Victorinox Classic SD Review: The Small Swiss Army Knife That Lives on Your Keys

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The best tool is the one you’ve actually got on you. The toolbox is in the shed, the first aid kit is in the kitchen, and the moment you need scissors, tweezers or a blade is always somewhere else: a splinter at the allotment, a parcel taped shut at the door, a loose thread hanging off your coat on the way to a wedding.

The Victorinox Classic SD solves that by living on your keys. It’s the small Swiss Army knife that’s been on keyrings for generations, with a blade, scissors, nail file, screwdriver, toothpick and tweezers in something that weighs just 21g. This Victorinox Classic SD review covers what it does and why it earns a place in every pocket and every emergency kit.

What Is the Victorinox Classic SD?

The Victorinox Classic SD is a seven-function pocket knife from Victorinox, the Swiss company behind the original Swiss Army knife. Victorinox describes the Classic as “beloved by everyday adventurers for more than a century”, and it’s still Swiss made, drawing on the company’s 140 years of knife-making.

It’s 58mm long, 18mm wide and 9mm thick, and weighs 21g, about the same as two pound coins and a bit. The outer scales are ABS/Cellidor, a tough plastic, and Victorinox’s default colour is claret red.

Here’s what’s on it:

• Small blade for parcels, string, cable ties and an apple at lunchtime.
• Scissors for tape, plasters, threads and labels.
• Nail file for snagged nails, with a 2.5mm screwdriver tip for small screws.
• Tweezers for splinters and thorns.
• Toothpick, tucked into the handle.
• Key ring so it lives with your keys.

The Small Swiss Army Knife That’s Always With You

This is the whole idea behind the Victorinox Classic SD. A big multi tool is brilliant, but it lives in a drawer or a bag, and it’s never where you are. At 21g, the Classic SD goes on your keyring and stays there. You won’t notice it’s on your keys until the moment you need it.

That makes it the ideal keyring knife. Your keys go everywhere you go: work, the car, the shops, the school run, a weekend away. The Classic SD goes with them, so a blade, scissors and tweezers are always in your pocket.

Scissors, Blade and Nail File for Everyday Jobs

Most of what you’ll use it for is small and everyday. The scissors are the tool you’ll reach for most: snipping tape on a parcel, trimming a plaster to size, cutting a loose thread or a price label, opening a stubborn packet of crisps.

The small blade handles string, cable ties, packaging and fruit. The nail file sorts out a snagged nail before it catches on everything, and the screwdriver deals with small screws, like a loose screw on a pair of glasses or the battery cover on a child’s toy.

Tweezers and Toothpick: The First Aid Bits

Tucked into its handle are a pair of tweezers and a toothpick. The tweezers are the unsung hero: a splinter from a fence panel, a thorn from the roses, a bit of grit from a graze. Having them on your keys means you deal with it there and then, instead of waiting until you get home to find the first aid kit.

The toothpick does what it says, and earns its place after a meal out.

A Keyring Knife for Your Emergency Kit

Emergency kits are built around the idea that you won’t have time to go looking for things. A small Swiss Army knife on your keys means some basic tools are always with you, whatever happens and wherever you are.

• Power cuts: cutting open packaging on batteries, candles and food, and trimming wicks and cable ties in the dark.
• The grab bag and get home bag: your keys go with you, so the Classic SD does too.
• The car: on the car keys for snipping cable ties, cutting tape and sorting small jobs at the roadside.
• First aid: tweezers for splinters and scissors for plasters and dressings.
• Camping, walking and the allotment: string, labels, thorns and lunch.

It doesn’t replace a full toolkit or a bigger multi tool, and it isn’t meant to. It’s the tool that’s in your pocket for the five-minute job, which is most of them.

Victorinox Classic SD Colours

Victorinox’s default colour for the Classic SD is claret red, the colour most people picture when they think of a Swiss Army knife. It also comes in a wide range of other colours, including translucent versions you can see the tools through.

That’s handy in a family: everyone can have their own in their own colour, so nobody walks off with the wrong keys.

What the Rest of the Team Think

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Pros and Cons

Pros

• Seven functions: small blade, scissors, nail file, screwdriver, tweezers, toothpick and key ring
• Tiny and light at 58mm and 21g, so it lives on your keys
• Genuine Swiss Army knife from Victorinox, Swiss made
• Non-locking folding blade well under 3 inches, so it can be carried in public in the UK
• Tweezers and scissors for everyday first aid
• Claret red as standard, plus lots of other colours and translucent versions

Cons

• A small knife for small jobs, not a replacement for a full multi tool
• Over-18s only, with an age check on delivery
• So small and useful it tends to get borrowed

Frequently Asked Questions