I used this tool for 2 years as a field computer support guy on a university campus. It was more useful than most of the other items in my kit. Pair this up with a small flashlight and perhaps a hemostat and you have a fantastic field service tool. I had a ratcheting screwdriver as well, which is nice due to the awkward philips driver on this thing.

It's been over 7 years since I left that job, and the knife works like new. I try to think up excuses to buy other knives, and it's hard when so many other knives fit in this category and are absolutely dominated by the SAK.

Some complain about the weight and bulk factor. This is not a very thin knife, and I dislike having to carry it around when I'm trying to travel light. I have some Haggar slacks that are very thin, and carrying a knife like this in those slacks just doesn't work well. With that said though, in many cases I'll put on heavier slacks or take a bag with me so I can bring this knife along. Sadly, I work at home now (boo hoo) so I don't find myself in the weird situations I used to.

If you carry the standard cell phone, keys, and wallet combo, adding this knife to the group may make you yearn for the man-purse (women get off easy). If you're like me and you dabble in photography too, you're lucky in that you can purchase a slightly oversized camera case that fits your cell phone as well and not look like an idiot.

-Tool breakdown-
Hook: Used for carrying paint-type cans with the thin metal handle. Perfect for this, much more comfortable.
Awl/punch: Used for drilling through many different materials, hard and soft. Used hole in awl as a pinhole lens when I couldn't find my glasses (try it if you're nearsighted).
Philips head: Useful for opening computers, but would be more useful if it ran lengthwise rather than perpendicular.

Main blade: Used for cutting bread in the field, spreading butter, cutting sausage, etc.
Can opener: Used to open cans many times.
Pliers: Used to unplug cables from electronic boards in tight situations. Used to flip dip-switches. Used to extract cassette tape from broken car tape player. Tape was inserted deep in the player on its broad side and I was able to grab it by the small ridge running down the narrow end of the tape. Used to extract a CD from a finicky Compaq CD drive.
Scissors: Used to clean up neckties and other clothing with loose threads. Used to trim bandages.
Small blade: Most-used blade for me. Used most often for opening those dumb plastic packages everything comes in now.
Bottle opener: Used for opening bottles of martinelli's. Flathead side used for many screws.

Toothpick: A lot of people say this one is useless, but I admit I've used it as a toothpick. It worked, so I won't say any more about it.
Tweezers: Used mostly for removing splinters. Makes quick work of the simple ones.

This is the smallest Victorinox knife of which I am aware will fit in my pants pocket and contains pliers. The pliers are extremely handy on many occasions. The only faults I find with the knife are the Philip's Head Screwdriver which is almost useless (protruding, as it does, at right angles to the bolster) and a the absence of a corkscrew. I would like to see the knife reconfigured with a useable Philip's Head Screwdriver extending out along the bolster axis like an ordinary blade and a corkscrew replacement for the existing Philip's Head Screwdriver. Other than that it is a fine knife.

I teach sculpture at a midwestern university. On the first day of class I tell students how important it is to carry a Victorinox Swiss Army Deluxe Tinker knife. I have carried one all of my professional life (35 years) and it is simply the most useful possession I own. It does things that are well beyond it's design intentions and when it breaks, the company stands behind it even if the fault was mine. I cannot recomment the Deluxe Tinker strongly enough. I feel naked without it, especially when I have to fly somewhere. How can I fix the plane if it breaks if I don't have my favorite tools!

Jeff Boshart, Professor

This was a Christmas gift to my grandson. I don't think I could have given him a better one. It has all of the functionality that he needs as a Scout.

I first had a Victorinox basic pocket knife and lost it not so long ago. I was very sad as the knife had been so reliable and useful for so long. I bought another name brand and was very disappointed when it began to rust in under 1 year. So I searched and came back to the Victorinox brand, and I am so glad I did. Victorinox still has the highest quality and most useful pocket knives I've ever encountered. This Deluxe Tinker is finally THE pocket knife I have been looking for the past several years. It's one that has all the tools I need, plus two I don't, as opposed to having all but one tool I need. I work on computers regularly and this Victorinox has been the perfect tool for almost any job. I highly recommend this and other Victorinox knives.

