Caught with my pants down...

[pedalinbob]

Was at an Independence Day picnic, and the plastic knob for the propane grill stripped off. I tried everything: shimming it, pinching between metal, etc. There was no way to turn the bare shaft--it was very tight.

I had a Super Tinker in my pocket and a Recruit in my bag: no good. I needed pliers. Fortunately, we were at a park which was only a mile from grandma's, so she went and grabbed a pair pf pliers.
We almost went to another park which was about 25 miles away--we would have been screwed.

My Swisstool was at home, as I tend to use it around the house.
I have a cheapie multi-tool in my car...but we drove to the park in my wife's car.
Knowing all of this, I'm going to Lowes or wherever today to pick up a few cheapie multi-tools to sprinkle around the cars and bags (as I cannot afford to buy a bunch of the better items).
Kobalt, Winchester, Alltrade, whatever.

Hmm...I see the Schrade Tough Tool is $17 on Amazon...and some of the tools lock!

I know: cheap ain't good. But being tool-less is worse. I didn't need a Craftsman or Snap-On, I just needed something!

Just junk-food for thought...

 

[darth kcorbe]

i had a similar experience this ID. we were just going to drop my sister at the shuttle going to the show, so i didnt' have my regular edc. of course, we ended up going to the boat launch to watch the show, and it was dark and i'd left my keys at home didn't even have my inova micro. luckily i'd supplied every car with a toolbox emergency kit, including a crank-powered flashlight. my family sometimes says i'm crazy, but they were sure glad to have that light.

Hmm...I see the Schrade Tough Tool is $17 on Amazon...and some of the tools lock!

I know: cheap ain't good. But being tool-less is worse. I didn't need a Craftsman or Snap-On, I just needed something!

actually i've heard very good things about the Tough Tool line.
[obnoxious bragging]i can get the schrade tough tool for about seven dollars a peice at the local Big Lots[/obnoxious bragging]

 

[mister_wilburn]

I have run into similar situations before. Last christmas I gave one of the new guys at work an extra leatherman multi-tool that I kept in my truck. He didn't have one, and it would have taken a while for supply to supply him with one. The idea occured to me recently that most of what I need pliers for could be handled by a pair of pliers or a small vise grip. Pairing one of those with a Sak seems like a great idea for the bag I keep behind the seat. And a pair of pliers can be had for cheaper than a multi-tool.

 

[jdailey4206966]

Was at an Independence Day picnic, and the plastic knob for the propane grill stripped off. I tried everything: shimming it, pinching between metal, etc. There was no way to turn the bare shaft--it was very tight.

I had a Super Tinker in my pocket and a Recruit in my bag: no good. I needed pliers. Fortunately, we were at a park which was only a mile from grandma's, so she went and grabbed a pair pf pliers.
We almost went to another park which was about 25 miles away--we would have been screwed.

My Swisstool was at home, as I tend to use it around the house.
I have a cheapie multi-tool in my car...but we drove to the park in my wife's car.
Knowing all of this, I'm going to Lowes or wherever today to pick up a few cheapie multi-tools to sprinkle around the cars and bags (as I cannot afford to buy a bunch of the better items).
Kobalt, Winchester, Alltrade, whatever.

Hmm...I see the Schrade Tough Tool is $17 on Amazon...and some of the tools lock!

I know: cheap ain't good. But being tool-less is worse. I didn't need a Craftsman or Snap-On, I just needed something!

Just junk-food for thought...

I have a Schrade Tough Tool now for 8 years. I it is currently in my tool box in the garage. It is a good tool, except for the knife. Yes the tools do lock. At the time I bought it, it was one of walmart's best selling tools. Of course it wasnt long after that schrade went out of business, but none the less they are still good tools.

 

[znapschatz]

I know: cheap ain't good. But being tool-less is worse. I didn't need a Craftsman or Snap-On, I just needed something!

Just junk-food for thought...

No need to buy cheap junk, which may or not do the job when necessary. For stowing in the car, an affordable small tool kit with pliers, screwdrivers, small adjustable wrench and a roll of duct tape keeps me on the road (not counting tire changing stuff). One has been stashed in every car the wife or I have owned. Oddly, though, in the three most serious roadside emergencies I ever had, it was my Leatherman, always on me, that got us going each time because, for one reason or another, it was the most accessible when needed.

