Wenger 1 23 03 Major

[North Man]

Hi

This is a Wenger 85mm, and it should be 1 23 03, the name however is from a older catalogue here, name can be original not sure, anybody here has another name?
Interesting tool selection on this, maybe an early 80s knife, also have anybody else a feeling about names, we know this has been used on some early Victorinox and Wenger knives, however i feel that it was when Wenger Precise in the Amerika introduced the personalized knives in the late 70 that this really got on with names, just a thought...

[ColoSwiss]

The number I have for it is 1.23.09, with a keyring rather than chain. The only name I have is Classic 23, which is European. Hope this helps.

Karl

[North Man]

The number I have for it is 1.23.09, with a keyring rather than chain. The only name I have is Classic 23, which is European. Hope this helps.

Karl

Yes, long lasting tool selection on this, there is a Evolution edition aswell, still i wonder if Major as in army is a name out there?

[ICanFixThat]

..... also have anybody else a feeling about names, we know this has been used on some early Victorinox and Wenger knives, however i feel that it was when Wenger Precise in the Amerika introduced the personalized knives in the late 70 that this really got on with names, just a thought...

I would disagree with that hypothosis. Victorinox made it to North America quite a bit before Wenger, and it appears the audience was numerically challenged from the beginning.  As you mentioned we've already seen some early NA vic dealer catalogs with names.... but I have some more really good stuff (well I think it's fantastic) that I'll be posting to the Wiki soon that is quite early and full of names (in fact not a single number) all from Victorinox. 

The theory on Major being an official name at some point I like; just because.  I would think it would not be a North American name though, maybe Europe.  It seems the military related names didn't last long over here even when they did use them initially.

... Oh and great knife!!   that's like a Wenger Explorer.

[North Man]

..... also have anybody else a feeling about names, we know this has been used on some early Victorinox and Wenger knives, however i feel that it was when Wenger Precise in the Amerika introduced the personalized knives in the late 70 that this really got on with names, just a thought...

I would disagree with that hypothosis. Victorinox made it to North America quite a bit before Wenger, and it appears the audience was numerically challenged from the beginning.  As you mentioned we've already seen some early NA vic dealer catalogs with names.... but I have some more really good stuff (well I think it's fantastic) that I'll be posting to the Wiki soon that is quite early and full of names (in fact not a single number) all from Victorinox. 

The theory on Major being an official name at some point I like; just because.  I would think it would not be a North American name though, maybe Europe.  It seems the military related names didn't last long over here even when they did use them initially.

... Oh and great knife!!   that's like a Wenger Explorer.

Hi

Yes, nice knife! I am looking forward to the new info
I know that The founder already very early put  names to the knives, so i am absolutely sure it was Victorinox, and older catalogues or info show us the Motorist f.example aswell, however when receiving info from Victorinox it is usually always the numbers given, names is rare, so i wonder if names is put on by wish from vendors/dist or other? The link i see with personalized names is in both brands, in the late 70s in America Wenger put on f.example sailship on the scale, we know this as Windjammer or Seafarer.
at this point with Wenger we see some of the same as on early Victorinox inlay knives, f,example St Christopher. So Vic was probarbly first here also ;)not sure, i am interested in this since the personalizing in the Precise org was at a time Wenger wanted to get more into the American markeds, f.example i found that colors on the plastic knives was very expencive, the two American Precise and Forschner wanted to get more into a marked with colors on the scales, this was expencive for them, now we are in the 80s, so names, inlays, personalizing,colors is part of Victorinox and Wengers history. All these to identify your personal knife.
I am also uncertain with the Maritime Alox models with the names?


We know names can vary and can be used more tham once, Today in the catalogues we see names and numbers in Wenger and Victorinox catalogues so doubt there....
NM

[ICanFixThat]

Yes. We do know already that it was not Victorinox Switzerland that started with the naming.  Their distributors or subsideraries in other countries definetly got them started with that.  When I say from Victorinox (in reference to the new material), what mean is it has their name on it (not any other), which means it was printed by their agent if not also printed in Switzerland and shipped to the market.  It's too bad they were not more careful with dating materials, but that kind of make it more fun and interesting to research.  Maybe a little sample before I have to run to work.

[North Man]

Yes. We do know already that it was not Victorinox Switzerland that started with the naming.  Their distributors or subsideraries in other countries definetly got them started with that.  When I say from Victorinox (in reference to the new material), what mean is it has their name on it (not any other), which means it was printed by their agent if not also printed in Switzerland and shipped to the market.  It's too bad they were not more careful with dating materials, but that kind of make it more fun and interesting to research.  Maybe a little sample before I have to run to work.

