The Swiss Army knife is world well-known for its durability, range of features and ease of use. Before its introduction, the Swiss Army was supplied with a Standard pocket knife called the ‘Soldier’s knife’. Since 1897, however, Victorinox and Wenger have supplied the Swiss Army with their well-known knives. These 2 companies are still the official suppliers of pocket knives to the Swiss armed forces. Their current production for the Swiss Army alone totals 50,000 knives each year.
Karl Elsener was the first person to produce the Swiss Army knife in its current form. When he found out that the Swiss Army were supplied with knives made in Germany, Elsener took it upon himself to make locally created knives. He was not satisfied with his first knife so took upwards of 5 years to perfect the design. As a special touch, he added the cross and shield that is still utilized by Victorinox today.
originally manufactured as only 1 model, today’s Swiss Army knives are available in over 100 models with unique combinations of instruments for various tasks. These include knives that contain one blade to knives that feature an additional blade, tooth pick, pair of tweezers, cork-screw, flat-head and Phillips-head screwdriver, Biro, bottle and can opener, nail file, pair of scissors, saw, file, magnifying glass, fish scaler, wrench, pliers, USB flash drive, digital clock, altimeter, optical laser pointer and a music player.