 

[spoonrobot]

Hmm...I see the Schrade Tough Tool is $17 on Amazon...and some of the tools lock!

Keep in mind that this is the new Chinese made Schrade Tool. It's not nearly as good as the older USA made ones and was ripped apart pretty heavily over at Multitool.org for the inferior fit and finish. If you're set on a Tough Tool there is one of the USA models for sale in the B/S/T forums for 25$ at this time.

If you want several cheap multis for emergency storage I would recommend the Kobalt Multi-Tool available from Lowe's. It's overall fit and finish rated good and it had a good implement selection as well as spring-loaded pliers, something the Tough Tool lacks.

 

[pedalinbob]

I did pick up two of the Kobalt multitools. My reasoning is that I wanted something for my wife's car and my pack--and the tools needed to be compact and reasonably priced. I got them for $10 each.

A mini-review:

I am SPOILED by my Swisstool! It tends to eclipse everything else.

The good:
Inexpensive.
Nice selection of implements.
The Kobalts seem sturdy and have a nice selection of tools.
The fit and finish is good--everything is very tight, almost to a fault (see below).
The spring-loaded pliers is a nice touch.
It comes with a decent nylon case.
The tool is actually "handsome" in appearance.
The implements snaps open with authority, and they appear unlikely to easily collapse.

The bad:
It smells funny...I need to wash and re-lube it.
The nail nicks are too close to the pivot, and combined with very tight construction, my wife will not be able to open any implements, and even I have trouble getting some of them open. The term "nail-buster" comes to mind. Poor design.

The tool must be opened to access the implements. Yuck. This never makes any sense, because when the tool is open, the open areas are exactly where you will place pressure on the handles to use the pliers.
This also means an extra cumbersome step to access an implement, and an increased possibility of injury due to the tool being partially opened while trying to pull out/replace an overly-tight-with-poorly-positioned-nail-nick-implement.

Nothing locks.

The plain blade is pretty dull, and I am having trouble getting a good edge on it--even with my Sharpmaker. I believe re-profiling may be necessary (but I have never really re-profiled anything). That said, it still cuts reasonably well.

Mystery steel. I have no clue how or if it will hold up or take an edge.

Overall, despite the gripes, it seems like a capable little tool for my needs: ready for light-duty work in a pinch. I know I could have purchased some pliers, screwdrivers etc and assembled a couple of kits--dedicated tools are always best. However, the size and weight would be prohibitive, so the little multi for $10 was a pretty decent solution.

I nearly forgot to mention that the tool in MY car is an Eddie Bauer given to me a few years ago. It has a hammerhead, and an odd set of fold out pliers. There are screwdriver bits which attach to the head, a couple of knives and a fold-out screwdriver or two. It is heavy and probably pretty cheap--bit the darn thing would have gotten me out of the pinch mentioned above, and would easily shatter windows and cut seat belts in an emergency. I mounted an emergency hammer with built-in seatbelt cutter in my wife's car. We both have a good compliment of emergency items.

 

[znapschatz]

I know: cheap ain't good. But being tool-less is worse. I didn't need a Craftsman or Snap-On, I just needed something!

Oddly, though, in the three most serious roadside emergencies I ever had, it was my Leatherman, always on me, that got us going each time because, for one reason or another, it was the most accessible when needed.

Another thought on this subject: I believe in good tools for everyday use, they serve better and last longer. All the same, the emergencies I referred to, plus one non-auto related, could have been handled by any multitool, in one case even a rock. Go figure.

 

[mnblade]

I'm going to Lowes or wherever today to pick up a few cheapie multi-tools to sprinkle around the cars and bags (as I cannot afford to buy a bunch of the better items).
I know: cheap ain't good. But being tool-less is worse.

At the risk of hurting the profits of the factories in China that produce those cheapo multis, here's my recommendation: Since you already carry a SAK, just buy a pair of pliers for each car. SAK + a pair of pliers = a multi tool, after all. Some would say you actually get better functionality with that combo than you would with a standard multi tool, losing only the portability (but since it's for the glove box of your car, portability's not an issue).