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Online encyclopedia of all things related to the world of Swiss Army Knives.

A place to gain, and share, knowledge.

The category of Swiss Army Knives can be broken down into three main sections- Victorinox, Wenger and Other. Victorinox (The Original Swiss Army Knife) and Wenger (The Genuine Swiss Army Knife) have split the military contract directly in half, and are the only organizations legally allowed to use the term “Swiss Army Knife” in reference to their products as they are the only companies that supply the Swiss Army with knives.

The Other category encompasses knock-offs, look-a-likes and early knives supplied to the Swiss Military prior to 1891 when Victorinox supplied their first knife to the Swiss Army. Until that time most of the knives issued to soldiers were purchased from Solingen in Germany.

The company which eventually became known as Victorinox was started by a man named Karl Elsener and the knives were originally sold through his mother’s hat shop in the German speaking town of Ibach. His mother, Victoria was where half the company’s eventual name came from, the other half being INOX, which is French for “Inoxydable” or stainless, in reference to the type of steel that was eventually used.


Wenger was originally called Boechat & Cie in 1893 after founder Paul Boechat in the small town of Courtetaile. A few years later the company was purchased by a number of in entrepreneurs and renamed The Fabrique Suisse De Coutellerie SA. Shortly after that, Theo Wenger was promoted to director of the company and renamed it Wenger & Co SA in 1901, which was later shortened to just Wenger SA.

Swiss Army Knives have grown very quickly from a simple tool for soldiers to a world wide phenomenon with people across the globe using and collecting these wonderful simple and yet incredibly useful little pocket tools. On these pages you can find more information about the little red knife that has traveled from continent to continent, from the oceans to the top of mountains, and even into space! Start your journey by clicking on one of the links below:







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