon, you and me, we'd do exactly the same!
(I believe there should be exceptions, but that's a discussion for another forum...)
 
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Delu said:
They are lazy and "profit only" orientated. Isn't a excuse for limited edition with the different materials.
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The “knife aficionado” crowd is only an infinitesimally-small percentage of their customer base. If I had to guess, probably less than 2%. For them to come out with limited editions in, say, CPM-S110V would not only be unwise, it would be dumb. They would have to change their manufacturing equipment to be able to accommodate and work with these more difficult materials that wouldn’t sell well, anyway, even among knife aficionados. AND the “upgraded” steel most likely wouldn’t be suited to the uses of the various tools. That’s not being lazy. You don’t become the biggest, most prolific cutlery manufacturer on the planet by being lazy or dumb; you get there by being smart and knowing your business model. And they’ve been doing it for over a century. They know what they’re doing.

The only change I would like to see is for Victorinox to change their cellidor handle scales back to being a bit less hollowed-out, so they would have added durability again. But that’s about it.

Jim
 
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James Y said:
The only change I would like to see is for Victorinox to change their cellidor handle scales back to being a bit less hollowed-out, so they would have added durability again. But that’s about it.

Jim
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I keep seeing this, but I personally have had more of the old solid covers break than I have the new hollow ones.
 
yablanowitz said:
I keep seeing this, but I personally have had more of the old solid covers break than I have the new hollow ones.
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That’s very interesting. I have an older Spartan model with the more solid covers that, over the course of many years, I had dropped a few different times on concrete garage floors, and it only has a smooth-feeling hairline crack that never broke apart. And while I’ve never actually chipped or broken any scale, my newer Spartan (a few years old) developed a similar hairline crack just from falling one time about 2.5 feet from an old vintage stereo onto a softly-carpeted floor.

I wonder about others’ experiences with the two cellidor scale types.

Jim
 
yablanowitz said:
Knife knuts are NOT their target market.
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This exactly... What do they sell 30 million or so classics a year? I carry my SAK for the tool selection, and if I lose it or break it, no need to cry, 40 bucks and I'm up and running again. I myself wouldn't spend the extra money on a super steel victorinox, there are companies that specialize in that, and I also don't really care for them myself. If I get into really cutting while I'm working, I have a saw file and the top edge of a truck window, I can sharpen my sak with just those... Not so with some of the crazier steels out there.
 
Wild Willie said:
If I get into really cutting while I'm working, I have a saw file and the top edge of a truck window, I can sharpen my sak with just those
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That's the point! SAKs are working knives made for use and ease of sharpening in the field if needed. I've sharpened by Tinker on coffee cup bases, my belt and pick up rocks, as well as my normal stones/hones or emory paper. Thanks for the car glass tip. Had not thought of that.
 
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Ideally, Victorinox would come up with a quick release pivot (screw) so you could swap out the main blade in a few seconds, standardize it across all models, and then Victorinox could sell zillions of blade upgrades, different steels, different grinds and shapes.

It would also create a large aftermarket for tool swaps/blade swaps, which is usually great for the business with the main item being customized.

Most of the tools are great as-is, but upgrading the main blade to high quality, modern steel would change Victorinox a lot for the better.

They should also offer quick detachable scales that are diamond sharpeners.
 
The benefit of cheap steel is the ability to fine blank it in a punch press. Water jetting, laser cutting, or electro discharge machining is needed for higher end steels. I don't suspect that Victorinox can't afford the equipment needed to fabricate premium blades. When Buck jumps from a 420-HC blade to an S-30-V blade, the price jumps about $30, and those blades have more shot weight than the typical SAK blade.
In addition to the slower fabrication of premium blades and higher cost of material, the heat treat is fussier. But look at all the knife manufacturers who successfully produce S-30-V blades and higher. Is Victorinox unable to compete in a high tech manufacturing environment? Are they going to concentrate on the Year of the Jackass scales? It is reminiscent of Beanie Babies.
I don't understand the Luddites who say they don't want better tools. ZDP-189 blades can be sharpened with common abrasives and hold an edge much longer than DIN 1.4110.
The largest Swiss Army Knife has 87 implements and 141 functions, but the main blade costs 10 cents and there is no curved jaw, box jointed, flush cutting cuticle nipper which is my most used knife tool.
Rant over!
 
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