The mountaineer is a nice “urban” version of this knife. The edge of the file is good for sawing many synthetic materials. It can even do really nice precision cuts when working on wood.
I actually used the parcel hook to carry wood tied with a wire, to make a fire on a camping trip. Without it I would have destroyed my fingers. Great review Jon! I love my huntsman
Happy Friday Jon, the regular Huntsman is one of the mainstays of my EDC rotation in various configurations. I have 8 Huntsman including 2 decorative scaled collectables & 5 with Plus scales & fitted with a Swiss Clip for convenient pocket carry and of course decked out with Firefly ferro rods or Fire Ants & mini-screwdriver combinations & 1 Silver-Tech scaled Huntsman also fitted with a Firefly rod, mini-screwdriver & tinder spiral. I have only one 2nd hand Huntsman Lite, bought quite cheaply in good condition on eBay & because one of the red scales was cracked ( the reason for its cheapness ) I replaced the scales with Sapphire Blue translucent ones, however because of its bulk I rarely pocket carry it ( ditto for my Ranger ). BTW Jon you forgot to mention in addition to the Light & the in-line Phillips screwdriver it has one additional back layer tool not found on the regular Huntsman, it has a Fine Screwdriver, the same one found on the 5 layer Ranger , the 5 layer Motorist ( a discontinued & rare SAK which I have in my collection ) & the 6 layer Handyman. As an alternative in the UK to the Huntsman you can have the 93mm Alox Farmer X ( without any scale or back layer tools or the 85mm Evolution 17 ( the non locking version of the EvoGrip S17 ) or if you can find one 2nd hand in the UK the Wenger Forester an 85mm predecessor of the Victorinox Huntsman & the Evolution 17 ( I have the Forester version 1 with a locking blade & secondary clip point blade ) . These knives mirror the main tool set of the Huntsman but cant be fitted with Plus scales . To conclude :- the Huntsman is King of the Forrest , one of the top selling SAK's of all time & is the preferred pocket carry of Maestro Felix Immler
I have a huntsman with wood scales. You don’t only lose the scale tools, you also lose visibility. The brighter colors just make it that much easier to find if you drop your knife while working.
The Huntsman is great , however my daily is a Ranger, I got a huntsman and then about two weeks later needed a file and thought it was a good excuse to buy the Ranger and have carried it every day since.But I still keep the huntsman in the car as a back up.
Another great video. The Huntsman has been my choice for an outdoor knife since before it came with the hook and pin hole. I have never been particularly impressed with these flashlights and it doesn’t look like this one is any better. The other thing about an onboard flashlight is I could see a situation where you would need to use the knife and a light to see what you are doing. That would be hard with everything in one tool.
I wish I had known about the Huntsman Lite a little sooner. I would have considered one for my needs. I just bought a Ranger to replace my Huntsman. I see the Huntsman as largely and outdoors knife, but on my job I am an apartment maintenance worker and I have used my Huntsman there for the last 5 months as an EDC for work as well as for personal use, and I’m stunned at how often it has been used for making on the spot repairs and saved me from needing to go get other tools and return again later. Along that line of thought, I can easily see a solid place for the Huntsman Lite as a general repair type of tool. A dedicated Philips driver is really the only thing I have missed not having on the Huntsman. For that reason I considered getting a Fieldmaster which does have one in place of the Huntsman’s corkscrew. The Huntsman Lite model has one that is inline which is even better. It makes the knife wider, but since the Ranger is also wider and heavier, it’s about the same as the Lite model, so I doubt I would mind. I ultimately got the Ranger to retain everything the Huntsman already has while also adding a file/metal saw, chisel, and technician screwdriver. It still doesn’t have a Philips driver but I most often just use the canopener for that when I need one. I only really wanted an actual Philips for breaking loose tight screws, and for snugging them up when found loose. Sometimes they’re hard to turn in hardwood cabinets so the canopener falls just a little short on that. It kind of feels like it would damage the tip if I forced it. Otherwise it does the job 90% of the time.
The lite switch can turn on when putting it in your pocket I would regularly find the batteries dead when I go to use it. Tried a thick rubber band but got tired of it.
I have the Wenger Forester which is about the same, minus the hook and it has a nail file instead of the small blade. It's 4 layers but only as thick as a Victorinox 3 layer.
