Is it a good idea to buy a Swiss army multi-tool knife and put it on my keychain and always carry it?
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Written by: Maya
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Is it a good idea to buy a Swiss army multi-tool knife and put it on my keychain and always carry it?
You can check the answer of the people under the question at Quora “swiss army knife for keychain“
About Maya
I carried a Victorianox Swiss army knife on my keychain for 30 some years. I used it frequently. There was always something to cut, unscrew, screw, pry, etc.
The only reason I don’t carry a Swiss army knife anymore is because I switched to a small Leatherman multi-tool. It’s smaller and more durable than a Swiss army knife and has many of the same features. The only thing I miss sometimes is the corkscrew.
The only problem is when flying, or entering a courthouse or other secure area, I need to remember to leave the knife in my car or checked luggage. I had a few confiscated over the years.
Other than that, it’s a great idea.
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It’s pretty much up to you. For me, my key chain is already bulky enough without a multitool attached to it. When I had a Swiss army knife, I just put it in the same pocket as my keys.
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It is not a bad idea, but I prefer to carry a key chain of other useful items
12 o’clock is a small two mode rechargeable flashlight, clockwise is literally my house key, next is a retractable exacto knife, the ubiquitous nail clippers, and finally a whistle that is also a bottle opener. About the only thing I am ever want for is a screw driver. The keychain of useful items is part of a larger set of edc items
So, while I don’t think a swiss army knife is a bad choice, I don’t personally use one. I think it is a fine alternative for that niche in a edc kit.
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Yes. Except when you want to enter a state or Federal courthouse, or pass TSA to board an airplane. There’s only so much you can do with your teeth, finger nails, a couple of keys and your shoe heels.
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Re: “ Is it a good idea to buy a Swiss [A]rmy multi-tool knife and put it on my keychain and always carry it? ”
I would recommend a Leatherman instead. Better steel and superior construction.
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Honestly multitools can be so useful so of course I’d recommend getting one although for the knife make sure it locks in place even if its just for opening boxes its worth it multitool knives that are opened by ceramic force is a terrible idea
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I carry no keychain, I do not drive or lock my house. A large annoying dog supersedes a door lock.
I do carry a Swiss Army at all times though. I collect them, most of mine have a story behind them.
Seems like any of my good multi-tool ones would make for too heavy of a keychain. I use them for everything, and you wouldn’t even believe how many times they come in handy. But I don’t know that I’d want it on a keychain.
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The thing about having a multi-tool is that even if you don’t have that much use for one…You will find uses for it once you have one.
Personally I prefer Leatherman multitools. They are made of more robust tool steel than Victorinox (which uses cheaper stainless). Their more easily serviceable if an issue with them develops. Almost all of them have good pliers as part of their build. Their more durable. You run a Victorinox over with a car and it’s destroyed. Run a Leatherman over and it’s slightly scuffed if that.
Neither would I carry on a key ring, necklace, or even a pocket clip is a bit of a stretch. In my mind a good multi-tool is best carried in a case on the belt. Though some Victorinox are small enough that they work fine in the change pocket on pair of pants.
I’ll also say that in the case of a multi-tool, their best feature is almost never the knife. If you’re trying to get the most bang for you’re buck but what you really need is a knife, I’d recommend an Opinel No.7 or No.8.
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If it is light enough to be on the keychain, then all is well.
If it is a heavy multi tool then it is better to keep it on your belt, since that swinging motion on a car’s key is not good if the item that is swinging around there is heavy, it causes uncalled for wear on the keys and the lock.
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I’ve carried a Swiss Army knife in my pocket consistently for over 30 years. (Mostly the Executive model.) It has been a very useful tool far too many times to describe. I’ve also had to mail it home to myself several times from the airport when I had failed to purge it from my pocket before attempting to travel. I’ve also had at least one confiscated and not returned, but that’s another story. I recommend a small knife/multi-tool, but be very aware of the conditions where it will not be acceptable to possess.
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If it’s not too heavy for a keychain, that would work.
