Swiss Army Knife owners, what do you do to maintain it in the long run ?
So I got my first ever Swiss Army Knife 2 months ago. It’s a Victorinox Huntsman with 14 tools (the one with the saw). I have not used it extensively yet, but I wipe it clean every time I use it.
I’m not aware of when and how often I should oil the moving parts and things like that. I would like to keep this knife in working condition for as long as I can.
Not much honestly. Keep it away from dirt and dust, so in a drawer, glove compartment etc. other than that oil the moving parts and only re-oil when it feels like it needs it. Keep it sharp too, including scissors and saw.
One last note, if it gets wet, dry it before closing.
One of the big advantages of a victorinox is that they’re designed to be essentially maintenance free. As far as I can tell, the intention is that if you leave it in a bag, drawer, car, or just lose it under the couch for a decade, it will be ready to perform when you need it.
Another great benefit is that you can play around with different maintenance routines and find a system that works for you without worrying about corrosion or excessive wear. Try different oils, try it dry, see how it responds.
Clean it with water, compressed air, alcohol, or whatever else you feel like trying. Keep in mind that naturally derived oils will go rancid over time and if you’re too thick, it’ll go sticky.
A similar design philosophy is used with the blade, they are super easy to resharpen. It’s a great blade to learn how to repair and sharpen. It also doesn’t require oiling, but nothing is stopping you from trying it. Just stick to something food-grade so you can use it worry-free on meal prep if you have to.
Lastly, the most important thing you can do to prolong the life of your tool is to learn the limits of the tool set. No matter how well you generally maintain it, using it abusively once will break it.
You’ve got yourself a fine little knife, I hope it serves you well for years to come.
Buy a cheap one every few years, treat it like shit, recycle it when it’s dead.
It’s sad that it’s less work and less expense to re-buy an inferior product in many cases. Especially kitchen knives. Razor sharp $1 knives at the dollar store are much less expensive over a lifetime than one nice $100 knife (that can’t go in the dishwasher). Same goes for socket wrenches.
I’d argue that properly maintained tools maintain for life…when you use it constantly the value in proper tools is absolutely worth it… .if you use it a couple times a year, fuck it go with harbor freight.
Once you learn maintenance it’s not bad at all. You can keep that same 1$ going for a decade with a 4$ sharpening stone. The 100$ for decades and have a much better time doing so. Plus learn to hone your knives and you will need to rarely sharpen them. Hone it once for 30 seconds before a meal and that’s it for about 4-6 months if you have a decent knife.
I have tons of stuff that’s old as hell that I keep in excellent shape by doing some very basic maintenance. A 50 year old kitchen mixer needed some new grease and that’s all it will need for 10 or so more years. Almost all the tools I own and use are 40-50 years old, it just takes a little ingenuity and love to keep them going. Though much of it is my pride refusing to let me throw away a gold tool, even if it needs a little work.
Sharpen the blades, clean out the pocket lint and maybe a bit of 3-in-1 oil when things are getting too gummed up.
I’ve had my knife for several decades. I did end up getting it replaced once under warranty early on. But, I blame my taking zero care of it and carrying it up sand dunes on a yearly basis. The sand really jammed up the blades.
I’m also going to replace the scales “soon”^TM^. Said replacement having been planned as “soon” for the last few years. Ya, ya, I’ll get to it.
I’ve had mine for about 35 years and done minimal maintenance. I’m about to send it to Victronox for a “spa visit” because the red casing got cracked. They will do a full cleaning and overhaul (and repair) on it for a very reasonable price. They really do stand behind their work.
Just hope the quality is the same…I’m not trading in my 2001 Craftsman sockets for repair now days and expecting the same quality… everything has changed
I have one of those monsters with everything in it and my maintenance is wiping it off if it gets something on it. I think I might have put some WD-40 or bike chain oil on it one time. I might have sharpened the big blade once.
Yeah my dad has one of those, super heavy and you wont use half of the tools but he has it for about 30 years and never needed much maintanance apart from the “cleaning after use” rule and the eventual WD40
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