Following on from the recent SC thread, I thought it would be good to have a general thread about penknives. That includes Victorinox SAKs, but it can include other penknives too. Preferably UK street legal, non-locking knives, but not exclusively so. It does not include: tactical knives, survival knives, kitchen knives, or any other types of knife. Just penknives!
To help qualify this, I decided I would start off with what I think is roughly the largest thing that should be considered a penknife (not including ones that are just very thick with extra layers, like the Swiss Champ).
This is a Victorinox Ranger with wooden scales. It is locking and the blade is definitely too long to be street legal, but it's still a penknife. It's not my favourite because it's a bit on the large side. Not easily pocketable. Also, the locking mechanism, while cool (you press in the shield logo to release the lock) is a bit fiddly. However, I am a big fan of Victorinox saws and this has got a quite a large one.
I’m a fan of Spyderco pocket knives. The Urban (top) is a fantastic UK legal little knife that is always in my pocket when I’m out and about (yesterday it was used to chop up a jumbo sausage!), and the latest addition is a Sage 5 lightweight (bottom) that’s in my pocket when I’m around the house / garden (it locks so not one for carrying outside).
One thing I've never used a penknife for (with one exception, see below) is anything food-related, but I am thinking about changing this. I had been planning, this summer, to start getting into a bit of hiking/camping, but it'll probably be next year now. My question to you, or anyone else who uses a penknife for food is, how do you go about keeping it hygienic? And do you keep one or more knives just for food and have others for jobs that might result in the knife being hard to clean properly?Originally Posted by Kirk280
In my last job, everyone had to provide their own cutlery. So I kept some titanium cutlery in my bag along with a Victorinox Excelsior for whenever I needed to actually cut something. I bought it for that and it's never been used for non-food purposes.
I also keep a small atomiser containing 70% IPA in my bag, as this is pretty good for removing grease and killing bacteria, if you're out and about with no running water around.
Yesterday I just wiped it down with an antiseptic wipe. Spydercos are pretty easy to clean by rinsing them under the tap.
Couple of options for eating irons:
https://www.mikov.cz/z33503-nuz-101-nh-6p
https://www.mikov.cz/nuz-100-nh-3-v/
Think they are called Hobo knives in USA
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I have quite a few 'penknives' but these days I normally carry one of these. UK friendly edition, non-locking and as nice as a nice thing.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
That’s a lovely looking knife. Where would you recommend a UK buyer getting one from?I have quite a few 'penknives' but these days I normally carry one of these. UK friendly edition, non-locking and as nice as a nice thing.
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Here....
https://www.heinnie.com/crkt-ceo-hei...aynesr-edition
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
Thank you sir!
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Glad to help. :-)
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
Got the top one for my birthday, below is one that some people have said the top one ripped off (EnZo (now Brisa) Birk 75), but, all knives, if functional, look similar in many regards:
First Russian knife, I was a bit apprehensive at first, especially with the spendy price, but after seeing a review by Stefan Schmalhaus, I knew it was a safe buy.
Sadly, neither would be any use for street carry in UK, as both lock, but it's obvious, if it would ever help when questioned by the rozzers, that the top one is a "gentlemans knife".
Speaking of Stefan, his channel has lots of food cutting knives in it, many very beautiful:
https://www.youtube.com/c/StefanSchmalhaus/videos
If I'm cutting food with mine, I'd generally have a tissue or serviette to clean up the food mess on my face afterwards, so a quick wipe with one of those at first, to get rid of any visible dirt from my pocket, and a wipe when done. No need to get anal about it. As all of my folders (bar two) are stainless (and another ceramic), I don't need to oil the blade with anything to prevent rust (let alone food safe oil (ie mineral oil)).
Rob.
Last edited by Rob (NZ); 2nd August 2020 at 07:34. Reason: bar one, becomes bar two
Could any of the more informed members give me a bit of info regarding value of this model? (pic from internet).
It’s a Wenger Metal 50. I bought it in Switzerland in 2005 and it’s been in storage for roughly the past 14 years. I’ve searched completed Ebay listings etc but it seems to be quite a rare model. Any info would be appreciated.
