My Wave handle has a (very) slight wobble, but nothing that bothers me during operation. It does go away when usingthe pliers, though.

As for the stickyness of the blades, the clip point on my Wave has always opened smoothly and easily, one handed. It's the serrated sheepsfoot that initially gave me problems (and when the wobble is noticeable). After a few weeks of playing with the knife, the issue mostly went away. It is still a little stiffer than the clip point though.

All in all, I love my Wave.

My only gripe about the Wave is that the handles are so smooth, I have a hard time keeping it in my hand when wet. (Ouch!) I solved this by putting several dots of the "fuzzy" side Velcro on each handle. (You can buy these in most drug stores - 3/8" dia., with adhesive on the back)

.....CLIFF
Living large in the land of the National Champions. (And I'm not in Southern California...)

I had a Wave for a while, but was seriously unimpressed with it (except for the design - it does look cool!). I noticed the same wobbliness and overall it felt none too sturdy - I just didn't understand all the rave reviews for this product (well I guess I did from a strictly marketing perspective).

So I waved bye-bye to the Wave, and went back to my old SOG Paratool - not the perfect multitool, but the best for my purposes - it is compact, carrying unobtrusively laterally on my belt in it's included case - and best of all is user-adjustable with the little set of optional (but essential imho) wrenches that allows me to tension it to my liking and to swap out blades as required. (All these extra bits fit nicely in the front of the case...). It reminds me of taking down a handgun for cleaning and lubricating - it's very satisfying as a mechanical device in this way (I really don't appreciate the Leatherman tactic of having proprietary fastners specifically for preventing user servicing!). Not as sturdy as the behemoth SwissTool, which I would buy if I really needed a daily use multi-tool - but who really does - if you really need pliers that much get a real set and a holster - they're a lot cheaper, sturdier, and practical - and then just carry a good old SAK in your pocket.

It's so easy to get obsessed with these darn things - but I guess I don't need to tell that to anyone in this forum...

<img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

"It's so easy to get obsessed with these darn things - but I guess I don't need to tell that to anyone in this forum ..."

What's your point? LOL!

Yea really. I now have two waves, all three squirts, a squirt on order to ugrade my wife's micra and was just looking for my little pair of vise grips the other day and remembered they were stolen years ago and I never replaced them and start thinking a crunch would be a good replacement <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I always thought the looseness in the wave was by design, somenone somewhere said there are some spring washers in the joints which will help to keep the tool consistant for many years where others would tend to get loose as the washers wear, can't vouch for the correctness of that since I don't know the source. I also think the wave was not intended to be a heavy duty tool, rather a smaller addition to their line to fit more indoors type of environments. Someone like me it fits great for, loosening the thumb screws on servers, the serrated edge strips cat5 cable with ease, etc.

The tool is not supposed to wobble. I emailed Leatherman and they said that only the older versions wobble. The new versions of the tool do not wobble. Also, both blades are supposed to open smoothly.

I have a wave that is only about 1 year old. When closed it will move about 1.8", doesn't really wobble more like flexes/springs. I think it is a new model because it has a couple reinforcements in the plier hinges that can be spotted by the head of a river on the outside and the ends are smooth instead of textured.

okay, if the newer waves are better than the older ones...how are the new 20th anniversary editions....any better or still wobbly ?

I have found most if not all of those things to also be true with the supertool 200. Although instead of the the one handed blades not opening properly, it seems as though one side/handle of the tool is more difficult or in pulling out the smaller tools. My conclusion is that the lock is somewhate "tighter" on that side. I have oiled it extensively with WD-40 and have used it a bit, maybe it just needs broken in some more.

I have also experienced to 1/8" wobble in the closed position as well as the handles not being as strong as expected when really gripping with the pliers.

I figure that these little quirks are just inherent to the tool in a way. There will be no "perfect" tool, just better ones. Although I do wonder if Leatherman can fix or refine these bits? The handle "wobble" doesn't seem to have any impact in the open position, but it could attribute to not always being able to get a strong grip. One of the first uses I had with this tool was to use the pliers to take of a somewhat rusted nut. The tool came out with a couple "grippers" in the jaws flattened slightly.

I never really figured that any of the Leathemans would have the same effect as a full set of pliers (5-10 pieces ya know?), but maybe it could be beefier? Lets's petition for a 2-4 lb Leatherman!!! <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (with shoulder holster!) <img src="images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Strictly speaking WD-40 is not an "oil", though it does contain a bit. It is more of a cleaner and liquid displacer (although this may be controversial -- in my experience, there are just about as many WD-40 addicts as there are Leatherman obsessives).
Personally, I find a light machine oil to be more effective and longer lasting...

I was going to post the same last night but my ISP was being slow. I used WD 40 as an "oil" for many years and later learned that it is not an oil. White lithium grease (in a spray can just like wd40) does a much better job as a grease/oil than wd40. WD40 is what you use to clean the dirty lithium grease off when cleaning before a re-greasing.