Swiza SH02-R (and maybe other models) - important info on safety flaw.

[SV_huMMer]

Hello, fellow Swiss pocket knife enthusiasts! Happy New Year!

Sadly, my 2021 latest knife acquisition turned out to be my 2021 knife disappointment of the year...

Late in 2021 I decided to get myself a Swiza SH-02R as my first encounter with Swiza pocket knives. Based on what I have discovered - most likely, this will also be my last encounter...

See yourself in the video:



Have any of you, Swiza owners here, had any similar issues with your Swiza knives?

I emailed their (seemingly nonexistent) support a week or so ago - no reaction so far.

Be warned, be safe and have a great 2022, full of much better knives than this!

[kamakiri]

Can you describe the problem/issue without the video link? Is this your video?

[GearedForwards]

Can you describe the problem/issue without the video link? Is this your video?

The blade has side to side play pretty bad, a modest amount of lateral force lets the blade close regardless of the liner lock.

[SV_huMMer]

Can you describe the problem/issue without the video link? Is this your video?

Yes, as correctly described above, the combination of really bad lateral play of the blade in my sample with not very deep liner lock lockup leads to a rather high risk of the blade closing without pushing the liner lock butto - I am able to reproduce this issue 10 times out of 10.

The video is mine, why? Is there a problem with viewing it?

[rvlulu]

No problem of this type on my Swiza. Big progress on this point compared to my Wenger Ranger 61.

[SV_huMMer]

 

No problem of this type on my Swiza. Big progress on this point compared to my Wenger Ranger 61.

This is good to know! What model do you have? I've heard a few opinions that this problem is more pronounced on slim knives (1 layer especially).

Oh, and what was wrong with your Ranger?

[kamakiri]

Thanks. Just wanted to know what the specific content was or if this was just looking for views.

I want to like Swiza. But they certainly don’t make it easy.

[SV_huMMer]

Thanks. Just wanted to know what the specific content was or if this was just looking for views.

I want to like Swiza. But they certainly don’t make it easy.

OMG, did you think I was a click-baiter? LOL ))

Yeah, that's a pity - they seem to have a couple of nice ideas, but the implementation sometimes is too far from what we've come to expect from a Swiss-made pocket knife...

[jquirogat]

I can confirm it: same issue with the SH04R with two layers.

[Farmer X]

I want to like Swiza. But they certainly don’t make it easy.

I initially figured Swiza might be a compelling alternative to Victorinox and Wenger. But tales about their indifferent customer service, and concerns about their long-term durability, have convinced me otherwise.

[Etherealicer]

I initially figured Swiza might be a compelling alternative to Victorinox and Wenger. But tales about their indifferent customer service, and concerns about their long-term durability, have convinced me otherwise.

I had good experience with their customer service (though I live in Switzerland, that might have helped). But I had bad experience with their product (damaged the screwdriver twice in a controlled test, where i tighten a screw into an aluminium frame until the thread breaks.)

[PitCarver]

After checking out the video, no Swizas for me.
Clearly a dangerous flaw.

[kamakiri]

OMG, did you think I was a click-baiter? LOL ))

Ya nevah knows…

Yeah, that's a pity - they seem to have a couple of nice ideas, but the implementation sometimes is too far from what we've come to expect from a Swiss-made pocket knife...

I hope in the long run that they have more new ideas and better execution. I mean enough so that I would decide to buy a new one. And not because of something like the Moonwalk LE. 

[rvlulu]

This is good to know! What model do you have? I've heard a few opinions that this problem is more pronounced on slim knives (1 layer especially).

Oh, and what was wrong with your Ranger?

On the Ranger, it is necessary to pay attention to the protruding button; as with the slide-locking of the former Hercules of Victorinox.

For Swiza, no problem from SH00 to SH10 TR-HUTT.

[mattbod]

This is Peter Hug’s company, ex CEO of Wenger. I was going to pick one of these up. They still look good and offer a “lifetime warranty” like Victorinox. Has the guy who made the video sent his knife back for warranty services? I am all for healthy competition but is it the general comsensus that these are inferior to Victorinox and the customer service bad? I see these knives have been in production for several years so they should have gotten on top of quality control by now especially as Hug took with him experienced Wenger staff. I guess tooling up a factory fron scratch is hard thoughso may buy a non locking one and give them a chance.

[SV_huMMer]

This is Peter Hug’s company, ex CEO of Wenger. I was going to pick one of these up. They still look good and offer a “lifetime warranty” like Victorinox. Has the guy who made the video sent his knife back for warranty services? I am all for healthy competition but is it the general comsensus that these are inferior to Victorinox and the customer service bad? I see these knives have been in production for several years so they should have gotten on top of quality control by now especially as Hug took with him experienced Wenger staff. I guess tooling up a factory fron scratch is hard thoughso may buy a non locking one and give them a chance.

Hi. I am the guy who made the video. No, I didn't send the knife back. I did a better thing: I sent an e-mail to their "customer service" with the link to this video. I got a reply from them in about a week or so, basically stating that "yes, this problem can occur with single layer knifes". So far this is it

[Simon_Templar]

This is Peter Hug’s company, ex CEO of Wenger. I was going to pick one of these up. They still look good and offer a “lifetime warranty” like Victorinox. Has the guy who made the video sent his knife back for warranty services? I am all for healthy competition but is it the general comsensus that these are inferior to Victorinox and the customer service bad? I see these knives have been in production for several years so they should have gotten on top of quality control by now especially as Hug took with him experienced Wenger staff. I guess tooling up a factory fron scratch is hard thoughso may buy a non locking one and give them a chance.

Maybe that's the problem; the guy should have hired some Victorinox staff. There's a reason why Wenger went bust...

I got myself the Climber-equivalent Swiza model some time ago to try it out and because I was interested in the scissors.  Despite the higher price, the only advantage of the Swiza over the Climber is the blade lock. Everything else is equivalent at best, whereas some things are considerably worse, namely the snap and the scissors. The latter combine long blades (the feature that reeled me in in the first place) with very thin pressure points for your fingers, meaning that you really don't want to cut anything thicker than paper so as not to hurt your fingers.  And it looks as if the handle material doesn’t last long either. This is just not good enough.

[enki_ck]

This is Peter Hug’s company, ex CEO of Wenger. I was going to pick one of these up. They still look good and offer a “lifetime warranty” like Victorinox. Has the guy who made the video sent his knife back for warranty services? I am all for healthy competition but is it the general comsensus that these are inferior to Victorinox and the customer service bad? I see these knives have been in production for several years so they should have gotten on top of quality control by now especially as Hug took with him experienced Wenger staff. I guess tooling up a factory fron scratch is hard thoughso may buy a non locking one and give them a chance.

Some wrong information here. Swiza isn't Peter Hug's company. He worked there after Wenger as CEO, but he isn't with the company anymore since 2018.

[mattbod]

Oh ok sorry: who runs it now then? I know it was he who moved the brand over from clocks to knives and watches.Looks like neither of the two founders of the new Swiza are still with the company Helvetica Brands: maybe all is not well there?

[zrxoa1]

I recently purchased a SH04, all black.  I can confirm that the body of the knife has alot of flex and if you wiggle the blade enough, it will close without using the lock button.