I have taken a fairly recent interest in collecting Swiss Army Knives, and I keep coming back to this model as my favorite. It was the first one I bought six months ago and since then I've jumped to the One Hand Trekker (not really a Swiss Army Knife but still made by Victorinox) and the standard issue Soldier (great knife but severely limited by its small tool selection, I still carry it as a backup though) but I keep coming back to my Deluxe Tinker. Perfect mix of tools, have used everything except for the hook but I can see a few uses for it, such as picking up hot pots by the handle on camping trips. Always seems to be a tool on this thing for the situation at hand when I need to make a minor repair to something. The softer stainless steel of the blades is fairly easy to sharpen but dulls rather quickly with use. The blades are not meant for heavy duty work but are best suited for light chores such as opening packages and slicing fruit. There's a hole behind the philip's screwdriver that is meant to hold a straight pin although this is not mentioned anywhere in the paper that comes with the knife and it does not come with a straight pin. Highly useful addition to the knife, was able to pick the lock on my back door with the can opener's mini-screwdriver tip and the straight pin when I locked myself out of the house.
The red plastic of the handle scratches very easily but don't let that fool you, the metal parts of this knife are very durable. Mine is lovingly covered in scratches just from carrying it in my pocket every day since I got it but everything still works fine. You won't regret buying this knife and carrying it every day. With a little creativity you can do some amazing things with it and it can get you out of some sticky situations.

My husband is a Swiss Army knife addict and this is his favorite pocket knife. He uses it all the time and has had several types and they last forever.

I've owned about a dozen different Swiss Army knives over the years and recently discovered this model while looking to replace an old favorite. Just the right mix of tools for the outdoorsman, DIYer and boater. It has rapidly become my all time favorite.

The only thing I don't like about this knife is it's thickness. It's not too bad but, it's a little hefty in the pocket, but the added pliers really make it worth it.

Love this knife, but I am partial to the Swiss Army ones. Love the pliers, scissors, screwdrivers, blades, and especially the fact that it doesn't have a useless and annoying cork screw on it. The Phillips head is not as handy, the hook is useless, the awl is nice if you need it. The addition of the pliers makes the knife thicker, but it still feels comfortable in my hand, and isn't so thick that it is s burden in my pocket.

I don't know how many things I have fixed, tinkered with, or how many splinters I have removed with these tools. Why would anyone want to carry a "regular" pocket knife when these exist and are so well made.

I have owned several Swiss Knives over the years, and I believe that this one is my all-time favorite. Has everything I could need, and priced very economically. Victorinox knives are solidly built and is a great tool to have with you at all times.

I got this for my husband as a gift. He really enjoyed it, it has everything a man could need on an emergency without being overly big and bulky.
I opted for this one since it didnt have the cortscrew and had something else in place which he has found much more useful.

Great present for those who are hard to shop for

I have had many uses for this tool so far and will continue to us my Swiss Army knife. This product is doing me good now and looks to continue to have many uses.

The deluxe tinker has several components that I find remarkably useful. The pliers are great for little fiddly tasks that come up almost daily. I use the scissors frequently also for little snips on paper, tape, etc. I find the Phillips-head screwdriver much more useful than a corkscrew.

I have been pleased with the overall quality of the Victorinox "Swiss Army" brand. I have never had any of the blades rust and the plastic on the casing has often lasted me a decade or so of hard use before cracking.

On the whole, these are great products and very useful.

I gave this knife as a Christmas gift. It comes in an attractive box and is very high quality. It worked perfectly and the recipient was very pleased.

This is a great knife/tool. Wish it had a corkscrew, though.

I bought this knife to replace the one I lost when I left in rental car. The model I had before was the Tinker's little brother (the Swiss Army Climber II. I loved that knife and used it daily. I thought it would be hand to have the pliers included with the Tinker model. They are handy, but honestly I wished I had replace the Climber with a Climber. The Tinker is a very nice knife, but it's bulky and I really don't like to carry it in my pocket. If you don't mind the bulk, it's good buy. However it that is an issue, you may want to consider another model such as the Climber. Hope that helps.

