World’s Largest Swiss Army Knife: The Wenger Giant Is An Engineering Marvel

A lot of superlatives can be used to describe the Wenger Giant. After all, which knife company can even think of creating something like this?

But Wenger, known to be the more innovative of the two Swiss Army Knife manufacturers (the other being Victorinox), created this unique Swiss Knife Army that is still considered a marvel of modern Engineering.

The Wenger Giant, also known as the Wenger 16999, is the largest Swiss Army Knife ever made. The Giant comprises 87 tools that can perform 141 different functions. It is the only SAK that has the most tools, as it has every tool that Wenger has ever produced for their 85mm Swiss Army Knives.

If you are interested in how and who thought of creating this unusual and extraordinary SAK, keep reading.

Wenger Giant Holds A Guinness Record

Talking of superlatives, the Wenger Giant did feature in the Guinness World Records. Specifically, the Guinness Book Of World Records awarded it the distinction of being the ‘most multifunctional penknife‘. 

This is what Guinness says about the Wenger Giant:

“The most multifunctional penknife is the Swiss Army Giant Knife 2007, manufactured by Wenger S.A. in Delemont, Switzerland, which contains 87 tools and offers 141 different functions“

If you buy the Giant, you will get a copy of the Certificate of the Guinness World Records in the box that the Wenger ships in.

Along with this, you will also get a certificate of ownership which also has a list of 87 tools, comprising 141 functions.

The Giant was also a finalist for the Outstanding Technology of the Year Award for 2006, from the International Academy of Sciences.

Specifications, Tools, Functions, and Price

The Giant is a member of the 85mm Wenger Swiss Army Knives. Yes, this is not the largest series of SAKs that Wenger used to make.

This knife is more than 9 inches thick. Funny how the Guinness Book calls it a penknife! This monster certainly is not something you can call a pocket knife or a holstered knife.

Wenger has included every tool they have designed over a century-long history of making Swiss Army Knives. There have been tool variations in the Wenger Giant over the years since its first inception.

Here is a list of the tools and functions in the Wenger Giant, compiled from the two sources mentioned before. It comes only in standard red-colored scales.

The Wenger Giant is not only the largest Swiss Army Knife but also one of the most expensive Swiss Army Knives ever made. After all, the level of engineering effort that went into the design and production does deserve premium pricing.

The production is discontinued now and as of today, there is no listed price for the Wenger Giant. However, this has made the Giant a very valuable collector’s item. 

The model went out of stock on Amazon a long time back. However, you will probably find the Wenger Giant being sold by retailers and individuals over many marketplaces including eBay. The price varies between $8000 – $12000. 

Why Was The Wenger Giant Made?

Have you ever regretted that your Swiss Army Knife doesn’t have a specific tool that you would love to have? But the other SAK that has that tool is missing another tool that your current SAK has.

Well, that was NOT the reason why Wenger created the Giant. A SAK is designed to be a functional multi-tool and hence there has to be a limit to the number of tools a specific model can have.

But what if we can have all the tools in one single model? This is exactly the idea that Michel Champion, who used to work in the assembly department of Wenger’s Delemont factory in Switzerland, came up with.

Michel Champion is known as the father of the Wenger Giant. After he saw some big knives in the Guinness Book, he had this idea about creating one knife by assembling all the tools that Wenger makes in a single model. He presented the idea of creating this big SAK to Wenger’s management.

The model is officially known as the ‘Wenger 16999’. But of course, it became well known as the ‘Wenger Giant’ because of its size.

How was the Wenger Giant made?

The Wenger Giant is assembled by hand. The assembling and riveting process are manual, as Michel Champion mentioned that it is impossible for a machine to assemble a knife like the Giant.

He once mentioned that only the assembling process of the Wenger Giant took about one hour. 

Mr. Champion later trained his colleague Mr. Leuenberger to assemble the Giant. The two of them were the only technicians in Wenger trained to assemble this monster SAK.

Wenger assembled the first 25 units of the Giant in 2000. These were used for exhibitions in various trade shows.

How Practical is the Wenger Giant?

The Giant is an enormous SAK. Though impressive by design and craftsmanship, the model is so large that it is impractical for any type of actual use. It is not something you can carry with you anywhere, be it in your pocket or your bag.

However, Wenger has made it pretty clear that the largest Swiss Army Knife was not designed to be a practical knife. It was explicitly used for promotional purposes by Wenger, mainly to attract the attention of dealers at trade shows.

It was something to be displayed in a showcase, rather than used for practical tasks.

People have often referred to the Wenger Giant as the most impractical knife in the world, and rightly so. The uselessness of this SAK model for any practical tasks led to many sarcastic jokes.

Especially, some of the reviews on Amazon on the Wenger Giant are hilarious. Do go through them if you want to have a good laugh ????

In case you are looking for a Swiss Army Knife with a lot of functions that you can actually carry with you and also work comfortably with, Then the Giant is not the one you are looking for. I have compiled a list of the best large but practical Swiss Army Knives in this post.

The Wenger Giant As A Collector Item

It is said that Wenger made the Giant to celebrate its 100th anniversary, and showcase its engineering prowess.

It was used for brand building and marketing to attract the attention of dealers at trade shows.

The exhibition of the Giant at trade shows made the collectors and enthusiasts aware of the existence of such a unique SAK.

As much as the users of the Swiss Army Knives may criticize the Giant, the collectors love it. Quantity-wise, Wenger sold far more units than they expected. 

The Wenger Giant is retired now, as are many other popular SAK models made by Wenger. This has further increased its value as a collector’s item.

Tools And Functions In The Wenger 16999

Wrapping Up

A Swiss Army Knife turns a toolbox full of hardware into something pocketable that can be carried along with you. However, the largest Swiss Army Knife – the Wenger Giant, is a different beast altogether.

It was made to showcase Wenger’s capability of designing a SAK in its most extreme form. Wenger made a name for itself by assembling the largest Swiss Army Knife of all time with the Giant.

To know more about Wenger’s history as a manufacturer of knives and the only other company allowed to use the ‘Swiss Army Knife’ brand, read this post.

The pocket knife division of Wenger no longer exists (as it has been merged with Victorinox) and the model is also retired now. But the Wenger 16999 will always be remembered as a unique piece of engineering and craftsmanship, especially by collectors and SAK enthusiasts.