Much of what I know about knives is cultural. I grew up in a part of the country where weapons were normal and people were expected to have them. Knives were a big deal for us, and we expected them to be simple and dependable. None of us carried Swiss Army Knives.
Sometimes it takes a fellow a long time to find out he’s wrong. About five years ago, I received a Swiss Army Knife for Christmas, and because of restrictions on weapons at work, I began taking it rather than my oversized Buck that people had a hard time ignoring. Now and then I needed it for something, and it worked. It wasn’t just the blade that worked; everything on it worked, even though it was the tiniest knife in the Swiss Army family. Even the toothpick worked.
That changed my opinion of Swiss Army knives completely. It’s very seldom that you find a product that claims to do everything and delivers on that promise. Victorinox delivers.
The 3.58″ Climber II is a good choice for pocket use, with nearly all the basic options you’ll ever need and without the bulk of the fancier models. Two knife blades, two screwdrivers, a bottle and a can opener, a corkscrew, wire stripper, scissors, reamer, parcel hook, tweezers, toothpick, and key chain should be enough and usually is. Anyone from a computer nerd to a survivalist will find it handy.
Find this Climber II Knife:
