What was your very first SAK?

[ReamerPunch]

I was about fifteen.
Not a care in the world. One day, my dad stepped into my room. In his hand, a shiny red thing.
"I found this on the street. You want it?"
He held up his hand in front of me and opened his palm. A Swiss Army Knife. For me.
The only person I knew that had one was MacGyver.
I dropped my Batman and reached for it with both hands. So excited.
I took it in my hands.
"Just be careful with it. It's sharp."
I started playing with it. Blades, sharp. Scissors? The thing had scissors! How cool!
A little saw. The tiniest I had ever seen, but very aggressive. Openers, well, I wasn't going to use them for some time, but they were there. Corkscrew? Now you're getting silly. I had no idea what the awl was. But I didn't care. I didn't even know what Victorinox was, let alone that it was in fact a Huntsman.

I only found out about all that a bit over a year ago. My brother bought a Chinese knock-off.
"Look, I got a Swiss Army Knife!"
"That's not a Swiss Army Knife. This is a Swiss Army Knife." I said, and gave him my Huntsman.
And I went on-line to buy a new one. And I discovered the wonderful world of Victorinox.

So, let's hear your stories. What was your first SAK?

[K9medic]

I can’t remember the name of my first one, I suspect it was a Spartan or at lest something similar.  Bought it in 1984, “borrowed” the same year by a supposed friend and never returned (Rusty I haven’t forgot or forgiven and I will find you). 

Replaced it with an issue British Army clasp knife, which I still have.

Bought a Champion in 1985 for a deployment to Germany, first SAK I had seen with black scales, and still carry it to this day.  Though these days I often carry a different SAK depending on where I’m going or how I’m dressed.

Traded a cap badge and Hackle with a “Cloggy” Marine in about 87 or 88 for a DAK (didn’t know there was such a thing at the time) I still have this knife, and this got me started collecting SAK type knives. 

[Grass]

Tenth birthday; some decades ago.

For a few years I had already known about Swiss Army Knives and thought they were cool. Parents were not keen on me getting one, I understand partly because an uncle had once done a good job accidentally slashing his hand open that required stitches (to this day I do not know how he did that; maybe it was a yarn to instill fear).

So for my tenth birthday, my father gave me a SAK. It had the important bits - a blade (that locked!), a saw, scissors and a nail cleaner. The other bits, including a can opener and bottle opener, were less of interest, though the bottle opener sure had it's time later I recall being extremely excited when I discovered the awl, though I had no idea it was called an awl.

The SAK came in a nice rectangular box and I think there were instructions, though these are long gone. The knife, however, survived childhood and all sorts of teenage fans fully intact - long enough to meet the Internet and get identified. It appears to be an 85mm Wenger Forester or Classic 17 with Scout labels. It is almost identical to http://sakwiki.com/tiki-browse_image.php?imageId=1735 - though my scissors say simply "Patent" rather than "EP Patent" on this picture.

Only after joining this forum did I discover the bottle opener screwdriver locks (!).

[Alan K.]

I can't remember how old I was, probably 7 or 8.  I found an Executive in dad's desk drawer and started playing with it.  I took it outside and used the orange peeler as a saw, and committed all sorts of other abuses that knife was never intended for. My father found his knife out of place and not in the condition he left it and confronted me. I admitted that I had borrowed it and I showed him all the twigs I had cut and whittled on. Dad asked me if I had cut myself, and I told him no, I was careful.  So, after going over some safety rules and instructions in how to use the implements correctly he told me I could keep it, but I could only use it with him, and of course... don't tell your mother.

[RadioPej]

Pretty sure mine was a Swiss Champ. Also pretty sure my friend stole it from a box I hid it in I miss that one.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

[SAK Guy]

A Champion in '73-'74....carried it backpacking in the States and then through Europe. Couldn't have asked for a better companion!

[Humppa]

I was about eight or nine years old. It was when we were in Switzerland for vacation on relatives. I stood in front of a shop in a small town in Switzerland while we were making a little walk.

My Pa asked me: "What do you want, you can have a watch or a pocketknife - but not bad."
I thought logical as I almost had my own watch: "I´d like to have the knife, Pa. May I choose which one?"
He replied: "Yes of course, but not too big."