I’d advise getting multi-tools with locking main blades, as they are safer. EDC items (Every Day Carry) are a matter of personal preference. Many people get by, with very little to nothing, besides keys, in their EDC.
A popular selection is a small flashlight, a standard GEN 4 multi-tool, like a Leatherman Surge, or Wave, and a small magnifying glass.
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Sure. If that’s your thing. Why not? Anyone can have a Swiss Army Knife. Always carrying it? A bit obsessive. But do your thing.
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If this tool covers all your needs then it could be a good idea.
I’d also recommend having the type of key chain where you can take your car keys off so you don’t have the entire key chain hanging on your ignition.
When I carried a Swiss Army Knife on my key chain I tended not to use it and just use the knife I had clipped to my pocket, but others might find it a convenient way to carry one.
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If you ever plan on getting on an airplane, no. I lost one a small one I used as a key fob that way.
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I think just about everyone should carry a folding knife, as long as it is one that locks open and doesn’t accidentally close on your fingers. Whether you need any of the other tools, such as the one for removing boy scouts from horses’ hooves, is another question. Most of them, especially the keychain sizes, seem to me to be too small and, for some I have seen, too badly made to be very effective (any screwdriver blade is likely to be a bad fit and slip easily). For me, a blade or two, and a bottle opener (which might be part of the blade) would be adequate.I get as much use out of this baby Spyderco Ladybug as I do out of my bigger pocket knife, I have carried this one for over twenty years. You cannot see it in the shade in this photo, but there is a hole at the end (by my little finger) if you should want to put it on a key ring. It is also very sharp and maintains its edge forever.
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“Is it a good idea to buy a Swiss army multi-tool knife and put it on my keychain and always carry it?”
Not at the airport.
For many years I carried various brands of multi-tools in a belt pouch. I mostly had Gerber. I found one that had a bit driver and I swapped out the bits that came with it for an assortment specific to the computers in data centers I worked in.
Eventually I worked in offices more and data centers less. It made less sense to have a multi-tool on my belt. So I switched to a Swiss Army knife on my key chain.
For both I forgot at least once and surrendered ones at airport security checks. Lesson learned – Have a space. And use airport confiscation as a strategy to keep buying the current generation multi-tool.
It finally got to the point my car uses a radio lock. Now I carry that fob. No no longer even use a key chain.
Multi-tools are general purpose tools. They aren’t as good as special purpose tools. Randomly carrying one works until you need a special purpose tool kit.
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Just one?!?
To be honest, I’ve had one for decades and kept in it my desk drawer, next to the paperclip compartment because the little blade and little scissors kept coming in handy. Ol’ Effectiveshit is right, though. The non-locking feature is dangerous, although I think that it is still the law in the U.K. (locking blades are illegal.)
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What an individual does with their money is their own business,if they are disciplined enough to learn of the possibility of anything happening and the necessity to be prepared having a tool will help if having skills/thought process to use it
Keychain sized anything aren’t considered serious tools they are novelty items/trinkets= pepper spray is a prime example,the SAK/Swiss Army Knife might have invented the multi tool Leatherman perfected it raising the bar. Carry your multi tool in your pocket or on your belt
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As long as you’re not going on airplanes, or into court houses or a student in school, it can’t hurt.
A good multitool comes in handy more often than you’d expect. I’ve carried my Leatherman since 1993, and I end up using it for something almost every day.
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Sort of.
I once briefly tried using a SAK as a keychain…and it sucked. Possibly because I use mine more than the average Joe, but regardless while I carry a SAK every day I don’t use it as a keychain. The keys get in the way when I try to work with it.
Original question- Is it a good idea to buy a Swiss army multi-tool knife and put it on my keychain and always carry it?
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It used to be something that people did regularly. Hell, from when I was in junior high school in the late seventies until I was married in 2001. I constantly carried a Swiss Army knife in my pocket. All that changed after September 11, 2001. Even now, 20 years later, you cannot enter many places (museums, federal buildings, airplanes, etc) with a knife.
