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#22506 - 12/11/03 12:22 AM Unfair review of Gerber 800 Lengend multi-tool??
Anonymous
Unregistered


I am new to this forum and I'm not trying to start any trouble but I would like to freely disagree with the reviewer’s negative appraisal of the Gerber 800 Legend multitool as compared to the Leatherman wave review. I hope I don’t get kicked off this forum for this but I don’t intend this to be mean spirited. Please don’t kick me off. Just delete the post if you think it is too negative.

If you are a Leatherman-o-phile you may not agree with this but I am just trying to point out the positives a little. This review is a few years old but it is still posted so I wanted to comment on it. (Disclaimer: I do own a Legend but have spent a lot of time with a Wave in my hand)

***Almost every flaw mentioned with the Legend exists to one degree or another in the Wave also. My specific objections were:

1-The light treatment of the fact that only the blades lock on the Wave while everything locks on the Legend.

2- The Wave (and Leatherman in general) was used as the ‘standard’ by which the Legend was judged meaning that any differences between the two such as thicker tipped pliers, etc, had to either add nothing to the legend or be sub-par compared to the Wave. Differences make a difference, and sometimes the devil is in the differences as well as the details. Ford invented the car, but there was a time there when Toyota and Honda made them better.

3- The reviewer pointed out that the Legend is larger and heavier than the Wave but only weighs 11% more. 223g verses 250g. Definitely a negative if you want something to go in your pocket but a plus if you want a beefy tool. Part of the extra weight is that each tool on the Legend is significantly thicker and beefier than the Wave. A point the reviewer neglected to point out. True that it is a little bulky for a pocket tool but it isn’t a pocket tool. Because of it’s size and construction, it is kind of in it’s own class.

4-It’s true that the Phillips head driver is tricky to get out with your thumb nail. Try some of the tools on the Wave and you will have the same difficulty--they are buried deep in the tool and just as taxing on the thumb nail. The thin fingered will not find this a problem since the pinky slips in to grab the Phillips head. The file comes out nicely just by grabbing it by the side if you loosen the axles slightly.

5- I used the Fiskar scissors to cut through 3/16” rawhide and had no problems with the scissors jamming.

6- The beauty of the replaceable Tungsten carbide cutters isn’t that they can cut so much better than the Wave. Gerber never makes that claim, and so what if the Wave can cut through the same materials? I get the feeling the reviewer thought that they needed to prove the Wave was still equal here. The point is that you get three cutting surfaces, and more if you buy more. The Wave has one cutting surface and zero after it’s damaged or dull.

While I realize this was merely a multi-tool review and not a life raft review – fair is still fair. Every Wave owner I show the Legend to loves it and considers the Legend it’s equal or better. It may not live up to all the hype put out by Gerber but I believe it is still an alternative to seriously consider. Notice how I didn’t make a big deal about the replaceable jig saw blade or how I had no problem finding inserts at Home Depot. Neither did the reviewer, at least a big deal about how cool it is.

I too agree that the cordura belt holder is cheesy. A flaw with every Gerber tool. That’s why I made my own leather belt holder with a flashlight holder and a place for spare jig blades and how I got to test the scissors while I did. If someone has a website they will post a picture of it on so it can be placed in a post I will be happy to email it to them. If not, no biggy!

$65 to $69 at Walmart.

D. Allison

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#22507 - 12/11/03 03:34 AM Re: Unfair review of Gerber 800 Lengend multi-tool??
AyersTG Offline
Veteran

Registered: 12/10/01
Posts: 1272
Loc: Upper Mississippi River Valley...
Well, I dunno about unfair, but your opinion is as good as anyones. I looked over all the Gerber's I could find locally a few months ago and liked them - an improvement over the old blood-blister tool they used to make. The 800 is the one that interests me the most anyway - tell us what you like and dislike about it, please.

Tom

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#22508 - 12/11/03 03:57 AM Re: Unfair review of Gerber 800 Lengend multi-tool??
Paul810 Offline
Veteran

Registered: 03/02/03
Posts: 1428
Loc: NJ, USA
I have both a Legend 800 and a Wave and I carry my wave more often. Both are excellent tools, however for my uses the wave seems to work better. The pliers on the wave are a bit more needlenose like then the legend which has come in handy for me. I have dropped small nuts/bolts/screws ect I could not reach with my fingers, nor could the legends pliers/handle probibly fit. Another thing I don't like is the half serrated blade, even though I carry a seperate benchmade or custom folder I always prefer plain over half. Now if I need a knife for cutting seatbelt, rope, webbing, ect the leatherman has a one handed opening non pointed fully serrated blade, this is neccisary for rescue, yet the legend has nothing of the sort (unless you find a saw blade that would work like a serrated knife blade.) I also prefer the waves liner lock to the slide lock on the legend, I find it easier to use, especially one handed or bloody. Another thing I prefer is the waves philips screwdriver to the legends.

Both are excellent tools, but for the survival/rescue purpose the wave has a bit of an edge, while for the construction worker or "average joe" who needs a tough tool the legend has the advantage with replacable cutters and saw blades (which are commonly used in that kind of work), also because it is a bit beefier a tool the legend would be better suited to construction type work or an enviroment where the pliers see heavy duty work .

For survival I feel the wave is a bit better and if you want a beefier survival tool the Swisstool or Supertool may be better options, though both are lacking compared to the wave and are in pretty much the same position as the legend. Now, if Gerber could put scissors and a saw blade adapter in the 600 Needlenose I would carry that as much as, if not more then, I carry my wave. The only thing it wouldn't have is one handed opening blades, but if they could make atleast the non-pointed serrated blade one handed opening it would be equel too, if not better then the wave in my mind.

Recently I have been carrying the Leatherman Juice pro and I like its size, abundance of tools, and "PHRASECENSOREDPOSTERSHOULDKNOWBETTER. friendly" look, however it isn't meant to be as tough as the Wave and is definately not as tough as the Legend/Supertool/Swiss tool, also it doesn't have locking blades. I have been carrying this as my everyday non-work tool where a corkscrew, scissors, bottle opener, basically abundance of everyday style tools comes in handy. The wave is for when I go out in the woods or going places where a corkscrew isn't really neccisary. If I need something tougher then that then I go get the real pliers out of the truck. <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Now, maybe Mr. Ritters review was a bit harsh, but you have to remember that his reviews are done with survival and medical thoughts in mind and for those purposes the wave is a better suited tool, now hand someone who works with Snap On tools all day he may find the Legend to be the better tool and feel the wave as being weak and useless in certain aspects. Remember reviews are all in the eye of the user and their purpose.

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#22509 - 12/11/03 06:30 PM Re: Unfair review of Gerber 800 Lengend multi-tool??
Anonymous
Unregistered


I meant unfair in tone and quality. The Legend negatives mentioned in the review I completely agree with but many positives weren't mentioned.

I love that I can get to the scissors and a blade quickly. I love the replaceable jig blade. Not every survival situation will require cutting through wood so I like that you can purchase a jig blade set for $10 at homedepot that has various types of metal and wood blades of various lengths. The blade can be longer and carried separately and installed upon need.

I love the springloaded pliers. This is such a big deal for me and makes them so much easier to work with than other brands.

As far as a survival tool, I just don't see where if falls short. The versatility is it's greatest asset.

I don't like that it is so bulky but it isn't a key chain tool.

Anyway, to each their own.

thanks for your replies!

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