Last edited by Mr Tetley; 1st August 2020 at 22:08.
It’s a variant of the Wenger Traveler.Could any of the more informed members give me a bit of info regarding value of this model? (pic from internet).
It’s a Wenger Metal 50. I bought it in Switzerland in 2005 and it’s been in storage for roughly the past 14 years. I’ve searched completed Ebay listings etc but it seems to be quite a rare model. Any info would be appreciated.
https://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Traveler
From 2018:
“a) Looking for around £60-65”
“b) I have the following items for sale: Wenger Metal 50 Traveler €EUR50”
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The knife that gets the most use at Cornholio Towers at the moment is the juniper Compagnon par Chambriard. However, it is too large to leave the house. To this end, I took delivery of a Compact last week. A slipjoint with a small enough blade to be 'UK legal'. Same lovely 13C26 stainless as the larger model.
The knife in my pocket continues to be the Victorinox Bantam. Very small and light, won't scare anyone and has a useful multitool thingy.
Finally, with regards to the question about eating with a pocket knife, I find a Laguiole to be an absolute joy at the table. It feels so nice in the hand. I have a custom ebony and stainless model from Artisan Coutelier (a little like this) that I use when camping and hillwalking. There's no problem keeping the blade clean. In some of the more enlightened parts of the world they would think nothing of you taking one of these out of your pocket in a restaurant and using it to cut your steak. However, in the UK they are offensive weapons and may not be carried without good reason.
Another vote for Laguiole here.
There's a strong chance that I'll be back in the UK soon, and I'll be retiring some of my lock knives to the Sales Corner! I like them, but if I can't carry them, then I'm not that bothered!
At present, I've got a couple of Benchmades - lovely knives, but both lock.
I used to have a Chris Reeve Sebenza, and sold it. This is a Chinese knock-off that I picked up on Ali Express. I've not been able to compare it side by side with the genuine one, but it's very well made, and a 1/10th of the price!
And then one of my Laguiole knives. I've had this one for some 10 years or so, and it's a wonderful piece of kit - stiff, with a real "snap" to the action.
I'm sure I've got a couple more locking knives back in the Uk to move on, too! Then I'll be left with the Laguloie, my SAKs, and maybe an old Opinel or two!
Ah, you beat me to the punch on that one. Part of my reason for starting this thread is that I've been (mostly by accident) gathering a bit of a Victorinox collection over the past few years, since I discovered how cheap many of them are on Amazon. I've had a standard red Bantam for a while, but recently got the Alox version and was blown away by how ridiculously small & light it is. Between the main blade and that multitool, you really get about 90% of the usefulness of any SAK in something so small you hardly notice it in a pocket, not to mention it being almost indestructible. Things like scissors are definitely handy & probably the tool I tend to use most, but if you're really stuck, you can almost always get by with just a knife. You'd have a hard time opening a tin of beans with a knife though!
I'm going to take a few photos a bit later to show how it compares to some other SAKs.
On that multitool - I've previously used the standard Victorinox can opener to open cans when my standard tin opener broke and found it very effective (although a bit slow). So I was a bit curious to know if that multitool can open cans just as well. I gave it a try and I'd say it's actually more effective, as it produces a longer cut for each pull. I'll need to try a proper side-by-side comparison and use each to open one half of the same can, in case I'm just misremembering how good or bad the standard one is. It's been a few years since I last used one.
An Opinel No.6 is my go too knife at the moment, cheap and cheerful.
Use it for all sorts of things, also use a couple of SAK's including a Huntsman with custom scales.
Also have a leatherman wave but think it's too heavy for everyday pocket carry.
In my SAR bag I've a Spyderco Rescue and a Hulfators Rescue.
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You worry too much, build up some immunity and a bit of dirt won't hurt you. As a child living on a farm the pocket knife was used for all sorts of things. On minute father would use it to be trimming a ewe with foot rot and the next time it was scrapping off a freshly pulled carrot from the field for me to eat. Ive used the same knife for paunching rabbits and then paring an apple. Just wipe the blade in your trousers or overalls ....... you'll be alright
Vintage tat from Sheffield.