So I still remember while I was looking at the displayed knives. I needed (!!) a woodsaw. When we were lads, we used to spend our spare time in the woods behind my house. We built little camps and bow and arrow and all that stuff. Things that boys use to do in that age.

My choice went for the Huntsman. I carried it for about ten years. And I still own it. ... need to make pics of my first knife at all.

[strmliner]

A Champion in '73-'74....carried it backpacking in the States and then through Europe. Couldn't have asked for a better companion!

+1

Very cool.  Here's my '75 Champion that replaced the '73 Champion I lost on a fire.   

[Xero]

it was either a spartan or tinker, i think my dad got it as a gift for attending a wedding or something? he just gave it to me. we had both a spartan and a tinker anyway - i'm not sure which came from that and/or where the other one came from. I later bought a swisschamp, which was the first one that I explicitly bought as opposed to given...that later got stolen sadly.

[Pile Driver]

I was about fifteen.
Not a care in the world. One day, my dad stepped into my room. In his hand, a shiny red thing.
"I found this on the street. You want it?"
He held up his hand in front of me and opened his palm. A Swiss Army Knife. For me.
The only person I knew that had one was MacGyver.
I dropped my Batman and reached for it with both hands. So excited.
I took it in my hands.
"Just be careful with it. It's sharp."
I started playing with it. Blades, sharp. Scissors? The thing had scissors! How cool!
A little saw. The tiniest I had ever seen, but very aggressive. Openers, well, I wasn't going to use them for some time, but they were there. Corkscrew? Now you're getting silly. I had no idea what the awl was. But I didn't care. I didn't even know what Victorinox was, let alone that it was in fact a Huntsman.

I only found out about all that a bit over a year ago. My brother bought a Chinese knock-off.
"Look, I got a Swiss Army Knife!"
"That's not a Swiss Army Knife. This is a Swiss Army Knife." I said, and gave him my Huntsman.
And I went on-line to buy a new one. And I discovered the wonderful world of Victorinox.

So, let's hear your stories. What was your first SAK?

I like the Mick Dundee reference lol

[Lardlad]

My first SAK was a Swiss Champ.  I bought it, along with the SOS pouch, in 1988 in Northern Ontario.  It's still in great shape and has saved my butt many times.  It was with me every day until about ten years ago when a friend bought me a Cybertool - since I'm an IT guy I found the driver set on the Cybertool to be even more useful than the Champ.

[Toolslinger]

I was 8 and it was a Pocket Pal. After that, it was a Ranger like the one my Dad has. I need to find his and figure out the date on it as it is quite old, but in very good shape.

[SAK Guy]

A Champion in '73-'74....carried it backpacking in the States and then through Europe. Couldn't have asked for a better companion!

+1

Very cool.  Here's my '75 Champion that replaced the '73 Champion I lost on a fire.   

   My early 80's replacement Champion bought after our fire....

[NetsNJ]

My first was a Wenger Serrated Toolchest that my uncle gave me for my 13th birthday back in 2000.  It is still a treasured possession.  This model seems to be somewhat rare, as I've been looking to buy some backups.  My fanboy-ism for Wenger started with this knife.


(Not mine, but same model.)

[PTRSAK]

My first was also a Wenger Toolchest, but a pre mag  glass model.
This is what it looked like after 40 years of use, misuse and abuse.



and what it looks like today after restoring and retiring.

[ReamerPunch]

My first was also a Wenger Toolchest, but a pre mag  glass model.
This is what it looked like after 40 years of use, misuse and abuse.

(Image removed from quote.)

and what it looks like today after restoring and retiring.

(Image removed from quote.)

Beautiful piece, thanks for sharing! 

[magentus]

I can't quite remember the model I was bought for my birthday but I must have been about 8 or 9. It definitely had a fish scaler, scissors and a wood saw but I can't remember much more than that, other than I really loved it and carried it everywhere.

I took it to cub camp and during a demonstration of whittling Akela asked to borrow a knife. We all wanted him to pick our knife. He looked at mine and dismissed it with a snigger, and then picked a Bowie instead. I was heart broken!

I never felt the same way about it after that and lost or swapped it.