Nice video Dear Jon! For my folks: A Champion Plus it´s unbeatable, if it´s too big go to a Ranger 91mm. and if you like to carry a "box" go with a Swisschamp. Too heavy? .. How much weight the feeling of "if"? Regards from Germany
Victorinox lights are emergency backups at best. For an edc light, I want something I can charge, so I always know I have a topped-off battery. You can get that in some really tiny and inexpensive lights (like the Nitecore Tube), so I wonder if this technology could be used by Victorinox.
I'd take the Ranger over the Huntsman. The Ranger has a metal file plus a chisel for woodworking. But, if you need to stake your life on it, I'd take an Evolution S17 with the locking main blade. You don't want an accident in the woods, especially far from help. The only useful tool it's missing for bushcraft or survival is the metal file and a magnifying glass.
actually replacing the tiny useless light with a magnifier would be much much handy. the Philips is good but replacing the toothpick with the pen is a loss, except if it have both of them on. what do you think sir?
Take a look at the Explorer. Jon has a video. The pen does not replace the toothpick. It is added as the Huntsman lite has the “plus” scales. These can be added if you really want a pen. Readily available
What you've described is the discontinued Woodsman. It's the combination of the Huntsman and Explorer (ie. Explorer with saw added). It's easily one of the best arrangements for outdoors or EDC.
My go to Outdoor Swissy is the Ranger. For another 2mm you get the very useful Metal/Plastic File which also acts as a Metal/Plastic Saw- which can be very useful to have since you don't have the Pliers of a Leatherman. Love my Ranger. I also agree that if you need the torch in public, you're needlessly showing off your knife if it's built in to it. So use a seperate micro- or mini-torch instead. That also goes for the pen. Even moreso since it'll be daylight, and you'll often be noting what others are saying. I can't wait for someone to come up with a micro-honing steel that fits into the Pen Slot. Then my Ranger will be complete!
Thank you for the review Jon. The additions I made to my Huntsman are to have yellow plus scales - which gives me the pen, tweezers, toothpick slot, and pin slot - to make it easier to find if dropped in the wild, and have my email address inscribed on the side. My thinking is that if I lose it and someone honest picks it up they have a way of contacting me.
The cork screw is actually very important, I remember when one of my friends try to open a bottle of wine without it and really badly cut his hand from the broken wine bottle glass.
Weird hack: if you have a screwdriver (like almost all SAK), compatible screw, and a prying tool (hammer nail pulls work well) you can drive the screw into the cork and pry the whole thing out easily. Not at all a good idea for older wines, but I'd hope someone would have a proper setup to remove the cork in that situation 😅
The standard Huntsman is perfectly fine the way it is. If you need a flashlight, carry a dedicated flashlight in addition to the Huntsman. Crazy that the "Lite" version is double the cost!
Can Opener w/ Phillips driver: THANK YOU. It's such a not-widely-known thing. People keep saying they need the corkscrew to be the #2 Phillips. NO YOU DON'T. You've got a #1 Phillips on the can opener!
Really interesting comparison between the two different models of the huntsman. I've said this before but I think every Victorinox should come standard with the pin, mini screwdriver and file on the hook. But I agree, for the purpose of hiking/camping the extra weight might not be worth it.
I agree, but if they all did have those extra things then knives like the Climber would start to steal sales from the Compact and Victorinox would have to completely rethink the pricing of all models, or else the Compact would have to come way down in price.
Hi Jon, excellent analysis. I agree, although the phillips screwdriver is one of the most useful (I understand that the most used screws vary by country or area, in my country the phillips is the most common), the flashlight does not seem to be very useful due to its characteristics. If you allow me, I'll tell you that for outdoor activities, I wear a victorinox outraider, which seems superior to me because of its forcefulness and utility. P.S. Paying attention to your videos, I bought the Victorinox compact for urban EDC, great, I alternate it with the explorer and the Evolution 10. Best regards.
I'm not sure if it was this exact model and it may have been an older version of the light, but I saw a review once that said the light comes on a lot by accident if you use a sheath. Like you, I prefer to carry regular flashlights. The Ranger model is a cool outdoors one that gives you a lot of extra tools for the extra size, but this one doesn't seem worth it.
Yep, that small 2.5mm scredriver was missed by Jon. And actually this one bugs me - as in the regular Huntsman there is just a spacer. I wonder whether a small screwdriver or a chisel would make a regular Huntsman finally complete... Shame that in one of the hallmark models we see such a cost cutting element :/
Always loved the huntsman, the farmer x and the compact, the compact gets the most pocket time I lost my original that I'd had since 2014 and had to replace it recently....couldn't live without it !