I've owned and used this knife for around 10 years, and it has served me very well. Like others say, this knife is the sweet spot among Swiss knives. It has just the right number and type of tools to serve as a pocket tool box. It is also not humongous and unwieldy, like the Swiss Champ. The pliers and Phillips head screwdriver are especially useful, though the pliers will not handle any serious work---it's more for grabbing or twisting fairly pliable things rather than wrenching on nuts and bolts or bending a big ol piece of sheet metal. The pliers on a Leatherman-style tool allow much more torque and overall usability, so take a hard look at that type of tool if you think you'll be using the pliers a lot. I personally prefer this classic knife style of tool over the pliers-based ones.

Now and then, it would have been nice to have a corkscrew, but the Phillips is much more useful to me---it all depends on what kinds of situations you find yourself in from day to day---drinking wine or torquing screws?

The one tool I've never used is the little hook thing that I think you're supposed to use for lacing your boots or something. I've never needed help lacing my boots, so I guess I could do without that tool---maybe they could replace it with another type of screwdriver or a mini blowtorch. :)

I recently ordered the Deluxe Tinker. This knife will be a replacement for the Swiss Army knife I bought 32 years ago! Even if you're not into camping, Swiss Army knives are indispensable for everyday use. I have carried mine with me everywhere (except airports). The knife has come in handy more times that I could possibly recall. Before cell phones were introduced, my Swiss Army knife helped me to make simple car repairs on the road (and I'm NO mechanic, trust me). I used it from everything from removing splinters to stripping wires. It's great to have one of these yourself. However, they make EXCELLENT GIFTS! (How many gifts have you received that you've used for 32 years and consider indispensable?). Don't leave home without it!

This pocket knive contains the most commonly used tools that a person would want to have available and in a nice compact size. I have carried one just like this for many years and would never consider being without it (except on an airplane of course).
Highly recommend this as a gift or personal use.

Not much more to say than you get what you pay for. There are many cheaper versions of this knife that I have accumulated over the years from bank give aways etc. All of them have fatal flaws. The tinker has none of that. It is a solid perfomer for everything. I've used it camping and the can opener and knife are really useful. I've used it in the office where the knife and screwdfivers are useful. I still have yet to use the hook, but I am sure that is coming.

The only flaw I see to these knives are the toothpick and tweezers. The toothpick I will never use on my teeth though it is great for resetting electronics. The tweezers in past swiss army models I've owned has become stuck, but this one still works well.

Overall, you can't beat a classic and I own three versions of the swiss army knifes and alternate them with my leatherman wave to use for miscellaneous tasks.

MM

It does not have everything you need, but it has most of them. I got it a great price from Amazon and I am very satisfied with it so far.

I've used SAK's since I was a child and I give them as gifts when ever I can. This model is the most functional of all of them. It is easy to carry, has all of the primary tools you will use, and it functions well in most situations. If you don't mind carrying a belt pouch knife, the Swiss Champ XLT is the ultimate of the breed but can be over the top for most people. This one carries well and covers a broad range of uses. The knife has an excellent warrenty and the spare parts and user replacable items are readily available. SAK even has a version called "My First Swiss Army Knife" for youngsters just learning how to carry and use a working knife.

Of all the SAK's out there, the Deluxe Tinker is my favorite. It's small enough to comfortably stay in your pocket (instead of those side pouches many of the larger models require), and every single tool in the collection is useable. While I own eight different Swiss Army Knives, this is the one I constantly grab when it's time to go. The only problem I had with it is the scissors. The small metal piece that pushes the blades apart got twisted once when I let someone borrow my knife (never again) and I could never get it to work right after that. I recently purchased my second to let my first retire after several long years of rugged use. If not for the scissors getting messed up, I'd still be using it today. After years of daily use, it's still good. The blades have had to be sharpened and there are a few chips out of the red cover, but I have no complaints with the quality. It holds up to hard usage.

If you're looking for a knife that is durable and useful, Swiss Army is the way to go. Any of their knives are good.

A very good product. I have used these knives for several years, and would never leave home without it.