1942 Elsener Soldier

[cody6268]

I had one size left, the 100mm series,  to own at least one SAK in every current Victorinox knife size (excluding Delemonts, those are Wengers to me), and  I was about ready to settle for the floral/gardener series which I cared nothing about, as one I have no need for budding and grafting tools, and I hate chisel ground blades.  What I really wanted was a carbon steel, 100mm Soldier, which wasn't easy to find, and were pricey when I did.  That was until I was browsing Etsy this afternoon.  I was browsing "Swiss Knife", and  after seeing a ton of $30 beat up 1980s Tinkers and Spartans, came across a knife simply marked as "Vintage Pocket Knife Swiss Made" and was selling for $19 shipped, well within my $20 budget.  I knew it was a 1908 model Soldier, and looking closer at the listing, it was an Elsener Schwyz (Vic), and a 1942 model, meeting my one criteria for a 1908 Soldier, it had to have a WWII date.

The blade has seen better days, but isn't a stub.   Eventually,  I might get the thing rebuilt.  I wanted a Soldier I could carry and use occasionally and could afford. I think I might just try the Minimalist Challenge with this.

Here's the seller's photos.

[ColoSwiss]

Nice score!   

[Barry Rowland]

+1!!!!

[Grant Lamontagne]

Congratulations on getting such a beautiful classic knife!

I have had a few of them over the years and they are robust and solidly built.  Even Victorinox doesn't make them the way Victorinox used to!  Long after humanity has wiped ourselves out with nukes the cockroaches are going to use those knives to build their society.

Def

[David Bowen]

I'm bound and determined to get one of these someday.  Love the history and the quality of those old tools. One could say it could be a grail knife/sak for me.

Sent from my SM-T377V using Tapatalk

[Aloha]

What a beauty Congrats.

[Sparky415]

Score! 

[kottskrapa]

Awesome!

It's not failure if you learn something from it

[Don Pablo]

$19 shipped? Nice score! 
You try using the scary stabby can opener yet? 

[Gareth]

At $19 I'll take two please.  

[glenfiddich1983]

Great score for $ 19!
 

[Poncho65]

Great deal and beautiful knife cody

[FolderBeholder]

Great deal and beautiful knife cody

+1

[SteveC]

Great deal and beautiful knife cody

+1

+2 congrats 

[Mechanickal]

I'm offering you 25!
Deal??

Great score! Would love to come across a deal like that once.

[Mechanickal]

I'm offering you 25!
Deal??

Great score! Would love to come across a deal like that once.

[Mactire404]

Wonderful find. Congratulations.
I'd love to own one, one day, and have it as a user.
Great piece of history to carry around!

[cody6268]

It arrived today.   

When I pulled the envelope it was in from the mail, I noticed what a hefty knife this is.   From what I can gather, it weighs 4 ounces, about the same as the Soldier '08/Trekker, which has three more tools, is a layer thicker, and more than a centimeter longer.  It's nearly double the weight of the 2.5 ounce Soldier 1961/Pioneer.  You can definitely tell the weight in the pocket, as I'm carrying it right now.

Snap is better than any Vic I've owned before, and has snap rivaling my traditional knives with the strongest springs.  I've never said this, but it makes modern SAKs pale in comparison. 

Backsprings--very thick and beefy.  The whole knife is nearly as thick as it's current descendant, the Model 2008, a whole layer thicker.

2017-04-21_02-52-05 by cody6268, on Flickr


Blade, about a centimeter short and sharpened down, a lot with a grindstone.  However, it's paper cutting sharp, which is my standard.  Tang stamp: ELSENER SCHWYZ SWISS MADE, and "42" on the opposite side.  Note circular outline of Waffenkontrol stamp, which has practically worn off from use.