Many years later I was given a Huntsman and it reignited my respect for the SAK. After EDC'ing that for a few years, I bought an Alox SI with some birthday money and a couple of years after that I moved on to an Explorer my daughter bought me (birthday again). Wanting to combine the SI, Explorer and Huntsman, I ended up modding a Woodsman which I EDC but usually accompanied by a Passenger with an in-line awl and yellow scales (Pikachu).

[MadPlumbarian]

A champion+, one day when I was 10 my grandfather was sharpening his with the steel in his sheath, and it Cought my attn! He showed me and then asked me if I wanted one, HELL YEAH! Well that's not what I said, lol so he said for my 12 bday he would get me one.. Those two years were sooo long, but when the day came I was sooo happy! Only thing is it didn't come with the steel on the side it only took a few months before I lost it in the woods,, but after a year I did find it, I still have it to this day. When my grand father passed the one thing I wanted was his old sak, one part was broke on mine, so I used his for parts to fix mine and even another part for my custome to make sure I have something of his on me at all times, and of course my old one got his sheath with the steel!
   When both of my kids turned 12, the each got there own sak, a champion+, one was last month, needless to say he was thrilled! But I think I was even happier, to keep the tradition going, lol..
JR

[Barry Rowland]

My Dad bought my first, a Huntsman, back from a trip to Wichita, KS back in October 1983.  With the exception of a Classic that I got for Christmas in 1985, it was my EDC until just very recently.  I know this knife with my eyes shut.  I sent it back last year to Vic to have it cleaned up and new scales put on it.  They also replaced the can opener as the screwdriver head had been damaged somewhere along the journey.

[Eyegor]

A Wenger official BSA SAK. It was a Paklock model with a load out very similar to a Vic Hiker. No idea which model. Wish I still had it. Cant even find another one like it.
It wasn't my first knife, or even my first Scout knife but it was my first SAK and the first knife that I bought for myself. Happened in 1984.

[Riverghost16]

A Farmer model in red alox with the old square swiss cross.  I got it in 1976 for helping my foster mother clear brush on the property, I still have it.  My current edc is a black Trekker....it is bigger, has a lock blade and two extra tools on the back plus the tweezers and toothpick but it has the same basic tools as the Farmer.  I use it quite often.

[m47mu74nt]

At 6 I got an Opnel (n°6, obviously)
Then I got my first SAK (maybe at 7 or 8, can't remember)
My first SAK was a Compact, -and still is- although I abused it a lot (the scales where sooooo worn...)
The blade is scratched from bad sharpening on coarse dry stone, scissors are worn and had the spring broken, combo tool is slightly bent from high torque applied on it.
I still carry it often, now that I made it new micarta scales !
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,64155.msg1363054.html#msg1363054

[Sea Monster]

Climber 


No romantic story here




All the other kids got them for Scouts, and I threw an absolute fit until my parents caved 


It is long lost to the sands of time.


I also received a Vic Classic, which I still have, carry, and use to this day. It is probably the "oldest" thing I own.

 

[Fast Bill]

A Fisherman. I was in South Africa and a family friend gave me two things. The SAK, though I didn't figure that Victorinox meant anything but I loved the fish scales (yep, it's true though I can't explain it), and a paperbook which showed you how to live like James Bond. As a kid I was wildly impressed by both. I left the book in Africa and lost the Fisherman later. Many years later I decided the scissors on a Climber would be useful ... and the rest you can guess

[Sneider]

I come from lower-income backgrounds.
At the age of 8 or 9 years my father has gone with me to a big knife store and I might select to me a brand new SAK!
There were all sorts of SAKs on display. Most liked the 111mm modelI "Rucksack"
I thought my father says this is too expensive and to big.

But my dad just bought it for me. I will never forget this moment!

Such a big, brand new SAK for me little boy! That was a half sword for me and I felt like a king. I was sooo proud.
This knife was the most valuable thing what I owned and I always had it with me.
My love to the SAKs was born...

[m47mu74nt]

I come from lower-income backgrounds.
At the age of 8 or 9 years my father has gone with me to a big knife store and I might select to me a brand new SAK!
There were all sorts of SAKs on display. Most liked the 111mm modelI "Rucksack"
I thought my father says this is too expensive and to big.

