The following review list is in the order that they were bought over a period of some 15 years and all have been used close to their limits. Nothing serious has broken yet but we’ll come to that later on. I’ll ignore the usefulness of things like can-openers, bottle-openers screw-drivers etc as they should work if they are included, unless something stands out as particularly useful/useless in which case it will be mentioned. All items have the standard features of pliers with wire cutter and some manufacturers pass of a small nick in a blade as a wire bender/stripper etc, these will also be ignored.
Items in test photo
Clockwise from top left
Leatherman Surge
Gerber Ledgend800
Gerber Archer
Leatherman Super tool
Victorinox Swisstool X
Winchester POS |
Gerber Archer extending nose pliers, X-Change-A-Blade fitting, part serrated blade, scissors, etc.
The wrist flick necessary to open the pliers is a simple action and keeps the unit “single handed” though the fact that the handles come very close together necessitates caution over trapped fingers when utilizing higher squeeze force. The blade is a part serrated part plain, Gerber unit which feels too delicate for its intended purpose – that said, I have never felt that it has come close to breaking. The locking device is an early Gerber “slide release” and locks the blades securely. This is one of the first tools that had a system for fitting a range of standard jigsaw blades, utilizing a sprung flat pin, it works reasonably well though choice of tool and its associated punishment of the locking device might make the tool last a little longer – it’s a handy thing to have though, enabling many jobs to be tackled should the need arise. No pouch was supplied with this tool.
Leatherman Supertool, this is probably the tool that set off my collection, strong and purposeful, yet smooth in the pocket – it feels like it needs to be used. It has one plain and one serrated blade, a good file, combined bottle/can opener, screwdrivers and a pozidriver. Being an early model, the handles open around the plier jaws and so expose the channel edge to your palm when in use – this can limit (by pain induction) the force that can be applied to the handles but not so much that it limits its use. Came with a leather belt pouch, but was upgraded to a ballistic nylon sheath with a Maglite loop. I also have the Hex bit adapter that fits the Leatherman range, it is strong and robust, transforming the ability of the Supertool with a minor limitation due to the bulk of the tool and access into tight spaces
Gerber Ledgend 800
Profiled to curve into the hand in both open and closed modes, the Legend is very comfortable to hold – something that is enhanced even further by the rubberized inserts to greatly increase wet grip. Again with Gerber’s half serrated half plain blade, see the comments above – though this time with a neat thumb stud to aid opening. Also sporting a file, scissors, etc. The pliers carry a set of twin tungsten inserts that are very capable wire cutters, though this ability is muted by the proximity of the jaws themselves – as the wire is cut it becomes pinched between cutter and jaw body so much more force is needed to complete the cut. The Legend comes with sprung jaws meaning that they are truly one handed in operation. Came with a ballistic nylon sheath.
Victorinox SwisstoolX
Bought from Dunc on British Blades for a very reasonable sum. Very positive in the action of opening/closing, it feels somehow better engineered than some of the other tools. The pliers are more snub nosed than others, giving it a very tough image and it feels very capable in use. It has an insanely sharp blade, Victorinox’s very able saw, good scissors and screwdrivers etc. Handles once again open around the pliers, but careful engineering has rounded and thickened the edges that could dig into your palm. Like the Supertool, the unit folds to a very neat closed shape and it fits tidily into a pocket. No pouch was supplied but it resides in a Vic wide belt pouch either threaded or a clip-on model. A corkscrew fitting is available that fits into a profiled scallop in the side of the tool though to be brutally honest – the use of this tool as a means of uncorking wine would be a gross disservice.
Leatherman Surge
The big daddy of the set, larger and heavier than them all, this is probably the pinnacle of current engineering ability without sacrificing usability. The unit is quite stiff to open on account of the mechanisms that are in operation to keep the user safe from unintentional opening of blades whilst using the pliers – a cam operated stop moves into a cut out in both blades preventing them from opening inadvertently. Leatherman’s latest method of attaching jigsaw blades is stronger than in the Gerber Archer model though the sleeve is often left in the handle if the blade is opened from its furthest from pivot end. Diamond file, scissors and screwdrivers but also equipped with the slim-hex bit adaptor, makes this a very well equipped tool. This is a big tool and its weight makes it borderline uncomfortable to carry in the pocket, but its slight coffin shape ensures a good grip in a big hand. It was supplied with a leather pouch that is quite tight, especially considering that a range of slim hex bits and one or two jigsaw blades are supposed to fit into it as well.
General Likes. Features worthy of mention.
Wrist flick action of pliers, for nothing other than the pose-ability of the deft deployment.
The ability to exchange jigsaw blades enables a whole range of jobs to be tackled in theory.
The shiny, brushed steel of the LST, has kept its lustre for many years, showing no signs of fading – it enhances the perceived quality of the tool.
Handle inserts of the Legend, very comfortable grip in both open and closed position.
The ability to fold into a very neat rectangular package keeps pocket fluff to a minimum.
Vic/SAK saw the mark by which many others are compared.
Perceived quality of big and heavy – feels capable of anything I could throw its way.
General Dislikes. Features that I would prefer not to have to endure.
Part serrated blades, a very personal peeve, but if I want a serrated blade then it’ll be in conjunction to a plain edge, so it’s all or nothing at all for me.
Handles, that come close to touching.
The necessity to change a blade for a particular job – surely if a blade is worth including, it needs to be included under its own merits –this is very different from the ability to change the blade, which is a positive point.
Now to a very personal thing with the Surge – I don’t bite my fingernails, but I do like to have them trimmed and filed. So I deploy the diamond file to work a snagged nail – great stuff – then I depress the blade unlock - which dents my nail – necessitating another filing session – I find I really have to think about operating the unlock springs with the pads of my finger, so that I don’t split my nails.
Breakages
Scissor spring on the Legend, replaced with a length of stainless welding rod.
Small size screwdriver tip of the PST got twisted and has had to be reground shorter.
Diamond file on the Surge shows small bare patches where the abrasive has come away from the file.
Features that I’d like to see incorporated into My Personal Ultimate Tool
Rubberised handle inserts (Legend)
Sprung jaws. (Legend)
Both plain and serrated blades. (Leatherman PST)
Neat thumb studs, enough to aid opening but not so long as to dig into your thigh whilst in a pocket. Possibly holes in external blades (Leatherman Surge) for blade deployment
SAK Vic saw. (Vic)
A pouch that will take an opened tool for temporary storage whilst in mid-job
Pouch with a clip, as I don’t always wear a belt.
The ability to exchange a range of screwdriver hex bits without needing to have special to type thin bits (Surge). This means that I have to buy special to type hex bits to personalize my range of tool-bits or spend ages grinding down a bit that I already have thus rendering it useless in a normal adaptor
Weblinks
Legend http://www.gerbergear.com/product.php?model=8239=
Archer http://www.heinnie.com/cgi-bin/heinn...s.htm&cart_id=
Surge http://www.leatherman.com/products/t...ge/default.asp
PST http://www.leatherman.com/products/t...st/default.asp
SwisstoolX http://www.swisstool.co.uk/st/produc...cat=259&page=1
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Ogri the trog
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