Customer Reviews

Victorinox Swiss Army Explorer Plus Pocket Knife (Red)

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have owned several Victorinox pocket knives over the years. The Exployer is my favorite. In fact I think I currently have my third Exployer (they are always getting lost!) I have never had one fail in anyway. They come razor shop from the factory and are so versatile that I use mine everyday. My favorite features are the phillips screwdriver, the corkscrew (go figure) and the magnifying glass. Yes the magnifying glass is indespensible and you don't know that because you don't normally carry one in your pocket. They are far superior in quality to the Leatherman products ( of which I own two, basically for the pliers which are well made and useful.) The quality of the stainless steel and finish are far superior in the Victorinox. In fact few custom knives have the Victorinox versatility and finish.

It is the first thing I put in my pocket in the morning and I will turnaround and come back to get it if I forget!

For me, this pocket knife has everything. I take it everywere. I needed a philips screwdriver, scissors, and a cork screw (the three tools I use most) and this knife had them all and much much more. Just add a projectile grappling hook and it could completely replace Batman's utility belt.

I am replacing the one I had to give up at Lahore Airport recently because I forgot to pack it in my check-in luggage. The knife had to be given up most reluctantly after I had used it for 20 years. It never left my pocket no matter what! I have to admit that the blades were getting dull after my work buddies would borrow it and used it to cut outside plant phone cable, and wire stripping etc. I stopped loaning it after I saw the abuse. I truely think this Victorinox Explorer is a work of art in form, fit and function. The magnifying lens has been indespensible, as has been the tweezers that I have used incountable times to pull wood chip or iron filing stuck in my finger or hand. In my view, future bionic tinkerer engineer would be born with one!

I had an Explorer for 35 years, and it was in mint condition despite heavy and rough use. Alas! it fell through a hole in the my pocket.

THE NEGATIVE

This was my replacement, and while a few additions have been made, I am disappointed with the new style magnifier. I could be wrong, but I had believed the original (the one which is still pictured-- with the gray plastic frame) was an acrylic lens. The new one is one molded piece and seems to be of styrene. I am suspicious it will not fare as well: that it will be more susceptible to scratches, and almost certainly will simply break off from the knife as it is no longer held by the thicker and less brittle PVC frame.

I had used my original Explorer to light camp fires on sunny afternoons-- I fear this one may not have that ability.

Also, see the note on the Phillips Head Screwdriver, below.

WHAT IS NEW:

Tiny Blade Screwdriver: The addition of the tiny (bladed) screwdriver held by the corkscrew is perfect for eyeglass repair and is a nice feature.

Hook: I have no idea what I would use this for; but if I ever have to hold a thin rope or cable taught, the knife itself would serve as a comfortable handle from which to provide good control of the centered hook.

Ink Pen: Concealed just like the tweezers and toothpick, the pen is handy-- just right to fill in when you realize you misplaced a full sized pen.

Straight Pen: It took me a while to find this addition (open the corkscrew and look for the head of the straight pen sticking out between the red scale and the metal frame. I cannot recall ever thinking, "if I only had a straight pen..." in my life-- I have no idea why this is here.

FAMILIAR FEATURES:

Long and Short Pocket Knife Blades: Edges are durable and quite sharp out of the box. The steel, however, is so hard that sharpening is a very big chore.

Scissors: Just right for paper or thread, and always handy.

Phillips Screwdriver: Because the steel is so very hard, I have often gone to retrieve my Swiss Army Knife when a full size screwdriver could not win a battle against a steel screw. The Phillips Head is not milled to as sharp a point as my original. That is a shame as my old one was very useful for very small screws.

Can Opener / Small Blade Screw Driver : This is the best and smallest can opener I have ever owned. I have "saved" countless cans after they were mangled by automatic or common manual kitchen openers. Besides removing an entire lid, it also is sharp enough to make two triangular cuts and then fold the triangle down for pouring contents.

Bottle Opener / Large Blade Screwdriver: Until beer bottlers all use screw caps, this feature will be indispensable.

Cork Screw: Often handy, and of excellent design-- never failed me.

Awl: I have found this one useful for boring, cleaning fingernails, and splinter removal.

Tweezers: Perfect for the last stage of removing splinters, or holding an eyeglass screw.

Plastic Toothpick: rarely used, but kind of handy when you are camping.

Key Chain Ring : Great. I keep mine on a carabiner so that I can attach it to whatever is handiest at the time.

Scales (the red plastic exterior). Very hard and durable. To personalize my original Explorer, I carefully pried the scales off, and used them as the guide for making new ones out of a hard wood (channels for tweezers, toothpick and now the straight pen and ink pen). About an hour or careful carving and test fits, and I epoxied them on. I haven't done this for this replacement, yet. The original was apparently seated by both epoxy and the plastic attached while still pliable to melt and then harden around the rivet-like blade hinges. I assume I will find this one to be the same.

I first got an Explorer knife many, many years ago and used it regularly for more then two decades before giving it to someone as a gift (it's a long story). I knew I would have to buy a new one just like it because it was such a fantastic tool. The Explorer has just the right mix of tools. It's not oversized and bulky like the Champion, yet it's still very useful and versitile. This particular model is even better than the one I had because it comes with the tiny eyeglass screwdriver (an absolutely wonderful accessory for anyone who wears glasses) and a little ballpoint pen. Granted, the pen isn't fit for lots of writing, but it will do in a pinch, and that's really the point of it anyway. So basically what I'm saying is that this is a great knife and I plan on enjoying mine for many years to come (or until I give this one away too).

