The Victorinox Swiss Army Ranger Knife Has 11 Tools You Will Use All the Time
Once you start keeping a Swiss Army Knife on hand, you will never again want to be without it; these classic multitools are as useful in everyday life as they are far afield
I strongly recommend The Victorinox Ranger pocketknife because it features 11 tools that you will find uses for in the course of everyday life. And of course it’s priceless when life takes you beyond the everyday out into the wild.
It’s one of those moments I will remember forever for no particular reason: on the occasion of my brother’s high school graduation (which put me as a recent 8th grade grad, for reference) a family friend handed him a little gift-wrapped box, saying: “This is something that you will never again want to be without.”
As you can probably guess, within the box was a Swiss Army Knife. It was a relatively small, simple variation, but a good and thoughtful gift, and no matter that by then both my brother and I already owned two Swiss Army Knives each – a fact which was of course not mentioned. Redundant as the knife may have been, the sentiment was spot on.
Once you get used to having a Swiss Army Knife handy, you will never want to be without one close at hand again.
Except when you’re passing through a TSA checkpoint, that is. Aside from, that, though.
In the course of any given day, a good multi-tooled pocketknife can be used to open a letter, slice an apple, open a can or bottle or pull a cork, extract a splinter, dislodge a morsel, snip a thread or cut an article out of the paper, file a nail, and on the list goes. And when you’re outside the bounds of everyday life and out in the field, you can use your Swiss Army Knife to shave some kindling and even saw larger logs, gut a fish (disclosure: I have never done so myself. But I could!), carve a stake, prep your meal, and even offer yourself a bit more defense than you get barehanded, in extreme circumstances.
You can do all that provided you select the right Swiss Army Knife, that is. For there are so many variations of these venerable tools that it can be overwhelming to try to select the right one for your needs. Some have so many tools it’s almost comical, such as the Swisschamp Multitool which has everything from pliers to a magnifying glass. (Yeah… I have one.) Some are so pared down they are almost too minimal, like the aptly named Spartan.
If you are only going to own one Swiss Army Knife – and that’s all you need – I highly recommend the Ranger. It has 11 tools you will use regularly. And three you won’t, but that’s OK.
The regular tools, so to speak, are two blades (large and small), a saw, scissors, a file, a can opener, a bottle opener, tweezers and a toothpick, a corkscrew, and a flathead screwdriver. The three you won’t use much are an awl, a chisel, and that little hook no one seems to understand. Said hook is – drumroll – a parcel carrier. Or at least that’s what it used to be called when parcels wrapped in twine were common. The hook turned the pocketknife into a handle easily gripped. Now I gather they call it a “multipurpose hook.” Go figure.
I have had my Ranger for well over two decades now and have brought it on countless hikes, campouts, overseas trips (in checked bags post 2001…), and when I’m not off somewhere, it’s right there in the center console of the car at the ready. I’ve used my Swiss Army Knife for mundane tasks like stripping wires, tightening screws, prepping snacks for self or kids and trimming hangnails and such.
I’ve used it for slightly more involved pursuits, like prepping materials for campfires and or in crafting campsite meals, and I have also counted on it multiple times for more harrowing purposes, like preparing bandages, cutting stakes needed to secure a tarp during a downpour in a South American jungle, and cutting cordage needed to prepare prusik loops readied in case of a slip into a glacial crevasse.
Will the Ranger be the perfect Swiss Army Knife for you? I can’t promise that. But I can guarantee it’s a great and versatile choice that will stand the test of time. Indeed, for all the many times I’ve used my knife, and here I mean specifically the primary large blade, I’ve only sharpened it once or twice and – wait, let me check – yep, it’s nigh on razor-like.