Ah memories, a Richards pen knife in the pocket with a box of matches, magnifying glass, Owzthat, World Cup Willie badge, Watney’s Red Barrel key ring and 1/- 31/2d for an M&P pie and a Cherry Jubbly.
Wrist watch check? Timex of course.
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Far from me the idea of saying anything bad about those lovely slicers, cheap enough to not worry about that were my go-to knives throughout my teen years; indeed, I still have a trusty n°9, plus a mushroom knife and an oyster one.An Opinel No.6 is my go too knife at the moment, cheap and cheerful.
Use it for all sorts of things, also use a couple of SAK's including a Huntsman with custom scales.
Also have a leatherman wave but think it's too heavy for everyday pocket carry.
In my SAR bag I've a Spyderco Rescue and a Hulfators Rescue.
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However, while the size of the blade is under 3 inches, the «*virole*» makes it a locking knife in English law and as such you need good reason to carry it outside (I prefer this formulation rather than ‘illegal’ because they aren’t).
You can remove the virole by leveraging a screwdriver against it. It’s reversible (you can put it back on) and would make it acceptable for EDC. But it would be more dangerous to use, unless you only slice your saucisson with it,; however this in itself would constitute good reason
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
BRB. Building up my immunity to prions.
Vintage tat from Sheffield.
Ah memories, a Richards pen knife in the pocket with a box of matches, magnifying glass, Owzthat, World Cup Willie badge, Watney’s Red Barrel key ring and 1/- 31/2d for an M&P pie and a Cherry Jubbly.
Wrist watch check? Timex of course.
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That Richards knife is very cool, reminds me of the American scout type knives.
Not sure there is any antibacterial that will help with prions though...
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
I must admit i'm finding the Victorinox small Tinker a great EDC currently.
Being a touch smaller than a regular Tinker makes it a great pocket carry knife.
Victorinox! You’re a British Army clasp knife man. Now moved on to Swiss Army Knives? Is that because you’ve achieved the goal of every Sheffield maker and year of clasp knife?
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Yeah, just making a point. There are plenty of other things that a strong immune system won't help all that much with. One of the problems with prions is that there is no known foolproof way to sterilise things like surgical scalpels, even with an autoclave. So if you're using your penknife to dissect the brainstems of cows, you probably shouldn't use that one for anything else.
My concern is more about making sure the knife can actually be kept reasonably clean, especially when you find yourself away from wherever you keep a supply of industrial solvents. A lot of things will tend to stick to the blade, so then anything nasty will get caught in that. An obvious example is opening up taped boxes - the glue from the tape tends to stick & is a nightmare to get off. I would imagine things like tree sap would have a similar effect if using a knife for bushcraft purposes.
Love that and the reminiscences.Vintage tat from Sheffield.
Ah memories, a Richards pen knife in the pocket with a box of matches, magnifying glass, Owzthat, World Cup Willie badge, Watney’s Red Barrel key ring and 1/- 31/2d for an M&P pie and a Cherry Jubbly.
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Cheers,
Neil.
I knew what you meant. But I have used whatever knife I had with me all my life, although I readily admit dissecting bovine brains isn’t a daily routine.
Antibacterial adverts always scare me. Killing 99.9% is all good and well, but what about the surviving 0.1%?
I believe we’ve survived this long by keeping our immune system on its toes, and while there is no reason to deliberately ingest harmful bacteria, I believe that disinfecting everything is probably harmful in the long run.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Yeah, antibacterials are not good. I never buy hand soaps with triclosan in them, although it is really hard to find any because marketing departments bloody love putting the "antibacterial" claim on the bottle. Soap is intrinsically antimicrobial! All the triclosan does is encourage resistant strains to evolve. The concentration used in soaps is far too low to actually do anything useful.
One of the interesting things about the 99% thing is that bleach is also rated to be 99% effective. That's not because it won't kill 100% of bacteria & viruses (it will), it's because no lab can ever prove, without any error bars, that it is 100% effective. So they can't claim that on any labelling.
Ha ha, I wish i did have all the makes & years of British army knives !