I just lost my Explorer Plus and here I am buying another one.

I'm 50 and have carried a Victorinox Swiss Army Knife in my pocket since I was 18. The models keep changing but this knife, with minor variations, in previous incarnations, has been the Tinker, Super Tinker, etc. Whatever it's called, it's one of the few out of their entire lineup that has the philips-head screwdriver that comes out the end. (instead of out the side- I don't even know how it's possible to use a philips head with a side grip- it seems nuts- yet that's how most of them are)

The magnifying glass is really useful especially as my eyes get older.

The large blade is for everyday, the small blade stays razor sharp for when I REALLY need it. The tweezers are used constantly. The scissors are very usable. I use the can opener constantly in the kitchen; I like it better than most kitchen-style openers. It's very fast when you're used to it. Regular screwdriver with the bottle opener and the corkscrew...speak for themselves.

As a sidebar: I think it was the Super Tinker in the 1980's that allowed the tweezers to be tucked into the end of the corkscrew (when the corkscrew was in regular closed position) and slid in-and-out, thus holding the tweezer in place in the "pinched" position. This came in useful for, ahem...holding certain products which are composed of paper and "green leafy" material and ignited with a sulfur preparation.

The overall build quality is great. My one complaint is that they went and made the plastic magnifying glass really cheap! I had the older style with the heavy-duty gray plastic edge. Now they make them like a kid's toy from a bubble gum machine. Disappointing when you're paying around 50 bucks for a tool, that the bean-counters would try and save a penny on this item! But that's a fairly minor gripe. This is just about the perfect knife with the perfect balance of usability and pocket-abilty (and affordability, when you consider this can last you 20 years easy if you don't lose it).

I don't leave home without it. Seriously, I'll turn around and go get it. I feel unarmed without it.

Nuff said.

I did a lot of research before I purchased the Explorer Plus. I need a corkscrew and also a Phillips screwdriver. However, they are both usually located in the same spot for many knives, so I thought I had to between only having one or the other. My first knife was the plain, trusty Tinker. It was small and easily fit into my pocket, but I realized I needed more functions, like in addition, a corkscrew and scissors. The Explorer Plus had both and more.

The Explorer Plus is not huge like the Swiss Champion, but it is pretty big compared to my tinker, actually almost twice as thick because it has 4 layers of tools. I really like the placement of the Phillips screwdriver because on the Tinker it sticks out on the bottom perpendicular to the rest of the knife and is difficult to use, but on this it can be used like a normal screwdriver.

I also decided to go for the Plus instead of going for the regular Explorer because the addition of a pen is very important to me. The mini-screwdriver and the straight pin (can be taken out when the corkscrew is lifted up, this took me a while to figure out) are nice additions but the pen was the deal breaker.

The Explorer Plus is a great knife and now I only need to take one knife instead of multiple ones because it has all the tools I need, and some that I will most likely use only for kicks like the hook, the magnifying glass, and the reamer (though not true for everyone). Victorinox in general makes high quality swiss army knives and this is no exception and the advantage this specific knife has over the others is that it suits me almost perfectly.

So choose your knife based on what you will actually need and not on what you think you might need for some unlikely occasion. Like if you never went fishing before, you probably shouldn't buy a knife that has a fish scaler. More tools only means more thickness, more weight, and less ease of use.

This is the quintessential multi-tool in my opinion. I have and have had several leatherman tools. They are nice but too big and clunky to carry around all the time. The Swiss Army knife is always with me and there when I need it. This one is a replacement for one I have had in service for nearly 25 years. I figured it would be nice to have everything sharp and have the right tweezers and tooth pick. I got the same model because it has just the right mix of useful blades without being heavy. It is amazing what you can do with one of these. I like the addition of the hook and ball point pen. I can see that being very handy when there is nothing else around to write with. My one disappointment is the magnifying glass. My old knife has a glass lens in a gray frame and that is what the picture shows. The one I got is one piece plastic. It seems to function all right but I am concerned it will get scratched up over time and isn't the quality I expect from Swiss Army.

Since purchasing my first Victorinox knife last year, I've become a big fan. In fact I've now purchased 10 different models. Of these the Explorer Plus is one of my favorites (along w/ the Deluxe Tinker and Swiss Champ). The fit and finish on Victorinox knives is excellent, and they are durable, useful tools. IMO the Explorer Plus has a very useful tool set, and is still easily pocketable. I particularly like the in line Phillips driver, and the magnifying glass. Also, I highly recommend the "Plus" scales over the regular Explorer model (which adds a straight pin, a very useful ball point pen, and a mini eye glass screwdriver to the usual tweezers, and toothpick. I've found these items more useful than I would have imagined. The 4 layer SAKs are hard to beat if you're looking for a useful pocket tool that doesn't cause your pants to droop.

This is my third Explorer. I use it many times a day for too many activities to list. But here's one not usually commented upon: I use the magnification to examine jewelry and wristwatches. Just the right power to see details. A second difference between the Explorer and other models is the Phillips Head Screwdriver extends longitudinally rather then at right angles to the knife body. This makes the driver much more useful. The knife is apart of my attire and I feel different without it in my pocket.