Swiss army knife when was it invented

The Swiss Army Giant model from Wenger. Here, we line up the best headlamps of the year. Top Trending on GearJunkie. The Best Headlamps of Hands-free lighting is a necessity for all sorts of outdoor activities.

Keep Reading. GearJunkie Latest Deals. Choose Your interests: News. Top Stories. Invented in the s, and today still made exclusively in only two factories in Switzerland, the pocket knives are produced in dozens of varieties at a tune of more than 15 million per year. This summer, on a trip to Europe, I toured Swiss Army Knife factories in Ibach and Delemont, the idyll Swiss towns where pocket knives have been made for more than years. It was in Ibach, in , where Karl Elsener and his mother, Victoria, opened a cutlery cooperative that would soon produce the first knives sold to the Swiss Army.

The original model, called the Soldier Knife, was made for troops who needed a foldable tool that could open canned food and aid in disassembling a rifle. The Soldier Knife included a blade, a reamer, a can opener, a screwdriver, and oak handles. Today, similar simple pocket knives roll continuously off the line at Victorinox A. Blades, corkscrews, files, punches, can openers, scissors, saws, and tiny toothpicks are long-time features.

Other Victorinox knives include 21st-century touches like laser pointers, USB storage drives, and fingerprint scanners with data encryption built in. All the implements, from blades to data drives, are foldable or set on springs to disappear when not in use. In Switzerland, I traveled by train from city to city. After an absence during the days of flower power, the term "Swiss Army Knife" reappeared in pop culture in In fact, this is the glorious year when McGyver became the ultimate spokesperson for the Swiss Army Knife!

The question is, would MacGyver still know how to use a 21st century Swiss Army Knife with touches like laser pointers, USB storage drives, and fingerprint scanners with built-in data encryption?

As the founder, editor, and community manager of Newly Swissed, Dimitri owns the strategic vision. He is passionate about storytelling and is a member of Swiss Travel Communicators. If you've been around Switzerland, you may have noticed that it's a special place to live.

But like any other country, Switzerland has its perks and quirks. We thought it would be a good time to reflect on our first year back in Switzerland. Here are signs that you know you're Swiss Most of us have probably stepped into proverbial cow dung by asking inappropriate questions while in a foreign country. To piss off the Swiss, you need Dimitri Burkhard.

Share Tweet 1. Pin Dimitri Burkhard As the founder, editor, and community manager of Newly Swissed, Dimitri owns the strategic vision.