Can Opener Test

[Lynn LeFey]

The Great Can Opener Test

This is a second part to an experiment I started some time back. I can’t really test the can openers on MTs unless I have cans that need to be opened, so it’s taken me a while to finish this.

Contestants: Husky 14-in-1 tool, Husky Medium Multitool, Sheffield 1200E, Sheffield 17-in-1 tool, Sheffield 12010 mini tool, SOG Powerlock, Leatherman Wingman, Wave, PST, Gerber MP400, and as a benchmark the P-38 can opener.

First off, none of them performed as well as the P-38. Second, virtually all of them were middle-of-the-road performers, with the following exceptions: The Leatherman PST and Sheffield 1200E (a clone of the PST) stood out as particularly good. In fact, the Sheffield was better. I think this is because the thickness of all of its tools is less, so it had to push less metal of the can out of the way. On the bad end, the two of interest are the SOG Powerlock and the Sheffield 12010. The Sheffield is the only keychain size tool I’ve ever seen with a can opener, and so I can cut it some slack for not being a great performer. The Powerlock… has no excuse.

The best ones were, I felt, a good deal off from the performance of the P-38, which was light years off from my manual crank dedicated can opener. The P-38 probably took 3 or 4 times as long to open a can as the crank can opener. The top MTs probably took 2 or 3 times as long to open a can as the P-38. The middle performers probably took twice as long as the best performers. The worst of the batch probably took about twice as long as the middle of the pack.

Even in the worst case, the can openers are still better by far than improvising another method of opening a can. They’re just slow and frustrating, in some cases.

Sorry this wasn’t a more interesting test. If it’s got a can opener, it’ll most likely open a can, regardless of it being expensive or a dirt-cheap Chinese knockoff.

[Steinar]

Just wondering, since I'm a lazy bugger and don't check it myself, was the SOG the only opener in the same style as the Victorinox opener? I have wondered a little about SOG's (and Vic's) placement of the opener. An opener has an advantage of being placed at one of the edges of the tool, but on a plier based multi you don't have much of a choice since you have to place the shorter tools in the middle...

I think can openers are fun little gizmos, even though they become less and less important with every bag of freeze dried dinner produced... I remember one time I had to open a lot of cans for some dinner at an event many years ago, and I got so frustrated with the dedicated opener in that kitchen that I used the Wenger in my pocket instead.

[Lynn LeFey]

The SOG's can opener was a victorinox style one. The shorter tools on the SOG are forced toward the center, to leave the long areas on either side of the folded plier head open. I don't think it being near the center of the tool caused much problem. It was just dull, and took very small 'bites' out of the can.

[Mr. Whippy]

You missed the TRUE king: Vic can opener.  Once you know the technique, it's as fast as the manual crank can opener. I use one EVERY day on cans of green beans:

[Syph007]

Absolutely the vic can opener is awesome!  I always wondered how the original soldier can opener worked, it looked like a vicious tool.  Some day Im going to do a reproduction of the old style in a modern alox version for kicks.

[jerseydevil]

Yeah, I have to agree that the Vic opener is the best on that I've used, with the Wenger a close second.  I use either one all the time at work opening tint cans, and they both see a lot of kitchen use as well.  A bit of a pain to use left-handed at first, but I quickly got the hang of them.

[J Mackrel Jones]

"Can openers on steel 15-oz food cans: The modern Victorinox required
40 seconds to remove the top; the modern Wenger 52 seconds; the
old Victorinox double-hook (ca 1946) 46 sec; the old Wenger patented Ztype
76 seconds; the Victorinox combi-opener 54 sec, Wenger’s 53 sec - not
bad for a compromise tool. With the Vic large blade: 2 minutes and 50
seconds. At 60 seconds with the old sickle-and-arm of the early 1900’s (a
Wenger Tahara) our tester had cut almost half-way around the top and
punctured one thumb; the edge was quite ragged and this may be why Victorinox
touted their 1951 design as “clean-cutting”."
    from the Test Results section of The Swiss Army Knife Owner's Manual

[Lynn LeFey]

Okay, time to beat for my hand-crank can opener is 6.69 seconds (I just had my husband time me). Vic's don't come anywhere near that. If you want to prove me wrong, get someone to time you. I just found a video of someone doing a can in 22 seconds with a vic, and while I appreciate that some folks can work a vic can opener fast, not as fast as a hand-crank.

Now it seems like we need to all start posting speed-trails for can openers.

I've also just found a video of someone using a spoon, and opening a can in about 12 seconds. Total time is a little hard to gauge exactly, since he pauses after the initial insertion, then starts again. So, after hand crank is... spoon?