To me the Ranger seems to be the modest logical upgrade to the Huntsman. I find the addition of the file/metal saw and chisel add significant capability without much increase in thickness.
When I was looking for a SAK for EDC, no longer needing a leatherman as I retired, it was either the Huntsman or the Field Master. I went for the Field Master which trades the (nowadays redundant) cork screw for a Philips. Not a great Philips I admit, but a Philips of any description is better than a cork screw. Huntsman Light? Severely compromised by silly little light of no serious use.
@@JonGadget Nothing worse that a corked bottle of wine and no cork screw, but here in Australia I haven't seen a cork for decades. The Stelvin closure was instantly and universally adopted as soon as it came about.
So , loving the things you have said, idea for a new vid, how much to have the best of the huntsman and the huntsman lite, . i.e ferro rod etc, Plus scales and having your recommended edc light on a key ring? with everything you have said in the vid......I can then apply that to my Ranger....Keep up the great vids. Cheers
I wish they had the inline Phillips on the original Huntsman. I would buy it if it did. Otherwise I don’t need the extra bulk or cost because of the flashlight, as I carry 2 of them anyway. It’s a pity.
The Huntsman has always been one of my favorites. I ECD a Wave, so a 'big' SAK would be somewhat redundant, though I sill keep a Minichamp on my keychain. It gets a lot of use too, especially the scissors.
I have an SAK, With silver insert that says L.L.Bean and further down is the Swiss flag logo. It has all of the usual SAK fold out items and the blade 6cm which is half serrated is also lockable. Red plastic has slight scruffing one place. Says Wenger, umbrelia, Delemont, etc. So???
I think my ideal SAK would be a “Companion Lite Plus…” and the diamond file on the hook as on the Compact would be nice, and then perhaps another version with the saw and pliers? also, I wish more regular Victorinox knives had the Wenger universal wrench 🤔
Apparently, the black Huntsman I just ordered is supposed to come with (and I quote) ‘lockable blades.’ I find it kind of hard to believe. Have you ever heard of such a thing? A Huntsman with lockable blades?
Fifty four years ago I have purchased maybe "fishemans" with thirteen tools but no hoock or magnet In 1969 I paid fifty DM and no problem to fly to the US of A with it on my belt :-)
I bought the Huntsman lite on amzn 9 years ago, when the prices were crazy low, £43 compared to now. I agree that I would get the non lite Huntsman instead though.
Knife is uk legal but what about the saw and awl? They are not knives so not excluded by the folding knife under 3” clause. They are however sharp and pointy so may not be legal depending on interpretation of the law?
Hi Jonathan, where did you get the ferro rod from? I'm in The Netherlands and have been trying to get the Tortoise Firefly ferro rod set but can only find them in America.
I use the scissors to cut straight across the top under the seal already plastic bag of potato chips or Cheetos. Hope provides an even horizontal surface to fold over a couple of times entertain a little freshness. Trying to do the same job with an open blade it's not so easy and could provide a ragged opening if you're in a hurry. Give me a healthy scissors on every knife-- sometimes I copy off a section of quotations by printing and then using the scissors a trim the print into a smaller square and paste it onto a note card.
Most SAKs are awfully ugly. The Huntsman wood actually looks nice. Most of those scale tools can be modded back into your kit, or not needed to begin with.
I use the hook as a pocket clip: place the hook on outside of pocket (top part of knife inside). Close the hook. Twist the knife to put it into the pocket. The knife is now held in place in the top part of your pocket, away from other stuff like keys or, in my case, a zippo (arc insert) lighter. Great work as always! - I really enjoy your channel a lot :-)
For outdoors I love the Hunter, the main blade locks, the saw is longer, and it has a really useful gutting blade if you're actually hunting. The can opener and bottle opener are one tool, but from personal experience they work adequately for both tasks
I have looked everywhere that i can think of,im looking for the ferro rod (not the flint)good tinder & the streight pin n i can not find these items,i would really appreciate some help....thank you
The Climber is a great option and very affordable but for outdoor I need a saw for general I prefer Compact but Climber ideal if you don’t need super slim for EDC
How is the light on the lite? Can the light help to see in a pitch black area ? Could it light a map in the dark? Is the light a novelty or something useful? How far does the light shine in the dark? Could it light a path on a trail when your flashlight quits?
