Classic; pint size hero?

cbl51 · **on:** October 18, 2012, 08:08:17 PM

No matter how I love my other 'bigger' SAK's, I seem to use the little classic more than any other pocket knife. I have long lost track of how many small repairs I've done usingthe classic SD tip on phillips screws, or using the thin sharp blade to slice something that needed to be cut. Since it's right there on my keyring, I can't leave the house without it. At least once a day I use it for something. Last summer I replaced the front door lockset using only the SD tip on the classic.

How many here have used the classic for more than opening the mail?

magentus · **Reply #1 on:** October 18, 2012, 08:20:47 PM

I have used the nailfile/flat screwdriver to open the cash tin at work when someone has 'mislaid ' the keys. It works really well on simple locks.

Other than that I use the scissors a lot. It's well named - It IS a Classic!

MARIOS7319 · **Reply #2 on:** October 18, 2012, 08:35:21 PM

I always carry a alox classic with my keys.

As you said, i found out that i use more regular my alox classic than my other tools that i carry to my bag.

kitbeard · **Reply #3 on:** October 18, 2012, 08:36:11 PM

Glad to see a appreciation for the Classic. It's a great tool and I use a red cellidor Classic and silver alox Classic SD most days for the usual little cutting jobs, prying the pull rings on tins when they won't cooperate and snipping off labels and the like. The tooth pick gets a quite bit of use as well - sometimes for opening split rings. The Classic's a very useful, totally non-threatening tool and one of my favourites. I'm also a bit of a fan of the Vic Escort, which I sometimes carry as an alternative to the Classic but it's a model that I rarely see mentioned and I think highly under-appreciated.

cbl51 · **Reply #4 on:** October 18, 2012, 08:59:45 PM

I've found the nail file with SD tip to be a versatile tool almost as good as the 84mm combo tool on the bantam. The SD tip works like a charm as a staple puller in the office, as a small screw driver, small light duty pry tool when a thumbnail is not enough. And the toothpick or tweezer can open handcuffs.

Donald · **Reply #5 on:** October 19, 2012, 06:52:28 AM

kitbeard, sorry I am one of those people who under-appreciate the Vic Escort model. I would miss the Classic scissors, they are just too useful. I also use them on the Vic Rambler, Wenger Esquire, Wenger PTC, and the like.

I confess though, what I have on my keychain is the Leatherman Style PS 831488. It does not have a blade so it gives me some tools where blades are not allowed and if I forget and leave it on my keychain it should either pass security checkpoints or at least not create too much stir. It does not have a toothpick, but it does have tweezers. It has a similar nail-file with SD tip and of course the pliers. I'm also carrying a hollow rivet Wenger Standard Issue with a loop of mason's twine through the hole. (The bail was coming lose, so I removed it.) Although I have always been much fonder of SAKs, I also have an Opinel No.8 in my pocket. It may not be a SAK, but I have grown to appreciate it for its own qualities.

cbl51, I often carry a Wenger S17 which has a fingernail file that has the standard point. It is also good for slipping under the curled part of the staple and loosening them and then under the main part to gently remove the staple. Generally, the SD tip seems to be the predominant one on the newer classics, although as far as I know they are still available with either.

kitbeard · **Reply #6 on:** October 19, 2012, 02:16:51 PM

Donald, I take your point about the Classic's excellent scissors but still like the Escort because the blade and nail file are the two tools that I use most. However if it came to having to choose between the Classic and the Escort, I would go with the Classic if it came down to it. I'd also definitely go with the Classic over the Classic SD if forced to make the choice because of the nail cleaning tip on the nail file, which I do use a lot more than the little screwdriver tip on the Classic SD.

JNieporte · **Reply #7 on:** October 21, 2012, 05:25:17 AM

I've used a Classic to dress a deer. Then later with a hog. My current Classic SD has performed field surgery, and it gets regular use as a screwdriver. The tweezers come in handy for a lot of things; I ground mine down to a needle point.

cbl51 · **Reply #8 on:** October 21, 2012, 05:27:32 PM

Quote from: JNieporte on October 21, 2012, 05:25:17 AM

I've used a Classic to dress a deer. Then later with a hog. My current Classic SD has performed field surgery, and it gets regular use as a screwdriver. The tweezers come in handy for a lot of things; I ground mine down to a needle point.

This does not surprise me. Being a champion of small blades, I once watched a park ranger do a demonstration in Mesa Verde National park about how the stone age culture of the indians in that area made and got by very well with stone tools. In one demo, he took a large nodule of obsidian, and struck a single index flake of the material about half the length of an index finger and thin. It was razor sharp. He then proceeded to show how easy it was to skin and slice a haunch of a road killed deer. He used that thin flake of obsisian like a surgeons scalpel, and peeled back the hide of that deer leg, and slice meat with ease. The obsidian flake blade was about the size of a small pen knife blade. He just made light, overlapping slicing motions, and got it done. Very, very impressive.

In my later years, I have went to smaller knives, and they do just fine. I have no doubt a classic can dress a deer, it just will take a little longer.

getahl · **Reply #9 on:** October 22, 2012, 04:26:39 AM

The Classic is a workhorse of tiny utility. Most of what I carry falls into the medium to medium-large category (2-3/4" to 3-1/2"), and usually consists of traditional slipjoints, although my Benchmade MiniGrip slides into my pocket on a consistent basis. But, the Classic is always on my keychain, or in my watch pocket, and has been pressed into service as a staple puller, phillips driver, eyeglass screw driver (the tweezers), scraper, and, of course, blade. I have a couple silver Alox, a black cellidor, two red cellidors, and a sapphire cellidor, which was my first purchase, and sees the most carry time. It looks like it has been beat to heck and back, but still operates as my favorite SAK.

dks · **Reply #10 on:** October 22, 2012, 10:35:02 AM

I like the classic, though for a bit more size wise the Manager offers a bottle opener a pen and a small Philips screwdriver (no toothpick), so it is my current choice.

colt 1911 · **Reply #11 on:** October 23, 2012, 01:18:39 AM

I really like how small the classic is,I have found people kind of trip out when i whip out a spyderco with a SNAP. The little classic causes no fuss. Team it up with a leatherman and i would say that's a pretty solid combo.