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Owner Review: SwissCard Classic T3 Credit Card Toolkit
Report Date: 28 April 2006
Personal Biographical Information:
Full Name: Karl Daniel Fuderer aka Buzz Lightyear
Age: 23 years old
Gender: Male
Height: 175 cm (5' 7")
Weight: 85 kg (187 lb)
Email: zkyf@yahoo.com
Region: Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Background:
I started backpacking about 9 months ago, after converting from cycle touring. I’ve experienced being a lightweight and middleweight backpacker, with my carried weight ranging from 25 kg (55 lb) when very remote for 2+ weeks, to 14 kg (37 lb) when food is accessible every few days. I sleep in a 2-man tent, unless shelter is provided like on the Bibbulmun Track where I carry a mosquito head net and ground sheet. I like to hike in as wide a variety of locations and terrains as possible, from desert to forest to mountain, using an extraordinary range of equipment.
Product information:
Description: Credit card sized toolkit
Model: Swisscard Classic T3
Manufacturer: Victorinox
Year of manufacture: 2002
URL: http://www.victorinox.ch/
Listed Weight: 20 gm (0.7 oz)
Measured weight: 26 gm (0.9 oz)
Listed size: 3.5 mm x 81 mm x 53 mm (0.13 in x 3.18 in x 2.08 in)
Number of functions: 11
Colour: Onyx anthracite translucent (model no 0.7133.T3)
MSRP: Not Listed
Product description: (paraphrased from website) The ‘SwissCard Classic' is a first-rate practical, all-round product for every man and every woman. With the elegant ‘SwissCard Classic' I have the most essential tools and accessories always at hand. It fits perfectly well into my diary, planner, wallet, briefcase or shirt pocket. It could make a very attractive and worthwhile present as I value giving the highest quality. The ‘SwissCard Classic' includes 11 functions: letter opener (blade), scissors, protractor, pin, press ballpoint pen, tweezers, toothpick, ruler in cm, ruler in inches, nail file, and a 2 mm (0.07 in) flathead screwdriver.
Design And Features:
The colour is translucent greyish black with white writing and symbols. All the metallic parts are silver, with grey handles, and the toothpick is yellow, sticking out like a sore thumb. The markings that make up the rule and protractor are engraved on the main casing, and the edge of the cm rule is bevelled at 45 degrees for more accuracy in drawing straight lines. The tools are held in the case by bubbles (as the website calls them). These are extrusions from the casing formed by introducing a
pocket of air during the manufacturing process. A similar shaped cone is formed on the handle of the tool, so that when inserted it locks into place against the bubble, but the resistance created can be easily overcome when sliding the tool out. Some of the places where parts are designed to fit have embossed images of the device that belongs there.
Testing Environment:
My card has travelled over 1500 km (932 m) of trekking and cycle touring, on terrain including sand dunes, swamp, mountain elevations to 1095 m (3592 ft), and very dense subtropical rainforest. Most of its life has been between 100 and 600 m (328 to 1968 ft) above sea level, on a well defined track in SW Western Australia surrounded by sparse trees and semi-dense low lying shrub. Temperatures range from –14 C (7 F) on the coldest night to 35 C (95 F) on the hottest day, with averages ranging from 0 C (32 F) at night to 23 C (73 F) in daylight. Over that time, It has stayed in my wallet for the entire time, except when in use. It has been subjected to the very high degrees of pressure in the pack.
Field Review:
Introduction:
When I’m trekking, I prefer to carry as little as possible when it comes to metallic objects, because weight for volume they’re the heaviest. When I’m eliminating the unnecessarily packed weight before I leave, I make an exception when I come across the ‘SwissCard Classic', because in my experience it’s been a godsend.
From the moment I received it for Christmas years ago, It has lived every day of its life in the most easily accessible location of my only wallet. It lives next to my money and identification. How much more important could I place it in my day-to-day life?
As mentioned, it lives as close as I can get it to me all the time, and thus I have used it more times than I could ever imagine, including at campsites on my treks and tours such as opening packaging of dehydrated food while on the Bibbulmun Track. I would guess on average something from it is used once a week. I haven’t needed to sharpen either the knife or scissors as yet but they are both pretty blunt from use in opening packaging. The pin is gone for good after digging out a splinter from my finger I dropped it and it was gone. The pen is almost out of ink from jotting down the occasional important note that goes for a few pages when I get carried away. The tweezers have lost some of their spring from all the foreign objects extracted from under fingernails and getting that last little bit of chocolate out of the corner of the zip lock so it can be reused without cross-contamination. The things I use most often are the scissors and pen, but all the tools are useful on occasion: I admit I haven’t used the protractor, but it’s part of the casing so nothing lost by its being there, just in case. The consumable items listed above can be replaced, however the infrastructure associated with refilling a ballpoint pen with ink is expensive, and rare in Perth given our disposable society, and replacing it means having the part(s) imported especially.
I would have benefited far greater from the object if the selection of tools catered more for an outback environment, instead of office tools. A light diode may have helped when changing the battery of my main headlamp in the dark, a magnifying glass may have helped in reading my map, a locking blade would have felt a bit safer to use, and a serrated edge on part of the blade would have helped in cutting more durable materials.
Treatment Received:
The ‘SwissCard Classic' has stood up to some brutal treatment over many years, and still works as well as the day I received it, except some things are blunt or consumed. Just a few days before writing this I dropped it from navel high, and it shattered in pieces. I picked up the pieces, put them back together, and it was like new again.
The knife is designed to cut paper, thin plastic and other packaging that’s easy to cut through, however it has sliced through everything from food to manufacturer’s plastic to cardboard in its life, and still cuts through paper easily. The scissors have also lived a violent and punishing life, cutting through more things than I can remember, including fabric, cardboard, leather, wire, herbs and nuts. Even the blade was bent out of shape once and I machined it back into place. The pen has been used in every situation where I found myself needing to write something down to remember for later or to sign forms when everyone else’s pen didn’t work. The nail file, toothpick, rule, protractor, screwdriver and key ring are seldom used, but it’s nice to have them close by.
Maintenance:
Minimal. Over the years I’ve owned it, I haven’t once done anything to maintain it, besides the repair on the blades of the scissors. Because I don’t use it all the time in every situation where I could, preferring to use items that can withstand greater punishment, the tools have lasted longer than they otherwise would have, so sharpening the knife or scissors, or refilling the pen has not been urgent enough to warrant my attention. After using it on something that creates sticky mess, like food, I generally wipe it down right then to avoid mould or algae, just with a cleanish looking cloth. There is no rust apparent whatsoever, and none of the parts require lubricant like oil.Conclusion:
Summary:
Overall I very much value and cherish the ‘SwissCard Classic' as a part of my minimum carry gear. Should I ever need to replace it, I will not think twice about upgrading to the new and improved “Swisscard Lite” that includes a light diode.
Pros:
Small
Light
Multifunctional
As a whole, it’s durableAs a whole, it’s visibleEasy to use
Cons:
Too minimalistic
Not all functions fit my needs
Easy to lose tools
Easy to break tools
Expensive to buy
Expensive to replace parts
Read more reviews of Victorinox gear
Read more gear reviews by Karl Daniel Fuderer
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