The Care and Feeding of the Swiss Army Knife

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To keep your knife in tiptop shape, touch up its blades between regular sharpenings. I use a butcher's steel for this little job when I'm at home, and the handle of a crescent wrench down at the shop.

TO OIL, OR NOT TO OIL?

Because stainless steel isn't subject to rust, most S.A.K. users never oil their knives . . . and thereby do themselves a disservice. A properly lubricated Victorinox is always easier to open than an unoiled one. (This can make all the difference in the world when you have wet hands and/or water-softened fingernails.)

I always use a premium-quality motor oil (which I get from "empty" 10W-40 cans at the local service station) on my knife, but I suspect most any kind of oil will do. Just be sure to lubricate all the hinges (my Camper has three).

As for how often you should oil the tool, I'd say once a month is plenty (unless, of course, you accidentally run the knife through the washer or drop it in a pail of cleaning solvent).

EXPENSIVE . . . BUT WORTH IT

At $10 to $30 apiece, Swiss army knives are a mite more expensive than the common drugstore-variety penknife . . . but then, you're not likely to wear out a Victorinox.

I used my previous Swiss army knife a total of five years. Four of those came after an episode in which I lost the knife along a road . . . only to find it after it'd been run over by several pickup trucks. (Had it not been for the bright red handle, the knife might still be lying—unnoticed?on that same road today!) One side of the tool's handle was cracked in that little episode . . . but the knife's utility wasn't impaired in the least.

I finally ended up donating the run-over knife to a friend for general office use, after the breaks in the handle had spread to the point where they were causing undue wear and tear on my trouser pockets. In the meantime, though, I bought another Victorinox, which is now in its fourth year of service and still as good as new. (No, better than new: Now at least the screwdriver blades are shaped correctly!)

A final word of advice: If you buy one of these miniature tool kits, by all means have your name engraved on the handle. (I say "handle" because the stainless steel blades don't take engraving too well.) There are still a few honest souls left in the world who'll return a tool to its rightful owner . . . even if that implement happens to be a beautiful, red?handled Swiss army knife!

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