I no longer carry.
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Keeping any kind of knife on a key chain may not be a good idea. Suppose you have to go through a security checkpoint. Your keychain knife may not be able to be taken past the checkpoint. There are small multi tools without blades on them. Get one of those for your keychain. Google TSA approved multi tools.
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I keep an Alox mini-champ on my keychain.
it’s on a TEC python clip so I can take it off my keychain if I need to.
I also usually have a full size SAK in my pocket on a TEC P7 clip so it hangs comfortably.
all my SAKs are on P7s, I highly recommend them.
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I’d like to be the owner of your local knife shop, if you are a frequent flyer.
On a more practical note, some of the smaller Swiss army knives are useful enough, but the larger versions tend to be awkward to use in any of their tool roles, and hence just a little gimmicky. I’m also happier with a folding knife where I can lock the blade in place, and I like something that is cheap enough for me not to stress over mislaying it or leaving it behind somewhere.
My choice would, in consequence be the French Opinel range for cutting, and individual tools as screwdrivers and pliers, and all the rest.
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As long as the laws in your State allow it, it is a great idea.
You my never use it but it does come in handy when you do.
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Sure. I carry a Gerber Dime on mine, fills the same nitch:
It’s not going to do anything major but it has proven its worth many times.
Just remember you have it when doing into a courthouse or airport or you are going to be walking it back to your car /temp locker or it’s going to be confiscated.
Because, you know, that 1″ blade is a threat to national security and all…
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That’s the best way. Victorinox provides useful and attractive looking beltclips for that.
If you are using an urban knife (like a Midnite Manager) it is small enough to go with other things but I regularly carry quite larger knifes on a keychain.
The advantage is that you really need some device to fasten it because those things can be expensive.
Another option is a paracord lanyard. That looks a lot more “outdoorsy” than a wallet chain (one of the two models of belt clips has two wallet chains the other has a simple lobster clasp). In either case you should have enough length to work with your knife without losing it if you drop it.
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Depends on what your needs are. I don’t carry a multi-tool knife on me, but I have one in my vehicles.
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Yes, I don’t carry a Swiss but I do carry a good multi tool and it can be invaluable! I’ve carrier one since I was in the military, never am without it.
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Yes it is. I have this one:
The Victorinox midnight manager @work:
Nice letter/package opener
My company has banned plastic bottles, most beverages come as pop-cap.
Several ladies have thanked me for the scissors after they found a loose thread.
The flashlight is tiny, but good enough to find the fusebox or my bigger flashlight in my commuter bag.
The thumb drive (both USB-A and USB-C) conains a bootable Linux on one partition and password protected PDFs of my most important documents on another one.
Both the flathead and the Phillips screw drivers already came in handy, as well, for small repairs.
Guess I have to replace the pen. I rarely use it and I fear it dries out. One time I made a boy and a girl pretty happy, because she could write his phone number on his forearm. Boys, seriously, have something to write with you at any time.
I literally never leave home without it.
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It depends on whether you use the knife part.
In general, I find slip-joint knives are very dangerous, and likely to fold and cut you. I recommend getting a really lightweight dedicated multi tool, and getting a separate small, lighweight folding knife that locks. One I really like is the Buck Small Bantam. It’s a tiny, unobtrusive lockback that only costs about $21, is comfortable, (after you sand the edges of the blade slot) and holds a great edge.
If you don’t mind the extra weight, you could get a slightly bigger multi tool and put it in a purse/pocket/sheath/manbag (not really sure who’s asking the question.)
Swiss Army Knives are actually made by 2 different brands, although I think Victorinox is generally recognized as the ruler in that category. I Don’t really see them as well made tools, especially because nothing really locks, and merely dropping them will crack the plastic scales. But there are people who would fight me over that statement 🙂 I guess each to there own.
Ultimately, something is better than nothing if you aren’t going to wear anything else, and I commend you for looking into it.
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Do you use the knife mostly? If so something like a Buck 55 or 112 would do.
