What Multitool?

Dear MacGuyver,
My first multitool was a Victorinox model that they don't seem to make anymore. It is the same one you started with but it also has the scissors. My Mom bought it for me when I was a young teen in the early 80's. I have used it for everything, and it is still in my pocket right now.
Anyway, I have been thinking about getting a new multitool for the last ten years, but have been daunted by the task of choosing which one to get. I have narrowed it down to a Leatherman Surge. I think this would be the most versatile, but it is one I have never heard anything about from anybody.
I am wondering if I have made the right choice.

I like the surge, but mine has become part of my "truck kit." For me it was just too heavy to carry around. If you don't mind that it's great. Being able to remove the diamond file to touch up the blade it awesome, I wish they all had that ability.

I agree with Paul810. The surge is 4oz. heavier than the Wave or TTi. For EDC, I'd stick to something a bit lighter. If you don't mind the weight, it's pretty well loaded (but doesn't carry much that I would consider more useful than the Wave except perhaps the awl.

I EDC the TTi now and used to EDC the Wave. They are virtually indistinguishable in terms of performance except for the knife and are all around great tools to have. I'd take the quarter pound lighter tool any day.

Here: Someone posted this the other day and it's a useful tool:
http://www.leatherman.com/products/tool-comparison/default.asp

Hi TQS,

I have to agree with the previous 2 posters, I have carried/used the extra large multitools and found them to be just too heavy. I have settled on the full size line of Leatherman tools and am now trying to decide between a new Wave II, AL, ALX or TTI, all are a very functional size/composition and weight around 8 oz which I find comfortable.

Good luck, buying a new multitool is fun.

Mike

Leatherman Wave has been my go-to multi tool

Sometimes I think I'm the only person on this site who loves the Gerber multipliers. There's just no substitute for one hand opening a pair of pliers off your belt. I admit it wish it had some of the features the newer Leatherman tools have but it's old...and with a lifetime warranty I've yet been given a reason to replace it.

I also sometimes carry a Victorinox Cybertool 34. For me at least it's an incredible tool around town so to speak. It's a bit on the chunky side for a SAK but between the pliers, scissors, and multibit screw driver, it's one of my favorites.

It may just be that my EDC Leatherman tools (original Wave at work, PST at home) are getting worn out (or worn in) but they are loose enough now that a quick one-hand flip will easily open/close them to pliers mode. I also put different colour reflective tape on the sides so I would quickly know which blade/tool was on top.

Mike

Hacksaw,

You can now cross over to the dark side and embrace Leatherman, I am providing a link to eliminate one of the last obstacles, "one handed opening." Once they are a bit "broken in" and not so fresh-from-the-factory stiff, you can open a Wave (or Charge) one-handed. Here are some small file movie links from ETS's review of the new Charge and Wave:

One Handed Opening - Basic - Quicktime
One Handed Opening - Basic - Windows Media
One Handed Opening - Flick - Quicktime
One Handed Opening - Flick - Windows Media

The "flick" method is probably a bit more "frightening" to an observer, depending on the setting.

I'm partial to the newer Leatherman Wave, after using a Leatherman PST for quite a few years. The one-handed opening is great. You can also buy a pocket clip for the Wave which allows you to clip it to your pocket instead of carrying it in the sheath.

Doug has reviewed the new Wave and has a review on the ETS site somewhere.

The ETS review of the new Wave and the Charge is here:

ETS Leatherman Charge and Wave Review

Same place I lifted the links to the one-handed opening movies.

I got, and wear, the Leatherman Wave. The ability to hang on with one hand and still be able to get to the most used tool, the knife, is important to me. The pliers are secondary but quite handy.

The Wave is about as large and heavy a device as I would chose for wearing on my belt every day. In its sheath it is a bit smaller than the Buck knife seen on many hips in the south.

I got, and prefer, the older Wave. It lacks the universal hex bit holder that I find to be murphoid and a bit too fiddly. Those hex bits can tend to get caught in the fastener, pull out and get lost. I am more than willing to trade off adaptability, the ability to change bits, for the simple reliability of single purpose blades.

The Wave is a bit too large and heavy to slip comfortable into a pocket. When wearing dress slacks, where a belt sheath would stick out, I slip the smaller and lighter "Original Leatherman" into a pocket.

They have subsequently changed the names. I'm not sure but I think the "original Leatherman" has been renamed the PST. It looks similar. The design lacks the one-handed ability to get the knife blade out but it has served me well.

The Leatherman Charge Ti was just right for me. I always have a locking folder such as an RSK Mk1 or a Benchmade 940 so one hand open on a multi-tool isn't critical for me.

In my opinion the Surge is a bit big. You can't go wrong with a Wave or Charge!!! Leathermans are great tools, I wouldn't use anything else!!!

Best of luck in your decision!!

For EDC, I love my Victorinox Super Tinker. It has a Phillips blade instead of that confounded cork screw. The only stuff I don't use in the course of every day office work (and on computers) is the hook and rarely the awl. http://www.swissarmy.com/MultiTools/Pages/Product.aspx?category=doityourself&product=53341&

After ruining the side panels on a Victorinox Huntsman while boiling it to clean it after cleaning an elk (My wife replaced that with the Super Tinker for Christmas where I saw Victorinox's warranty policy and got it repaired), I decided that a solid stainless knife would be a good idea for hunting or other dirty situations. Since I loved my good old original Leatherman, which was quite useful in EDC as the computer guy at the office for 5 years, I got the Leatherman Super Tool 200. It had the saw blade, all stainless, so no matter how dirty it gets, or what makes it dirty, it can be easily cleaned, the parts won't melt, the finish won't come off and the blades lock. I also like how it folds pretty compact. http://www.leatherman.com/products/tools/retired-tools/super-tool-200/default.asp

At 9 oz. it's too heavy for my EDC without a wider belt, but it's always in my kits for outdoor and travel. When I travel on business, it's the first thing out of the suitcase.

Select the tools you want.

Select the price you want. These two steps will allow you to draw up a short list.

Go someplace where you can pick up the items on your list- not the clamshell, but the tool. See what feels right.

Buy what feels right- buy it there, where they let you touch it. Don't be one of those guys who burns twenty minutes of someone's payroll and then buys it online thinking you'll save five bucks before you factor in the seven bucks of shipping.

Take a look at the SOG S62 too. It's heavy, but pretty nice, and it has a neat little razor blade "hook" cutter.

I have two older Leatherman's. Both were made before they had more models than Ford and CHevy does cars, so there isn;t a "name" to them. The fit and finish is super nice on them and they both still work smoothly. THe only thing I dislike is the double jointed pliers, I like SOGs alot better in that area. One of the nicest things about those two "elders" is they have "USA" or "Leatherman USA" engraved on them. Call me whatever, but I like that....I don;t think the new ones have it anymore due to a lawsuit.

The new Leatherman Skeletals look pretty neat... but look at the price, arghhhhh...

Back to collecting SAKs again

Ironraven,
I agree that it is all about the specific tools, but with something as lasting as a multi-tool I feel it would be wrong to compromise because of price. None of them are that expensive, that I can't save up for a month or two if I have to.
The only time I don't buy it there is if they don't have a returns policy, such as at every army surplus store I have ever been to. They are great for army surplus, but don't buy anything else there. But I am all for getting the feel of it before purchase, especially with a knife, maybe not so much so with a multi-tool.

This is the main reason I've stuck with Gerber. I wore out the wire cutters on my first pair due to sheer over use and they replaced the whole unit free under warranty. Newer models now come with replaceable carbide cutters but when I can get the whole thing replaced, the only difference is the 3 week downtime to get the warranty service.