Victorinox Swiss Army SwissTool™ Review
9/12/2002 - Updated 4/8/2006
I've been looking around for an all-purpose utility/multi-tool,
and the choice that was available at the time was Craftsman (Sears),
Gerber, Leatherman or Victorinox Swiss Army SwissTool. I chose
the SwissTool simply because I was familiar with their quality.
I use to have three Swiss Army Classic's. Two were sacrificed at
the airport and one at court for jury duty.
Victorinox Swiss Army SwissTool came in one of those
hermetically sealed indestructible impenetrable unopenable plastic
packages. I guess stores have to have that to protect the product
and its package. The only easy and safe way to open this type of
package is with heavy duty kitchen shears (the type used for cutting
poultry). Other than trying to open a sealed plastic package, I
really don't have anything else against it (the package). I would
prefer to buy a product in this type of package than in
a previously opened box (who knows what might be missing). |
| Features and Specifications |
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Features:
• 1 - Pliers
• 2 - Screwdriver (2mm)
• 3 - Screwdriver (3mm)
• 4 - Wire cutter (for wire up to a hardness of 40 hrc)
• 5 - Screwdriver (5mm)
• 6 - Bottle opener
• 7 - Screwdriver (7.5 mm)
• 8 - Large blade
• 9 - Serrated blade
• 10 - Metal file
• 11 - Metal saw
• 12 - Wood saw
• 13 - Reamer
• 14 - Phillips screwdriver
• 15 - Chisel/scraper
• 16 - Strong crate opener
• 17 - Wire bender
• 18 - Wire stripper
• 19 - Wire scraper
• 20 - Wire crimper
• 21 - Can opener
• 22 - Ruler (230mm)
• 23 - Ruler (9 inches)
• 24 - Hard wire cutter
• 25 - Lanyard hole
• 26 - Easy kickback springs
• 27 - Lock release
• Stainless steel
• Nylon belt pouch
• SwissTool Manual
• Life time warranty
Specifications:
• Weight: 9.9 oz. (280 gram)
• Length: 4 1/2" (115 mm)
• Width: 1 5/16" (34 mm)
• Thickness: 9/16" (15 mm) |
| Using the SwissTool |
When using the SwissTool for the first time, I noticed a fine
to heavy oil coating on the handle and on all of the tools. I immediately
wiped off all the oil with a damp rag using dishwater soap and
rinsed in hot water. Who knows if I'll be using the knife blade
(or other tools) on food. When completely dried, I applied a drop
of mineral oil (non-toxic) at all the moving joints. That was back
in the year 2002.
Multi-tools,
such as this SwissTool, are very useful around the house, work,
field, biking, camping and fishing. Minor/quick/simple repairs
around the house such as replacing fixtures, repairing appliances,
furniture's, electrical work, just to name a few, a multi-tool
is very handy and convenient. I do have a tool chest full of tools,
but at times I do not want to dig through the tool chest, especially
when I have this tool readily available. At work, I've used it
to open and repair computers, printers, open boxes, etc. Out in
the field, bicycling, camping or fishing, where you don't have
access to a lot of tools, the SwissTool, or any multi-tool, is
almost a necessity.
I've used most of the tools on the SwissTool except for three.
The metal file (#10), metal saw (#11) and the wood saw (#12). Simply
because the projects requiring such tools demanded proper tools
that I already had available. However I like to believe that they
may become useful, someday. |
| Conclusion |
The Victorinox Swiss Army SwissTool is large, heavy and expensive.
It's stainless steel construction is very solid and the quality
of this type of tool is probably one of the best. When applying
heavy torque to screws, removing bolts/nuts, cutting/twisting/un-twisting
wires, removing nails and prying open paint cans, the handle is
solid. No flexing or twisting.
The SwissTool will not replace tools that are dedicated for specific
tasks but, when those tools are not readily available, the SwissTool
will come to the rescue.
I've had this tool for several years now and it's showing very
little signs of wear. Most of the pictures on this page are fairly
recent.
:-)
Gary Kawamura |
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