There are two "official" Swiss Army knife manufacturers. I had one of the others, not the VIctorinox but one from the other company whose name I can't recall now. They are a smaller contractor so most of the knives, perhaps all the ones imported into the US are Victorinox.

I had been given this particular knife by my sister who bought it when she was in school in Switzerland. I had carried it with me for years including on a year-long motorcycle trip from Spain to Asia Minor and return, eight other trips aross North America on motorcycles and a dugout canoe trip that took ten days to reach the village that was our destination. I had foiund uses for every single attachment on tha tknife. The knife was beginning to show its age though. The scissor spring had broken and the toothpick and tweezers were long gone.

I wrote to the Swiss company and told them how much the knife meant to me and that I really did not want to replace it, I wanted it repaired.

At this time, I was living in the US and the Swiss company said in their return reply that they always enjoy hearing from longtime users of their knives who have relied on them in interesting situations. They told me that if I would ship them the knife, they would repair it at no charge and reurn it to me! I had already had the knife for twenty years!!

Several years ago, there was an article in Smithsonian Magazine that was an enertaining history of the Swiss Army Knife and the companies who make it.

As for my knife, I took it with me on another transcontinental trip, this time driving a truck with my soon to be wife. One afternoon, while cleaning out the bags of trash from the food we ate while driving, she inadvertently threw out my knife.

Now I have a Victorinox but it just isn't the same.

Sourdough