The Alox Refined Collection gives Victorinox’s classic design a modern twist.

As steady as the flow of an Alps glacier, Victorinox doesn’t veer far from its design fundamentals. It’s served the Swiss company well, given the Swiss Army Knife might be among the most recognizable tools in the world. In turn, when the iconic company tweaks its legendary pocketknives, it’s worth taking note.

Hence, the Alox Refined Collection deserves consideration—even if you aren’t a diehard collector of Victorinox.

More than anything, it appears Victorinox is modernizing the aesthetics of its knives with the three-knife line. Alox—aluminum scale—has been around for some time, but never quite in the guise it appears in the Refined Collection. The knifemaker has also attempted to improve the function of the series with the addition of a feature that has become almost a must-have on modern pocketknives—a pocket clip.

As to the looks of the Refined Collection, it’s solid, catching the classic SAK up to current sensibilities without veering from Victorinox’s winning formula. The scale has a sleek brushed finish, the texturing runs in a saddle near the spine and it features multiple cutouts. The last feature I like, given it gives a peek into the knives’ locking mechanisms and adds character. On the flip side, I get a bit clutchy on exposing these to the environment and fouling.

On the topic of lockup, the main blade has a locking leaf on all three models, potentially making it fit for more robust duty—at least fit for duties that could potentially close a slipjoint lock. As for the clip, it blends in with the curve of the knives’ end and is riveted onto the scale, so there’s no playing with how it’s carried. This shouldn’t be an issue, given blade deployment is still via a nail nick. The three models of the Refined Collection offer different tiers of tools, with the OneFold Alox offering a single blade, the Synergy Alox four tools and the Synergy X Alox five tools. The price tag on the series runs from $56 for the OneFold to $96 for the Synergy X.

Onto the differences in the models themselves. The OneFold is super simple, with the blade being the only tool present. The Synergy is the middle-tier model, with a considerable expansion to its toolbelt: in addition to the blade, it has the nail file/narrow driver, bottle opener/flat head driver and a new box opener tool that appears to be exclusive to the Refined Collection. Finally, we have the Synergy X which, if you know your Victorinox nomenclature, you will understand to have a pair of spring-loaded scissors in addition to the standard Synergy tool suite.

Synergy X Alox Specs

Tools: Blade, large / Scissors / Box Opener / Screwdriver 3 mm / Nail file / Nail cleaner / Bottle opener / Screwdriver 7 mm / Wire stripper / Carry clip
Height: 0.8 in
Length: 3.7 in
Width: 0.9 in
Weight: 3.5 oz
Country of origin: Switzerland
Blade lockable: Yes
One hand blade: No
No. of features: 10
MSRP: $96

Synergy Alox Specs

Tools: Blade, large / Box Opener / Screwdriver 3 mm / Nail file / Nail cleaner / Bottle opener / Screwdriver 7 mm / Wire stripper / Carry clip
Height: 0.7 in
Length: 3.7 in
Width: 0.9 in
Weight: 2.7 oz
Country of origin: Switzerland
Blade lockable: Yes
One hand blade: No
No. of features: 9
MSRP: $78

Onefold Alox Specs

Tools: Blade, large / Carry clip
Height: 0.6 in
Length: 3.7 in
Width: 0.9 in
Weight: 1.9 oz
Country of origin: Switzerland
Blade lockable: Yes
One hand blade: No
No. of features: 2
MSRP: $56

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