[J Mackrel Jones]

Can't argue with Utah - or Lynn - on this one !

[PACLiteCordage]

Has anyone test the Aussie F.R.E.D. tool? I imagine its results similar to the P-38, but since its longer, maybe better leverage???

[Lynn LeFey]

I had no problem with leverage on my P-38, and don't imagine a longer handle would speed things up.

However, I'd LOVE to test one. So... you know... if one just magically appeared in my mailbox...

 

Actually, there was an issue I was having where the mass of the tool seemed to slow down the nimble motions of the can opener. There might be a loss in speed on tools of a given size and larger, although I suspect that'd depend somewhat on arm strength of an individual.

To try to appease some of the Vic fans, I'll make an attempt to improve my technique.

I also sort of failed to answer a question completely earlier. A number of the can openers I tested were Vic style, beyond just the SOG's. The Sheffield 17-in-1, Husky Medium, and MP400 as well.

[Mr. Whippy]

Okay, time to beat for my hand-crank can opener is 6.69 seconds (I just had my husband time me). Vic's don't come anywhere near that. If you want to prove me wrong, get someone to time you. I just found a video of someone doing a can in 22 seconds with a vic, and while I appreciate that some folks can work a vic can opener fast, not as fast as a hand-crank.

Now it seems like we need to all start posting speed-trails for can openers.

I've also just found a video of someone using a spoon, and opening a can in about 12 seconds. Total time is a little hard to gauge exactly, since he pauses after the initial insertion, then starts again. So, after hand crank is... spoon?

Try opening a #10 can with the hand crank.  Unless you have an industrial strength opener, you'll soon find the blade depresses but doesn't cut the thicker gauge steel on a #10 can.  We have also had a couple openers shear off the handle.

This is the size can I'm talking about:



Fastest on 15 oz can is fine, but it's when the rubber meets the road that really counts.

BTW, here's an opener test I did last year:

http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,26197.msg469192.html#msg469192

[Lynn LeFey]

My crank can opener just took the lid off of a #10 can in about 20 seconds (didn't have someone here to time it precisely).

I'm using an old Swing-A-Way (older version made in the U.S.). It cut through with no problem.

And, FYI, the number of #10 cans I've had to open in my life is exactly 1. Today. Reality testing means #10's are really irrelevant (to everyone... but you apparently). I'm more than a little perplexed at your statement that you open a #10 can of green beans 'every day'. Who on Earth is eating all those beans?

EDIT: I don't mean for this post to come out sounding hostile, but the repeated assertion that a vic can opener is going to beat my hand-crank can opener is simply absurd. Can you're best-in-the-industry vic can opener beat a POS hand-crank for heavy duty use? Sure, but that's hardly an apples-to-apples comparison. I'm going to go ahead and call the original American made version of the Swing-A-Way pretty much 'best in the industry'. The Vic won't beat it, and won't come close. My estimates are that a really good time on a #10 can for a vic would be 55 seconds (if folks want to test and give feedback, that'd be great). That's about 3 times as long as my crank can opener, and at the expenditure of a LOT more effort, leaving a lot more jagged metal. Mr. Whippy, I appreciate the previous testing you've done, but I think you really have brand-blindness on this.

Also, mostly unrelated, a note on new U.S. made crank can openers...
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,36815.new.html#new

[jzmtl]

I'm more than a little perplexed at your statement that you open a #10 can of green beans 'every day'. Who on Earth is eating all those beans?

His three big dogs.  They love it too, which I thought was amazing, never seen dogs love vegetable so much.

[Lynn LeFey]

His three big dogs.  They love it too, which I thought was amazing, never seen dogs love vegetable so much.

That is funky. I had a dog once that would eat grapefruit. I don't think grapefruit is good for dogs. Not sure on green beans, but if they eat them every day, I'm guessing side effects would have shown up by now.

[Mr. Whippy]

His three big dogs.  They love it too, which I thought was amazing, never seen dogs love vegetable so much.

That is funky. I had a dog once that would eat grapefruit. I don't think grapefruit is good for dogs. Not sure on green beans, but if they eat them every day, I'm guessing side effects would have shown up by now.

Biggest effect is painless weight loss.  They think they're eating a TON of food, but they're not getting a ton of calories.  And soft regular stools from the fiber.

If you own a big dog, you know that backs and hips are vulnerable when they gain weight.  That's the impetus of the "green bean diet"

The biggest dog gets 3 cups of green beans with his 1.5 cups of dog food twice a day.