Hi
Thank you for the Lady Victoria knife, interesting, maybe of topic but Damenmesser is mentioned before,
about the naming this is my believe`s:
Carl Elsener the founder designed sophisticated types of pocketknives that he designated by names rather than numbers, schoolboy`s knife, cadet knife, the farmer`s knife  -from the book The knife and its history
This makes be to have in mind the beginning and the Officier`s knife. Also this leeds me to believe that Victorinox do use/used names even if vendors/distr/sellers wanted names, this on selective models. know i have been into this before without much results....

[ICanFixThat]

Yes. We do know already that it was not Victorinox Switzerland that started with the naming.  Their distributors or subsidiaries in other countries definitely got them started with that.  When I say from Victorinox (in reference to the new material), what mean is it has their name on it (not any other), which means it was printed by their agent if not also printed in Switzerland and shipped to the market.  It's too bad they were not more careful with dating materials, but that kind of make it more fun and interesting to research.  Maybe a little sample before I have to run to work.

Hi
Thank you for the Lady Victoria knife, interesting, maybe of topic but Damenmesser is mentioned before,
about the naming this is my believe`s:
Carl Elsener the founder designed sophisticated types of pocketknives that he designated by names rather than numbers, schoolboy`s knife, cadet knife, the farmer`s knife  -from the book The knife and its history
This makes be to have in mind the beginning and the Officier`s knife. Also this leeds me to believe that Victorinox do use/used names even if vendors/distr/sellers wanted names, this on selective models. know i have been into this before without much results....

I've mention this aspect of the naming before, but if you look at it more closely you will see these are not really specific model names but Series, or that is what they turned into.  The original Peasant/Farmer's knife was always a series. It's true the first two knives that Victorinox made (The Soldier's Knife, and "The Officer's Knife") had names as well as numbers, but as the knives evolved the numbers changed but the names never did on these series. Then small Officers appeared and the Ladies and Gent's knives. Victorinox was just making knives for different industries and different individuals.  Victorinox Switzerland has already confirmed they officially did not start using model names until very late, I can't remember the date, but it's likely on SAKwiki or in more than one of the history threads. I don't have access to the information at this second.  Still it appears their agents in non-domestic markets started using names from the beginning, as a way to target them to specific markets or individuals.  They also had the benefit of not importing the complete line of knives so they had fewer models they had to find names for. 

That's some of my thoughts on the naming anyway.

[North Man]

Yes. We do know already that it was not Victorinox Switzerland that started with the naming.  Their distributors or subsidiaries in other countries definitely got them started with that.  When I say from Victorinox (in reference to the new material), what mean is it has their name on it (not any other), which means it was printed by their agent if not also printed in Switzerland and shipped to the market.  It's too bad they were not more careful with dating materials, but that kind of make it more fun and interesting to research.  Maybe a little sample before I have to run to work.

Hi
Thank you for the Lady Victoria knife, interesting, maybe of topic but Damenmesser is mentioned before,
about the naming this is my believe`s:
Carl Elsener the founder designed sophisticated types of pocketknives that he designated by names rather than numbers, schoolboy`s knife, cadet knife, the farmer`s knife  -from the book The knife and its history
This makes be to have in mind the beginning and the Officier`s knife. Also this leeds me to believe that Victorinox do use/used names even if vendors/distr/sellers wanted names, this on selective models. know i have been into this before without much results....

I've mention this aspect of the naming before, but if you look at it more closely you will see these are not really specific model names but Series, or that is what they turned into.  The original Peasant/Farmer's knife was always a series. It's true the first two knives that Victorinox made (The Soldier's Knife, and "The Officer's Knife") had names as well as numbers, but as the knives evolved the numbers changed but the names never did on these series. Then small Officers appeared and the Ladies and Gent's knives. Victorinox was just making knives for different industries and different individuals.  Victorinox Switzerland has already confirmed they officially did not start using model names until very late, I can't remember the date, but it's likely on SAKwiki or in more than one of the history threads. I don't have access to the information at this second.  Still it appears their agents in non-domestic markets started using names from the beginning, as a way to target them to specific markets or individuals.  They also had the benefit of not importing the complete line of knives so they had fewer models they had to find names for. 

That's some of my thoughts on the naming anyway.

Hi, yes can be so, most likely. We will have to see if Victorinox had put some names on selective models