Made Moon Blog

Switzerland has an extensive history of manufacturing the finest products in the world. The Swiss Army knife is renowned for conventional Swiss quality and craftsmanship. First manufactured in 1897, the Swiss Army knife is still supplied to the Swiss Army today. In fact, Victorinox and Wenger, the manufacturers of this popular pocket knife, issue the Swiss Army with 50,000 knives every year. Its global popularity is due to its extensive assortment of tools and uses and for its reputation for outlasting other favoured makes of pocket knives. They have proved so popular they are today utilised on expeditions to harsh climates such as the North Pole, Antarctica and Mount Everest, and are even issued as Basic equipment to the crew of space shuttles.

Karl Elsener was the first person to make the Swiss Army knife in its current form. Upon finding out that the Swiss Army were using knives manufactured in Germany, Elsener decided to make locally created knives. He was not content with his initial knife so took over 5 years to perfect the design. As a special touch, he added the cross and shield that is still utilized by Victorinox today.

Originally made as only one model, today’s Swiss Army knives are produced in upwards of 100 models with different combinations of attachments for different tasks. These range from a knife with only one blade to models featuring an extra blade, tooth-pick, tweezers, corkscrew, flat-head and Phillips-head screwdriver, ballpoint pen, bottle and can opener, nail file, scissors, saw, file, magnifying glass, scaler, wrench, pliers, USB thumb drive, digital clock, altimeter, optical laser pointer and even a music player. The Basic model is approximately 9cm long and 2 centimetres wide. Small models are usually just less than 6cm and only 1.5cm wide. The largest model ever produced, Wenger’s ‘The Giant’ was upwards of 22cm thick and contained 85 different attachments.

The Swiss Army knife is renowned for its superb quality and craftsmanship. Knives made many decades ago are still being used today. The knives are so durable because they are manufactured with the best components and they are produced using a unique design. Each spring within the knife is utilised by several blades at one time. Therefore, the largest blade has 12kg of force applied to it, while the smaller blades have 8-10kg of force applied to them. The blades are also very hard and sharp, measuring 56 on the Rockwell C scale of hardness. This, coupled with its well-known name, ensures Swiss Army knives are the first choice for many around the world.