As much as I love the old Army clasp knives (& i'm still trying to collect them all), I do find a Victorinox a handy EDC. Also getting the blades out of many British army knives involves considerable effort & broken fingernails due to their often bear trap springs, Vics are easier, (cool as they are I don't collect them though).
Cheers
Dave
In 1993 I backpacked around the world and took a SA Hunter, one of the last presents I received from my mother before she passed away. She also gave me a leather scabbard for it which came with a small sharpening iron - very useful and I still use it today.
I regularly used the knife to cut apples, cheese, bread, etc., and the only clean it got was a wipe with the large, Barbour, paisley handkerchief I also carried and sometimes wore as a bandana. I only had an iffy belly once in 12 months, after I had treated myself to a cream cake in a luxury tourist hotel in Guangzhou. I had a very runny botty, to quote Rick from The Young Ones.
Still got mine, and a Colin Withers badge (Villa goalie 1966 season), also a couple of glow-in-the-dark ABC Minors badges from the Saturday matinees in the local fleapit (a cartoon, an episode of Flash Gordon and a Children's Film Foundation flick), I dread to think the amount of radiation that was present in the stalls with all that radium.
A few other badges from the same period I found while looking for Willie.
Hand made in Sheffield - curtesy of SC a few weeks ago.
"Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action."
'Populism, the last refuge of a Tory scoundrel'.
Saturday matinees were a hoot!
Remember having a Tufty badge and a sheriffs star on my cowboy outfit, otherwise it’s just Willie, Gagarin and MUFC.
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My pocket knives are typically cleaned by being dipped into a really good hot cup of tea, followed by a wipe with a paper towel. They tend to deal more with things like pork pies than cow brains.
Jaguar (Italy) probably no longer UK legal, must be at least 20 years old.
"Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action."
'Populism, the last refuge of a Tory scoundrel'.
Using my latest knife on my chorizo.
I have another 2 coming next week a Victorinon alox farmer X a recent model release and an old SAK I have forgotten the name of.
Not exactly a pen knife, but this Husky made short work of opening this vintage Zenith snap-back!
Liking my Leatherman Free, handy one-handed magnetic opening mech, ideal for those of us with short fingernails. Ideal tool for my work, which is medical devices and supplies so need a decent box cutter, knife, scissors and screwdrivers.
I have a couple of the usual suspects but my favourite is a Marttiini folder. I've mislaid it at the moment though.
Don't just do something, sit there. - TNH
I carry one also, though the locking version. The form factor and weight is similar to a fountain pen, which is appealing.
I have quite a few 'penknives' but these days I normally carry one of these. UK friendly edition, non-locking and as nice as a nice thing.
Yes I agree. Also it’s the first pocket knife I’ve ever used the pocket clip on. Sits in my jeans pocket unobtrusively.
Also it’s very well made for the price.
If I could carry the locking version I would.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
After enjoying my Rough Rider 'copperhead' so much, I'm waiting for delivery of a 'canoe' model in plain bone.
How the blades look in the Amber jigged model.
Rough Rider are excellent value for money and generally very well made. I have a few of them as well.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
Any suggestions to replace a lost leatherman squirt? Something with scissors, philips and flat screwdriver. Not too fussed about the pliers. Don't fancy the gerber dime for some reason. The T4 above looks nice but doesn't it have a locking blade so no good for EDC in the UK? Does the magnet collect swarf and mess?
If a penknife and folding blade then:
Victorinox Super Tinker, the Phillips is a back tool
Victorinox Fieldmaster, or Evolution Grip 18, Phillips back tool, adds a saw
Victorinox Explorer gives an in-line Phillips
There are others, but they become monsters with the number of layers.
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I thought that was a brand of condom? (Allegedly)
its an excellent song.
Remind me of the old timers I used to have in Australia, think they were manufactured by Buck?
Cheer. I see there's a deluxe tinker too, with pliers; and a luxury version of that even:
https://www.farrar-tanner.co.uk/in-t...ion-2018-p1951
Clearly not for everyday use.
The cybertool looks useful as well, with a choice of bits. But no scissors until you go to the "M" size. Shame they don't do a "build your own" service.
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