I feel that the backside Phillips is somewhat overrated but the inline Phillips is underrated. It is really useful and gets into all kinds of places that the can opener can't. So if someone were picking one to be their only swiss army knife, having the inline Phillips is a great option. That said I agree that if you're going to get more than one and have one for camping or hiking, the regular huntsman plus a flashlight is probably better
My wife gave me a SAK some years ago as a Christmas gift that has all the same tools as the Huntsman with the exception of the hook. Was that a separate model?
Sweet! Love my standard Huntsman, never knew about the "Lite" version though, interesting but happy with the standard too. I think the Tinker would be a great EDC if the awl was replaced with scissors or something. Some may want to keep the awl and replace the Philips screwdriver. Others' may want to replace the smaller blade too. Either way, the Tinker is a cool piece too, the size is why I went with the Compact too:)
The awl on the tinker is on the same layer as the main and secondary blades, so scissors wouldn't fit sadly. However, the Tinker Deluxe is basically just the Tinker but with scissors and a multipurpose hook. (Both on the same layer.)
Ditch your bic lighter and go clipper. Once the fuel has run out you can use it as a sparker. Plus its refillable. They use make a mini and metal version.
Another reason aside to being reusable, Clipper seems to be the best for the actual fire ignition as it switches into more intense mode while put horizontally. Heard something that it was originally intended for the pipe use - don't know whether that's true, but either way, it's very handy especially when it's windy
Great review with all the essential details 👍 . I love the standard Huntsman. I've actually used the punch and sewing awl to perform emergency stitching on a friend's backpack during a hiking trip. Very useful. The can opener is a life saver and better than most generic kitchen store brands. The two knife blades actually hold their edge superbly well considering the years I've used them. A few strokes with a Benchmade sharpener and good as new. The Huntsman Lite looks good but I've never been a fan of a light source being attached to a knife held in the hand like a flashlight. I'd always recommend a dedicated head torch worn on the head for a light source. Intuitively you'd be turning your head in the direction of where you need the light to go. Just more practical.
I just bought a huntsman 2 days ago cuz I want to start hiking and whittling again. So far I’m loving it. I just don’t get why they don’t include plus scales on all knives now. It’s not a big deal to carry a pen and sharpie in my little bag but it would be a nice standard for victorinox to add.
I love all my victorinox and went for the ones with the most tools, like the huntsman lite, but have found for edc the light ones are easier to live with, i think a 4 layer could be the sweet spot?
For urban carry, especially around the house, I find the Climber Lite to be fantastic. It has all the tools I would normally need and I I end up using the little flashlight at least once daily. I should note that I don't carry my phone around at home, nor do I keep my keys (to which I have a small flashlight attached) in my pocket all the time unless I am going out. I normally have no use for a small saw at home so at home or indoors EDC the Climber Lite suits me better. Outside (e,g, hiking) I like to carry larger SAKs like the Outrider plus the Swiza Tick Tool knife. I should mention though that larger SAKs with a lock blade are legal here in Canada. In some other, more restrictive countries, I of course would take a 91mm SAK.
Hello, Jonathan - great review...I agree that regular Huntsman is the greater value...the firestarter materials are a good idea...I will generally use an Explorer in an urban setting & a Swisschamp in the field...don't have a problem with the weight...enjoyed the "JonGadget" sign over your left shoulder...hopefully the fellow was able to get his hair trimmed...otherwise he could always braid it... :))))) Good job!
A victorinox video os always a good video, i can not tell you how many people have showed me wich tools are on the huntsman i cary all the time in my pocket, what is your opinion on the ranger? Greets!!
Thanks. You do some excellent videos that appeal to one’s intellect. Your manner is refreshing - especially compared to some of the knife/gun/EDC outdoor types that spew forth on this side of the pond! On Victorinox SAK knives, I have noticed, particularly on my Alox versions, that one can increase the tension of the main blade by opening the other implement on the same spring. For instance, on my Pioneer X, if I open the punch at the same time as the mail blade, the main blade is significantly harder to close, adding an extra level of stiffness and possibly security. Thanks for all of your excellent videos.
Any standalone flashlight is going to far outperform it, but the biggest drawback by far is you can no longer easily clean your knife. On the regular models if you get them dirty you can just run them under some water, not so with the flashlight models