[Lynn LeFey]

I have some friends who've had two Bouviers. One was a freakishly large 150lb. That dog was a wreck by age 6, all bad back and hips. The second was a somewhat more reasonable 110, and at (I think) 3 years old is already a little rickety. I don't have dogs, but know what you're talking about. I know dogs aren't obligate carnivores, but as I don't own one, I'm not clear how much of their diet can be vegetation. My husband, who is a bit crazy about such details, is the one responsible for our cat's diet. He's done an insane amount of research on the topic.

Do you have a basic time on opening a #10 with your vic? Doesn't have to be olympic level precision or anything, but within a few seconds?

[Mr. Whippy]

Short version:  Approximately 40 sec in a single try.  With a small amount of practice, I could drop 5-10 sec.  When we talk about MT's, we recognize they are a trade off, convenience of carry for the efficiency of a dedicated tool.  The hand crank can opener is a useful kitchen utensil and so should perform well in a test such as this.  However all things considered, 40 seconds kicks it pretty well. 

As a sidenote, try opening the #10 can with any other MT can opener.  I think you'll see the time required go up by magnitudes of order. My original point was, you're handicapping MT's in a direct comparison to a dedicated kitchen utensil if you don't include the Victorinox opener.

Enjoy the video!



Here's pictures of the can lid and edge of can after draining the water.

[Lynn LeFey]

First off, thanks for the video. That was a good test. I think what you show there is a reasonable (not trying for speed records) kind of showing for the tool, and I appreciate you taking the time to make and post it. You should also note you blew the previously posted Army times out of the water with that, and on a #10. Nice.

However, my point in the previous few posts is refuting this statement:

Once you know the technique, it's as fast as the manual crank can opener.

And I reiterate that this simply isn't true. That's my only point.

In my tests, I wasn't 'racing'. All those tested were used at a normal pace. I was dealing with how well the tool cut, not my technique. Because I'm pretty sure if I cared to improve my technique in all of them, I could outpace a Vic can opener with the Sheffield 1200E. I'm equally certain that I could (with equal technique in all tools) outpace it with a P-38. This may be because I find backward cutting can openers simply more naturally comfortable, and the forward cutting style of the Vic is excruciatingly awkward to me right off the bat. That in itself might be a function of me being left-handed. I'm not sure. I would be willing to agree that in best conditions, a well-versed user of a Vic could beat me with the Sheffield and maybe with a P-38. Me against me, I'd take the P-38, then the Sheffield before any Vic style opener.

I will say the Vic style (in most of those tested) works better than the hooked bill type on most Leatherman tools (Wave, Wingman, for instance).

I feel fairly certain that knock-offs in the same style as Vics are a fair analogy, but I'll hold final judgement for testing the real deal. I've seen enough of two similar-but-not-same tools performing with fairly different levels of success to put money on an almost-vic being the same as a vic. Anyone who cares to send me a vic for testing may feel free.

Here is one minor advantage to the vic style: since it's fairly short, it seems to work better on cans with smaller diameter lids. You don't dig into the side of the can once the cutter pierces the lid. I had this happen with a few of the 'hookbill' type openers. Not enough to do anything more than leave scratches in the side of the can, but somewhat annoying nonetheless. The P-38 has this same advantage.

Anyway, again, I very much appreciate the time test on the Vic.

[Mr. Whippy]

I'll stand by my comments.  In comparison to Wenger, Leatherman, SOG,etc, the Vic can opener is equivalent to a dedicated kitchen utensil.  22 vs 40 sec is essentially the same when you look at 2 min, 3 min etc for other style lever openers.

Yes, yes 22<40 but the difference is has no practical significance in any real world setting.

[jzmtl]

Hehehe, where else would people get into argument about can openers. 

[airballrad]

Hehehe, where else would people get into argument about can openers. 

With very polite verbal fisticuffs, no less.   

[Lynn LeFey]

Mr. Whippy: On Vic being 'as good as' a crank can opener, I'll just say the numbers don't support your position, IMO.

Also, please note my time on opening a #10 with the crank was about 20. I think you got the 22 from the best time I could find of someone opening a 14oz can with a Vic (22 seconds). I'll try to get a more accurate number on the crank's time when I can get more #10s for testing, but that will be a while since I have no real-world need for cans of that size, and convincing my husband to buy industrial cans of peaches for my crazy doesn't fly real well.

In all seriousness, what would you consider the order of magnitude that WOULD be important? My estimates in my original post assumed either doubling or tripling times. I assumed a best-time from a can opener about 2 to 3 times that of a P-38. I'm pretty sure someone good with one could open a can at the same speed as a Vic. I assumed twice this speed for the Sheffield. If I could open a #10 in 80 seconds with a Sheffield, and I think it seems a reasonable task, that doesn't hardly seem like orders of magnitude longer, if you're arguing that there's no practical  difference between 20 and 40.

jzmtl: Where else would you ever get this kind of real-world data on can openers? This here is good stuff, IMO!

