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Swiss Army Knives - A Collectors' Companion Book

Swiss Army Knives - A Collectors' Companion Book

SKU:SA17004

4.3
Rated 4.3 out of 5 stars
10 Reviews

Regular price $30.00 USD
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  • Description
  • Victorinox - Swiss Army Knives by Derek Jackson

    A fascinating, colorfully illustrated celebration of one of the great icons of Swiss culture: in France it's the Couteau Swiss, in Germany the Schweizer Messer, and to the English speaking world it's the Victorinox Swiss Army Knife - used by military programs the world over, given away as gifts to guests by the White House (Lyndon Johnson did it first), and even taken as part of the equipment on the Space Shuttle.

    Charles Elsener, the fourth son of a hat maker, decided not to enter the family business but to become a cutler. After serving his apprenticeship in south Germany, he opened his own business near Schwyz in Switzerland. Soon after, in 1891, he formed the Swiss Cutlery Guild with the main aim of producing soldiers' knives for the Swiss Army, which had to date been bought from German sources. By the end of the year the first batch had been delivered and Elsener's plan proved a success - the first knife, known by name rather than type number - the Soldier's knife - had a blade, awl, can opener, and screwdriver.

    Then the development started: as well as the simple Soldier's knife he quickly developed the Student Knife, the Cadet Knife and Farmer's Knife. Because the Soldier's knife was heavy, Elsener developed the lighter Officer's knife, with an added second blade and a corkscrew.

    Today, Victorinox is the biggest cutlery producer in Europe, producing 34,000 Officer's knives in 100 different styles daily, along with 43,000 of 300 different styles of pocket knife, and the same number of kitchen knives. The biggest of the Swiss Army Knives, the Swiss Champ, has 31 different features, including a magnifying glass, but still only weighs 6.5 ounces.

    Unprecedented access to Victorinox's archives allow this book to cover in detail:

    • The company history
    • The product history
    • Comprehensive model identification for collectors
    • Hundreds of collectible examples illustrated
    • Stories and anecdotes from military and other owners


    Revised printing: 2009
    192 pages

4.3
Rated 4.3 out of 5 stars
Based on 10 reviews
Total 5 star reviews: 7 Total 4 star reviews: 1 Total 3 star reviews: 1 Total 2 star reviews: 0 Total 1 star reviews: 1
10 reviews
  • WT
    Wes T.
    Flag of United States
    12 months ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Great book

    Outstanding, finally got the book.

    Its been 5 years looking for this book.

    Thanks, Wes

  • HH
    Hugh H.
    Flag of United States
    1 year ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Swiss Army knife collector book

    Great information book

  • TB
    Terry B.
    Flag of United States
    2 years ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Good Intro!

    His book is great introduction to Swiss

    Army Knives.

  • DK
    Deborah K.
    Flag of United States
    2 years ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Great book and service!

    This is a great shop for SAK in my area! Fast and great service!

  • JG
    Jeff G.
    Flag of United States
    3 years ago
    Rated 3 out of 5 stars
    Swiss Army Knives

    The book is just OK. I was expecting a lot more on the knives and less on the company history. I am not sure I would buy this again after seeing the book.

    SK Profile picture for Swiss Knife Shop
    Swiss Knife Shop
    3 years ago

    The section for model identification is certainly a valuable resource for the knives themselves, but it turns out that there is a whole lot to the history of the Swiss Army Knife and of the company that first manufactured them.