Or do you use the other tools? If you use all the tools then carry the Swiss Army multi tool knife. But if it’s mostly not used then maybe just a knife is good.
Check your laws..
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Q: Is it a good idea to buy a Swiss army multi-tool knife and put it on my keychain and always carry it?
Thanks for the A2A
A: Something is always better than nothing, but It depends on your day-to-day needs.
If you don’t need more than the basics – a knife for opening boxes, a file, a small screwdriver, and a pair of simple light scissors – then yeah.
If you find your needs generally require a little more tool, a Gerber Dime or a Leatherman Micra may be more of what you’d want. They’re still small enough to stick on a keychain, but are more fully-featured and rugged.
If you have a job, hobbies, or a life that mean even more options would be appropriate, I say carry a very basic microtool on your keychain, carry a dedicated folding knife, and a full-sized multitool from either Leatherman, SOG, or Gerber.
There are too many to compare and contrast, so I’ll simply picture my personal “work” set-up:
I have a $10 Gerber Mullet on my keychain. It’s quite a clever little multitool, containing 9 different “tools”; a pry bar, wire stripper, nail puller, scraper, a small and large flathead driver, a cross driver, a 1/4 hex driver, and a bottle opener.
My EDC knife doubles as a self-defense too. No matter what I’m up to, and though I have lots of options, I have tended to carry my Spyderco Native 5 for everything lately. At around $126, it’s not incredibly expensive, and it works well for everything I personally need a knife for. So would others I own.
Then, I keep a regular full-sized multitool in a sheath within my vehicle, so it’s available to throw on my belt if I feel I might need it.
Personally, that full-size is a $140ish Gerber 600 Center Drive multitool that comes with a sheath, a magnetic bit kit, and has the proper scraper and tinkering tool for my M4 rifle + crimpers.
I will say that the addition of a replaceable wire cutter, and the redesigned “center driver”. were GENIUS. Gerber’s spring loaded pliers – in my opinion – are, and always have been, better than their competition.
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I don’t think so. It makes the keychain unnecessarily and uncomfortably big and heavy, and the keys get in the way if you want to use anything on the knife.
Even if you carry both in the same pocket, there’s absolutely no upside of connecting them. Also it won’t ever help you not forgetting it/them.
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I have a little Leatherman Micra on my keychain, the kind which folds open to become scissors. In general I find that I need a handy pair of scissors more often than I need a knife, though there is a fold-out blade in the Leatherman (I don’t use it often because it doesn’t lock.)
It’s handy to have the scissors and a couple of little flat screwdrivers. However the most useful thing about it is the mass of it. I only have about five keys on my key ring, and only one of them has any weight to it. Having the Leatherman on my key ring means it acts as a fob; I can always tell what pocket my keys are in and whether I am in fact carrying them, because the extra weight, while not huge, is palpable enough.
I went for a Leatherman because the scissors are considerably better than anything I’ve seen on a Swiss Army knife, and SA knives tend to either feel too big or too small to work the way I want them to. The Leatherman Micra is about perfect in my opinion.
Ultimately I guess it’s about what you think you might need a tool for. I have another Leatherman the same size and weight but which opens out to become pliers (with wire-stripping bits) rather than scissors (the scissors are now the flimsy fold-out kind you see in SA knives.) I carry the scissors one because I need scissors more often than pliers (or, as I say, a proper knife.) But your mileage may vary.
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I’m not a fan of the multi-tool. My personal carry is …
… Clips in my pocket, easy to sharpen and I can access it without thinking. I use it several times a day without thinking about it.
IMHO a small multi tool can be useful if it is designed for the task at hand. For example, a bike multi tool can be useful for a bike emergency repair but it’s unlikely to be useful for other purposes. So carry one on your bike, not in your pocket. Leatherman and similar larger multi tools can have a broader usefulness but are more of a belt carry than a pocket carry.
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Sure. I have a Leatherman Micra (RadioShack version) on both of my work badge lanyards. Handy for all kinds of basic jobs.
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