Best all round SAK

[Sgt Bash]

I've been banging my head with this one all over Christmas  . I've had a busy winter on the farm and havent had much chance to post or stock up on new sharp goodies so I have been rotating my SAKs to see which provides the best ALL-ROUND  capabilities (this doesnt include multis BTW, its one for the purists and I carry seperate pliers all day.) I am trying to narrow down the pocket carry so I dont sound like piggybank full of marbles falling down the stairs.

I've gone through the combos of Soldier/OHT, Deluxe tinker/Classic and a few others. Current team is a Farmer/Mechanic combo but I still feel I am carrying to much. The Alox models are great for farmwork, easy to clean an tough but then suddenly I need small pliers or a small blade etc etc.

So..the question is which model would you/do you carry that gives you all the answers to the little questions that life asks everyday.   


Sgt Bash
(Happy New Year to all BTW....  )

[NutSAK]

I suppose I could "get by" with a Cybertool 41. 

Actually, the cellidor Woodsman has all the tools I feel that I need most if I don't need pliers.  If unfamiliar, the Woodsman is an Explorer with a wood saw.  The Explorer comes close to cutting it, but I prefer to have a saw on hand.  The Farmer is very close also, but I use a phillips driver often.

[Zag]

I use a cadet and a farmer.
Cadet is plenty capable during office hours and then a mighty Farmer is all you need the rest of the time.




I also have a Swisschamp and a PST in my desk... just in case 

[Gareth]

I suppose I could "get by" with a Cybertool 41. 

Actually, the cellidor Woodsman has all the tools I feel that I need most if I don't need pliers.  If unfamiliar, the Woodsman is an Explorer with a wood saw.  The Explorer comes close to cutting it, but I prefer to have a saw on hand.  The Farmer is very close also, but I use a phillips driver often.

Terry's probably picked out my favourite SAK, for size/function balance, as well.  Unfortunately a retired model so not the easiest to find these days.   A very close modern equivalent is the Huntsman Lite. 
http://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Huntsman+Lite

Very often though a good old standard Huntsman serves me very well.

[BIG-TARGET]

New Soldier/OH-series SAKs!  ALL THE WAY!!!!!

[AimlessWanderer]

I've found the perfect combination (for me) to be a deluxe tinker in the pocket, and a swisstool in the bag. Since carrying this combo, not once in daily life have I wished I had an alternate SAK set up. That said, if I,m going somewhere that may present additional challenges (work or boat or away from home on a specific task) I have additional tools to call upon.

We all have different lives, and different needs, but this pairing has been a real winner for me

[Gadget Guy]

The Farmer is the perfect SAK to me.    I own more Pioneers because I don't need the saw that often.

[Mr. Whippy]

I carry my Farmer a lot on the farm.  Really handy.

I built a OH Locksmith which I thought would be the end all be all.  Saw, file, big blade, Flat driver and backside Phillips.

However, the backside Phillips is more show than go. Because of this, (and due to large size) it doesn't get the EDC

At work, I like my Cybertimer 41 (Cybertool with Timekeeper scales).  I also have a Electrician plus with scissors (from a master SAK builder  ), but due to how much I love carrying and using it, I don't carry it on the farm, but instead carry it when we're going out for the evening or going to a horse event.

In short, on the farm, my favorite SAK is the Farmer, although a Farmer with scissors (or Electrician Plus with scissors) would be my Farm EDC if Victorinox made that model too.

[yud]

For me it is the champion+ everything I use, and a pen

[NutSAK]

I suppose I could "get by" with a Cybertool 41. 

Actually, the cellidor Woodsman has all the tools I feel that I need most if I don't need pliers.  If unfamiliar, the Woodsman is an Explorer with a wood saw.  The Explorer comes close to cutting it, but I prefer to have a saw on hand.  The Farmer is very close also, but I use a phillips driver often.

Terry's probably picked out my favourite SAK, for size/function balance, as well.  Unfortunately a retired model so not the easiest to find these days.   A very close modern equivalent is the Huntsman Lite. 
http://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Huntsman+Lite

Very often though a good old standard Huntsman serves me very well.

Cellidor Woodsman (Scibeer mod w/small screwdriver on spine):



P.S. Gareth is a man of good taste. 

[Gareth]

Cheers Terry.   My own Woodsman mod.



Sadly no back screwdriver, though the originals were done both ways apparently.

[jerseydevil]

I've been experimenting with different carry combos lately, letting my beloved Super Tinker enjoy its well-earned reserve status.  So far, I've found that either the Pioneer or Farmer in my pocket and a Classic SD on my keys allows me to do everything I need to do knife/toolwise throughout the day, both at work and at home. I very rarely need pliers or a Phillips, and if I do, we have a well-stocked toolbox at the store. The alox scales are great and easy to clean if needed ( I work in a paint store, not the neatest job in the world). It's still too close to call between the Pioneer and the Farmer, but the Farmer has a slight edge in that it feels a bit more comfortable in my hand. The large screwdriver on the alox models feels much more secure when being used as a small prybar that the Tinker, which is something that really comes in handy for me many times throughout the day.