Airballrad: It's all about argument while remaining civil. Things can be argued and learned that way, instead of two people stone-walling and just screaming at each other.

[AimlessWanderer]

Hehehe, where else would people get into argument about can openers. 

With very polite verbal fisticuffs, no less.   

 

[Mr. Whippy]

Let me add a few rebuttal comments here:

1.  I cannot think of even one scenario where the difference of 20 sec and 40 sec could ever make a difference, when opening a #10 can (Which, btw, is a very handy size for kennels, stables, boy scout camps etc where large portions are used).  Can you?  (NB: I doubt it will ever come into play in Iron Chef--cans of stewed tomatoes have never come up as the secret ingredient).

2.  In the setting of an individual with rheumatoid arthritis, the handcrank would certainly be more painful and slower than the Vic opener (although an electric can opener would likely come into play)

3.  Until you've run your kitchen utensil through a hundred or so #10 cans, this test isn't exactly apples to oranges.  I guarantee you the cutting wheel will lose it's edge after a few dozen cans and you may find cutting the lid a bit more difficult.  I've never resharpened a can opener, have you?

4. Orders of magnitude generally implies a 10 fold increase in time.  Try your Wenger opener on a #10 can, then report back the time and effort involved.  I think your opinon of the Vic may be modified.

5. Re: #10 cans vs weeny small cans:  More and more, smaller cans (15-16 oz size) are coming with pull tabs, like soup cans.  That trend renders your kitchen utensil obsolete.  Not so with my Farmer. 


 

[AimlessWanderer]

Ermmm .... sorry, can I step in a sec ...

1) Point to Nate here. 20 seconds slower isn't going to make any difference to anyone unless they start selling epi-pens in tins 

2) Moot point mate sorry. I suffer with my hands and find a conventional crank can opener MUCH easier to use than a SAK

3) Point to Lynn I reckon! Mr W just said that can openers never get sharpened ... yet they keep on working (they do in our house anyway) ... and they're still easier (for me) to use than a SAK after they've done a few years work

4) Until you put that vid up I had no idea whatsoever what a #10 can was ... how popular are they over there? I think I've seen catering sized cans in wholesale stores here, but not in the supermarket  Are you measuring this against something very unusual for most folk?

5)  Pasta comes in packets, milk in bottles and cooked meats in paper bags ... doesn't make the can opener useless. That's like saying my pen isn't very good because I can't inflate my car tyre with it 


Sorry! Carry on guys, as you were ... this is funny

 

[Mr. Whippy]

Ermmm .... sorry, can I step in a sec ...



3) Point to Lynn I reckon! Mr W just said that can openers never get sharpened ... yet they keep on working (they do in our house anyway) ... and they're still easier (for me) to use than a SAK after they've done a few years work

But since you don't use it on the thicker steel of a #10 can, you can't appreciate how much the larger cans dull and loosen a crank opener.   We've broken or dulled 2 or 3 hand crank openers in 4-5 year period.  They just don't hold up well.

These larger sized cans are much more cost efficient if you go through a lot of product (like green beans to dogs, carrots to hide the flavor of medication to horses, etc).  Of course, there are industrial can openers for this sort of thing, but that's not really the point to this, is it?

[AimlessWanderer]

Ermmm .... sorry, can I step in a sec ...



3) Point to Lynn I reckon! Mr W just said that can openers never get sharpened ... yet they keep on working (they do in our house anyway) ... and they're still easier (for me) to use than a SAK after they've done a few years work

But since you don't use it on the thicker steel of a #10 can, you can't appreciate how much the larger cans dull and loosen a crank opener.   We've broken or dulled 2 or 3 hand crank openers in 4-5 year period.  They just don't hold up well.

These larger sized cans are much more cost efficient if you go through a lot of product (like green beans to dogs, carrots to hide the flavor of medication to horses, etc).  Of course, there are industrial can openers for this sort of thing, but that's not really the point to this, is it?

  Of course not mate 

[Mr. Whippy]

For the record,

This is the can opener we had in the bakery when I was growing up:



And we opened a fairly large number of #10 cans (condensed milk, fruit, etc)

[Steinar]

Not sure whether I agree on 20 seconds making no difference. If you open three cans, it'll just make dinner a minute later. Which is of little practical importance. But, let's say you run a kennel and open 10 cans a day (I'm pulling this example out of my a**, I have no idea whether it is reasonable to open those 10 cans, especially since most kennels will have most of the feed in bags), that's 200 seconds a day, or just under three and a half minute. In a month, that will add up to 1:40 of working time. That's real money for a company.