But my dad just bought it for me. I will never forget this moment!

Such a big, brand new SAK for me little boy! That was a half sword for me and I felt like a king. I was sooo proud.
This knife was the most valuable thing what I owned and I always had it with me.
My love to the SAKs was born...

I understand that  , that's mostly the reason I never lost my compact and still use it although it is not in its brand new shape ...
At the time the compact was like 230FRF which was a lot of money, so it was a really big gift, now that FRF became Euros, 35€ doesn't look "that" much...

[jalind]

My very first knife was a cheap bone handle slipjoint, either a jackknife or a penknife style with large and small blades, at about 12 years old. Had it for a number of years but no idea where it is now. Long since lost. I found a Camillus "camping" knife with painted stainless scales stamped to look like bone. The heavy paint type material was chipping off. These "camping" knives were stamped out by the millions on less than precision production lines. They were MIL-K-818 military utility knives with civilian scales instead of the rolled flat steel ones. Same tool set as the Victorinox Pioneer, except with a bail instead of a split ring (the MIL-K-818 came first circa 1944). It came and went, and I didn't mourn its loss at all. My first SAK, long since lost or stolen (I strongly believe the latter), was probably a Huntsman in the mid-1970's. Didn't have it that long, perhaps a year at the most, and was not pleased when it went MIA. Replaced it with the elder Woodsman I have now that I vowed would not become another MIA.

There's no romantic tale behind any of these. My mother didn't want any pocket, hunting or camping knives around under any conditions or circumstances whatsoever. Don't even think about a hand axe. They were street gang weapons along with stilettos, switchblades, motorcycle chains and zip guns. My brother and I would invariably cut a finger off, or worse, if we had one. Would be the first step to the depths of depravity leading invariably to smoking, drinking, gambling, tattoos, and [gasp] playing cards on Sundays. My first one, which my dad bought for me because I was in the Boy Scouts and needed one, had to remain hidden from mom.

The SAKs were out of near necessity in the U.S. Army. You could live without one, but life could be one notch more difficult without a basic set of tools in your pocket. I detested the MIL-K-818, which unlike many European armies, were not standard issue to soldiers. It was a part of several tool kits and chests as well, such as the old Infantry Platoon Demolition Chest. They could be requisitioned through the supply system as an non-expendable, unaccountable item (i.e. didn't go on property books). Could also be bought at the Quartermaster Clothing Sales store if they were in stock there. My first look at one reminded me instantly of the cheap Camillus I had found and all the dots connected instantly. The PX had various Victorinox SAKs, and that's where I bought the first one, along with a Buck 110. The SAKs were infinitely better than the MIL-K-818. Been a believer in the SAK and its general purpose utility ever since.

John

[AimlessWanderer]

I'd bumbled my way into my 30s before I decided to try a SAK. My first was a standard red Tourist, and I still have it. Within a week I realised I had been a fool for not trying these knives before, I had been a fool for thinking they were cheapo gimmicks rather than very functional and extremely useful pocket tools, and I was a fool for not getting one with scissors.

[getahl]

First one was a Tinker that my grandfather got me for my 13th birthday in 1993. Backside Phillips has the can key in it. Still have it, too.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

[Mechanickal]

As a child I won a chinese knock-off on the fairground at the airgun range.
It felt like the coolest thing in the world

A few weeks later my parents took me on the back of their motorbike to the south of France.
During our stay we slept in a rented room in a house, surrounded by fruit trees.
Beautifull weather, lovely time.

One evening my parents bought theirselves a bottle of wine, and some grapejuice for me.
Suddenly they realised: "we have no corkscrew!"

My mom asked: "Nick, do you still cary that pocket knife?"

I sure did, so I handed it over to them.
My dad turned it into the corck, and pulled.

The cork was still in there, and the corkscrew had become a strange, bendy, long awl.

I was devastated!

The next day they took me to a cuterly shop, to make it up to me, and bought me a Victorinox Sportsman.
I had it for 10min. and already cut my finger. Lesson learned!

The sportsman is retired.
I polished it up and it now sits on my display as a novelty, remembering me where it all started.

Amazing that I still remember this after all those years... I must have been like 12 years old, tops.
I'm 25 now...