2017-04-21_01-52-10 by cody6268, on Flickr

2017-04-21_01-53-17 by cody6268, on Flickr


Screwdriver:  Tang stamped "SWISS MADE"  It's made specifically to fit the Schmidt Rubin, a rifle I'd like to own one day.    What I really like is that it and the modern cap lifter/screwdriver are reversed.  With the tapered shape, it gives it a grip similar to an old "Perfect Handle" driver.  It's pretty stiff, too. I nearly ripped off my left fingernail opening it after cleaning, even though I'd oiled the pivot heavily.

2017-04-21_02-07-11 by cody6268, on Flickr


Can Opener, the old sickle type, as typical of a knife of this era.   The slot, I assume in the stud is made to fit the rim of the can.


2017-04-21_02-05-55 by cody6268, on Flickr


Punch, quarter round.   Bores holes in wood as well as the modern one.  And it bores a perfectly round hole, not an oblong hole.

2017-04-21_02-07-56 by cody6268, on Flickr



While I thought that Vic quality hadn't dropped at all over the years, none of the SAKs I own (dating back to the 1960s) come even close to the build quality and robustness of this Soldier.   Even the Swiss don't make things like they used to. 

I'd really like to know the history of the knife, and how it came to the US.  By the lack of a "P" stamp, I presume a US Soldier during WWII  had received it from a Swiss soldier, but how he did, I don't know.

[Mechanickal]

It arrived today.   

When I pulled the envelope it was in from the mail, I noticed what a hefty knife this is.   From what I can gather, it weighs 4 ounces, about the same as the Soldier '08/Trekker, which has three more tools, is a layer thicker, and more than a centimeter longer.  It's nearly double the weight of the 2.5 ounce Soldier 1961/Pioneer.  You can definitely tell the weight in the pocket, as I'm carrying it right now.

Snap is better than any Vic I've owned before, and has snap rivaling my traditional knives with the strongest springs.  I've never said this, but it makes modern SAKs pale in comparison. 

Backsprings--very thick and beefy.  The whole knife is nearly as thick as it's current descendant, the Model 2008, a whole layer thicker.

2017-04-21_02-52-05 by cody6268, on Flickr


Blade, about a centimeter short and sharpened down, a lot with a grindstone.  However, it's paper cutting sharp, which is my standard.  Tang stamp: ELSENER SCHWYZ SWISS MADE, and "42" on the opposite side.  Note circular outline of Waffenkontrol stamp, which has practically worn off from use.

2017-04-21_01-52-10 by cody6268, on Flickr

2017-04-21_01-53-17 by cody6268, on Flickr


Screwdriver:  Tang stamped "SWISS MADE"  It's made specifically to fit the Schmidt Rubin, a rifle I'd like to own one day.    What I really like is that it and the modern cap lifter/screwdriver are reversed.  With the tapered shape, it gives it a grip similar to an old "Perfect Handle" driver.  It's pretty stiff, too. I nearly ripped off my left fingernail opening it after cleaning, even though I'd oiled the pivot heavily.

2017-04-21_02-07-11 by cody6268, on Flickr


Can Opener, the old sickle type, as typical of a knife of this era.   The slot, I assume in the stud is made to fit the rim of the can.


2017-04-21_02-05-55 by cody6268, on Flickr


Punch, quarter round.   Bores holes in wood as well as the modern one.  And it bores a perfectly round hole, not an oblong hole.

2017-04-21_02-07-56 by cody6268, on Flickr



While I thought that Vic quality hadn't dropped at all over the years, none of the SAKs I own (dating back to the 1960s) come even close to the build quality and robustness of this Soldier.   Even the Swiss don't make things like they used to. 

I'd really like to know the history of the knife, and how it came to the US.  By the lack of a "P" stamp, I presume a US Soldier during WWII  had received it from a Swiss soldier, but how he did, I don't know.

Marvelous...

[Don Pablo]

Thats a beauty. 
So much history behind it. 

[Gareth]

Tthe fact the tools open and the backsprings don't seem broken means I think you've got the deal of the week mate.