December 08, 2006

Call that a knife? The new Swiss Army knife contains 85 devices, weighs 2lb and costs nearly £500. But can you actually use it for anything?
posted by Wolof 18 years ago
  • I think I found my Christmas present.
  • 86 devices, if you count its amazing paperweight mode!
  • 87, if used as a doorstop.
  • 88 Softcore Porn for BoingBoing readers
  • 89 blunt force weapon if thrown
  • I saw that some weeks ago (on Mefi?) and thought it was a joke... just how can that thing be actually useable, let alone useful? I imagine extending a screwdriver blade... and then? How do you turn the whole monstruosity, just by weigth alone? Even while I like mine, a reasonable model with a just a dozen tools. The blade, screwdriver, wine corker, tweezers and the loupe (*sigh*) are just indispensable on trips/vacations.
  • And yet no tool for removing boy scouts from horses' hooves. For this reason alone I'm boycotting it.
  • A tool for removing scout leaders from boy scouts bottoms might be quite handy.
  • Where's the Girl Guide impaler?
  • 90 Shiny paperweight!
  • oh damn.
  • Boat anchor!
  • I think you just gloat over it quietly.
  • an enigma committed to a time-capsule or else in future delved from a midden and even then the reasons for making it stay hidden
  • 91
  • 91
  • Wenger North America is advertising this at 1200 dollars, but thinkgeek.com lists it at 899 (but says it's out of stock).
  • Conversation piece?
  • ... backscratcher?
  • Wow, a blade with Polonium-laced sushi and all! I need one...
  • I think you just gloat over it quietly. Hehe. That's what I'm gonna do with mine. Provided Santa remembers to bring it.
  • Where's the Girl Guide impaler? In my pants.
  • Jeez, it'd take, like, three MacGyvers to operate one of those!
  • From the article: "I'll bet that most Americans who own a gun also own a Swiss Army knife." Yep. Two shotguns (single-shot, breechloading, .12 ga. and .410) and three - count 'em - three Swiss Army knives. (Victorinox, not that crap Wenger knock-off - although now that V owns W, isn't it sort of a Hot Wheels/Matchbox thing?) Have my mom's old bog-standard knife. Bequeathed it to my wife, as everyone should have one. (Note: The .410 is actually hers as well.) Your basic blades, a truly useful tool. Love my Army Green knife. Purchased for me by my brother, from the US Army catalog. Saw Bear Grylls using the same knife in an episode of Man v. Wild so I know it is cool. Lockblade, good saw, all the usual tidbits. My current favorite though? My SwissBit penknife, with a 512 mb USB flash drive incorporated. A present from my advisor when I completed my doctorate. A geek's tool to be sure. Sigh... if only the red LED were a laser pointer, it would be perfect. (That and if the jump drive were like a terabyte too. Yeah.)
  • clf, do you live in the deep forest or, if not, what do you do with all of that stuff?
  • Im a fan of the Leathermans personally. I've got a Juice KF4, very handy on backpacking trips and dorm life in general. Pliers,wire cutter, two blades, saw blade, three flatheads and a Phillips head. Very compact and very durable, never leave home without it.
  • Ogg gots a stick.
  • "I has a nife!"
  • *unfolds the hounds*
  • Monkeyfilter: sort of a Hot Wheels/Matchbox thing come on, there was no contest, long live Matchbox! /goes back to being ten, jumps around
  • Matchbox were so...so....Zayre.
  • Im a fan of the Leathermans personally. I've got a Juice KF4, very handy on backpacking trips and dorm life in general. Bah. The Gerber is far superior - you can actually use the pliers without embossing a pair of parallel lines into your palm. Plus, it's all about the totally awesome *schick!* sound they make when you casually flick your wrist to deploy the plier head. Like a switchblade for dorks.
  • Don't live in the deep forest, no, but I am an Eagle Scout, so of course that means I need to have a knife on hand at all times. Just in case.
  • Seriously. It has a bottle opener. Some of those beers aren't twist off. True story: I once hurt my hand at a conference, from smacking bottles open on a street sign, because I couldn't bring the knife with me on the plane. My advisor couldn't understand how my buddy and I both ended up with bruised and bloody knuckles.
  • My SwissBit penknife, with a 512 mb USB flash drive incorporated.** Wow. My pocket knife has a hoofpick. The Gerber is on my saddle. **scratches head in astonishment