What do you guys think of the leatherman wave as a survival knife/tool kit for the times I go out in the wild, and as a general tool for everyday use?

I cannot get any of the survival knives such as the Doug Ritter knife, for various reasons, so this tool/knife is my only carry blade for the next few years.

How does this compare against general survival type knives, and would you carry it as a outdoors knife? The things I find useful on it is the file for fish hooks and such, and the mini saw blade that easily chops up small branches for a fire.

Look, the main point of a 'preparedness' item is that first you have it on you when you need it.

I don't have the Wave but a LM is in my EDC. Nothing wrong with it. I find uses for it every day it seems. On Sunday I used the pliers while doing some work on my bathroom sink.

I would carry the Wave as a primary knife, if I had too. I believe in the maxim, "One is none, two is one." I have carried the SAK Champ on many one and two week back packing trips and I put the Wave up there with that.

I used to carry my LM Wave out in the woods but don't anymore due to it's weight and it was inconvenient to carry on my belt when using a backpack hipbelt. The saw was handy but I never used anything other tools. My Vic SAK has a saw that is just as effective (although the SAK's saw doesn't lock). The SAK and my machete are all I take anymore for most trips under three days unless I specifically plan to do something requiring a different knife, like hunting or fishing.

-Blast

I tend not to prefer leathermans as camping tools, just because of the amount of scredrivers and things that you wouldnt use in the wild. But for car camping and edc they work great

I EDC a Wave... use it all the time esp working around the house on odd jobs etc.

In the woods I just have my pocket knife. SOG Flash II (I also EDC this too.)

I don't think theres' anything wrong EDC a Wave if you are inthe woods, esp around mechanical things like cars, atvs, etc.

It's better than a swift kick in the pants.
-Todd

The Leatherman Wave is an excellent tool. A LM Wave is my multi-tool for wildland and SAR work, for the money you can't go wrong. I have found it to have the right combination of tools with a decent blade (not great, but better then many multi-tools).

There isn't many survival tasks I can think of that I couldn't do with a Wave. Some tasks are simply easier because of the other tools available on a good multi-tool. A good folding survival knife will make some tasks easier and safer, I still always back my Ritter RSK up with a Leatherman Wave or Charge TTi.


You never know what you may have to fix... even in the middle of no-where.

The Wave is a great all-around tool. Not ideal as a survival knife (nor is the SAK in its many forms) but it will do just fine. For serious cutting you would be better off with a quality folder or even a fixed blade knife. But the LM Wave will still be more than sufficient for light chores (for batoning and hacking off tree limbs you'll obviously need something bigger than a small folder or multitool).

Well, you kinda gotta go with what you have available.

I am not a huge fan of multitools or "survival" knives.
It depends a lot on what else I have with me though.

If I have mechanical stuff with me or expect to run into mechanical stuff then tools are almost essential.
I have an older Leatherman and have found it very useful on some occasions.
Even though it sucks as a knife the pliers, screw drivers and file are good.
The can opener has opened many cans of baked beans.

If cost is the problem then I would just pick out a decent small hunting or folding knife.
Mora is an extremely good and inexpensive sheath knife for the woods. I like their craftsman (#760, #740) series a lot.
There are other brands as good but Mora is pretty much the standard to match.

Buck, Schrade, Gerber and others still make a few decent pocket knives that are not astronomically priced.
You don't really need big heavy blades, a blade between 2 and 3 inches is enough for most jobs you need a knife for.
Often you don't even need a blade that long.

One of my favorites is the smaller sized Opinel folder.
Another one is the electrician model of the Swiss army knife, but they are a bit expensive now.

The other posters have the correct:

a. it's only useful if you have it on you
b. it's a decent tool, and some of the tools will be better for some tasks than a bigger fixed blade
c. you'll find a need for that tool on a much more regular basis than you will encounter survival situations

I carry A Swiss Tool Spirit as my multi-tool EDC and for woods use, along with a OHT SAL. In the woods I carry a 4"+ fixed blade.