[ari6126]

The Woodsman looks very easy to build. Just get a Champion and remove the file and fish scaler.

[Styerman]

Good question , Rural or bush - Farmer . In town the Tinker Small or Compact . Another route would be  a Farmer for rural , and an alox Soldier or Pioneer for town . A Classic on the keys rounds out the picture .

Chris

[ari6126]

While I don't know what the best is over all, I think pound for pound the Manager has to be near the top.

[Styerman]

Ditto the Rambler , sadly much as I love 58mm's , I don't seem to be able to hang onto them .

Chris

[nuphoria]

I think you're asking for one choice rather than a combo?
It's late and I'm dyslexic and on cold meds, so that could easily be wrong...

Anywho, if it was just one SAK my first choice would always be the Craftsman.
http://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Craftsman

It covers everything I'm likely to use with hardly any redundancy.

If it's two SAKs, Rambler and Pioneer Harvester.... Alox always wins out

[Gadget Guy]

I think you're asking for one choice rather than a combo?
It's late and I'm dyslexic and on cold meds, so that could easily be wrong...

Anywho, if it was just one SAK my first choice would always be the Craftsman.
http://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Craftsman

It covers everything I'm likely to use with hardly any redundancy.

If it's two SAKs, Rambler and Pioneer Harvester.... Alox always wins out

I have the purple alox rambler and the orange one on the way. Just thought I'd rub it in a little.   

[Sazabi]

It's hard to pick just one, because an all-around, have everywhere SAK would differ from one, say, suited to an office environment.

If I had to have a combination, I would pick a Rambler/Manager, Vagabond, or Minichamp II with a larger SAK, whether Cadet, Pioneer, Sportsman II, or the like.  I find my current combo of Stayglo Rambler + small 83 to 93mm companion (Cadet, Sportsman II, or a surplus DAK, slightly rough around the edges, but a steal for $10, since it was hidden amongst "junk" knives at a gun show ) quite effective.

If I were to have only one SAK total, though, I would be likely to choose a Salesman, Artisan, Compact, Troubleshooter, Explorer Plus, up to maybe a SwissChamp, due to the fact that I use my SAKs, and having the right tool for the job is sometimes a heck of a lot easier/better with the proper tool, as opposed to having to improvise.

I guess I'm the wrong person to answer. :/

[nuphoria]

GG, you're a big meany!

[Gadget Guy]

GG, you're a big meany!

 

[DarthChicken]

Cybertool 41.  If I leave it at home, and drop a farmer or huntsman in my pocket, I ALWAYS end up needing something I'm not carrying.  I use the file all the time for non-file stuff (its great for just about everything you'd use a knife for but don't want to mess up your blade), the pen, the bit driver, the pliers (I'd never thought I'd use such small pliers, but I use them constantly from cutting wire off of my kids toys packages to taking apart my surefire pen).

Yes, its a pocketful, but my keyring has just keys on it as a result. 

[NutSAK]

Cheers Terry.   My own Woodsman mod.

Sadly no back screwdriver, though the originals were done both ways apparently.

My original doesn't have the small screwdriver or the package hook.

[Mr. Whippy]

My biggest problems with the 58mm size are these:

1.  The blade is pretty small and makes a mess of certain cutting jobs because of it (such as Emergency Steak knife, trimming up bits of wood, pruning plants etc)

2. On the Rambler, the Phillips is quite good.  Too good in fact.  If you use it significantly, you will develop play on that end of the tool due to stretching the brass pins. 

Great for once in a while, but they're not really set up to be used as an EDC tool.

[Grateful]

 For me it's a toss up between the huntsman and fieldmaster.
Jim

[Carlos]

For me it would be the workchamp really. Lockable blade, "long" reach blade and saws, two philips drivers and some of the most useful tools from the vic family. But it's too big and bulky for most people I guess.

Next it would be the cybertool 41: cuts off the less used tools from the swisschamp and adds a useful bit driver. That should be the best compromise of features on a still usable pack.

If I had to pick just one SAK to use on a myriad of unknown tasks on possible different environments, it would be one of these. For known tasks/environs, a more specialized SAK or a combo would be better, namely for being smaller and easier to handle.

[Carlos]

2. On the Rambler, the Phillips is quite good.  Too good in fact.  If you use it significantly, you will develop play on that end of the tool due to stretching the brass pins. 

Does that happen also in the minichamp?

[MultiMat]

Sarge you mention, 'small blade small pliers' gotta get a SwissChamp mate  .
A bit bulky but you get everything  + you can pick up cheapish used ones 

[Mr. Whippy]

2. On the Rambler, the Phillips is quite good.  Too good in fact.  If you use it significantly, you will develop play on that end of the tool due to stretching the brass pins. 

Does that happen also in the minichamp?

I can't say.  My minichamp is the old style with no Phillips.  I would expect so though.  It has the same brass pins

[EZ822]

For me the Explorer has everything I need for daily tasks.