It's funny how some terms come to mean a great generalization of something.
In the late 1960's when the Buck knife craze was in full swing, and almost every construction worker, soldier, truck driver, and biker, had the black pouch on the belt, the term "Buck knife" came to mean any large brass framed lock blade. It didn't matter if it was a Puma, Schrade bear paw, some questionable brass framed knife from Pakistan or China, they were all called a "Buck knife" by the masses.
Just like when I was a kid, all the older men carried a "pen knife', no matter if it was a small two blade jack or Barlow, it seems like all small pocket knives were called by the general term of"Pen knife."
After the Chuck Yeager challenges here, I got inspired and went back and read both "Yeager" by Chuck Yeager, and "Press On" by the same General. One was a sort of biography and of his war time exploits, and "Press on" was tales of his long obsession with catching the California Golden Trout and his and friend Andy's back packing trips into the Sierra Nevada mountains. These trips were up to two to three weeks in duration, and most of their food consumed on these trout hunting trips were the fish in general. His 'fishing knife' was his well used Victorinox executive.
In both of his books, and a funny interview in a Field and Stream magazine some years ago, General Yeager made repeated reference to the "penknife " as an irreplaceable daily carried tool for life in general. No pun intended. Chuck grew up in a very blue collar working class environment in West Virginia, a place not known for a high wage area. His father often took him along to work on pumps in the natural gas sites and other repair business. Hunting was not a sport as much as an alternative for food shopping. At an early age, Chuck became a good shot and often brought home the dinner the family ate that night. The same for fishing. Both hunting and fishing were to become lifelong activities for both Chuck and Glennis as they were stationed all over the world. Chuck make reference to the "penknife' in his pocket, for dressing and cleaning a lot of the game.
In WW2, he was shot down over German occupied France and was making his way to the Spanish border to stay our of the German POW camps. Along the way the French resistance was helping him and he had to flee the Germans a few times. One time, he was accompanied by young U.S. bomber crew member that was also on the run. The guy with him was ht by a German round in the leg and it almost blew it off. While making his was up the mountain to the Spanish border, Yeager used his "Pen knife" to amputate the guys leg as it was just hanging on with the bone smashed. He used the guys belt as a tourniquet to keep him form bleeding to death and the guy ends up getting to a hospital in Spain. Must have been a sharp 'penknife'.
In the Field and Stream interview, Chuck is asked about his outdoors background going back to the coal mine region of West Virginia, and Chuck said that with a .22 rifle and a sharp penknife, it wasn't that hard to keep the family fed. One can only wonder what game Chuck Yeager cleaned with a 'Penknife."
Having been a fan of the smallest of the Victorinox SAK's, I can see how one can get a lot done with a small knife if they are careful. Add in a few tools on the knife, like a screw driver and scissors, and you can do a lot. The 58mm and 74mm SAk's are a tiny but capable tool in a convenient size. I remember something my dad said to me one. I had asked him why he carried such a small knife, like is Case peanut. He said," a pocket knife is something that is carried a lot, but only used once in a while. I don't want anything too big or heavy sitting my pocket while not being used. " That made a lot of sense to me, so when I read Chuck Yeager books, he sounded very much like the men of my dad's generation.
It's been 9 months now since I've been carrying the executive as my sole pocket knife. So far, unlike the classic, I haven't needed another knife. Unlike the classic, the executive has just enough blade to cut through a fresh baguette or a round of gouda cheese. Certainly it will cut my wife's large burger in half with a little careful use. It makes a very good everyday 'penknife'.
I may even make it my sole EDC for the trout fishing trip our family is planning for Mammoth Lakes California next year. If I get a legal size golden trout, I'll try to do a 'Yeager."