Forgive me if this is redundant to someone else's post, but I remember everyone talking about the new "Build Your Own" Multitool program that Gerber has out (http://byo.gerberblades.com), but I didn't see anyone actualy commenting on the tools themselves (or the whole process of getting one).
I went ahead and ordered a Canary Yellow Needlenose w/ packages P1 and P2 (all black), choosing yellow because I thought it would be the easiest to see in low-light and the black just because I like it
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Anyway, I ordered it on Halloween and received it in the mail today. One minor note--since I ordered mine, the "wine" color they have has changed to a nice looking red, which would probably be my first choice next time around <sigh>.
On to the tool itself: the first surprise was that the tool is not anodized, but powder-coated. For me, this was a little disappointing, as the pictures on the web site looked a *lot* like anodized (to me), but oh well. The powder coat seems baked on there pretty well, and will hopefully be as durable (I don't actually know if *all* colors are painted, or just yellow). The needle nose jaws are, as pointed out by others, not true needlenose, but more of a cross between needle and blunt. It's fine for me, and it seems incredibly stout. The much heralded "flicking" action works like a charm, and the saw coupler feature (of which I was both very curious and somewhat skeptical), although not super-tight, works well enough and I'm amazed no one thought of this before.
I work in pro-sound part time, and having a decent multitool is instrumental to pulling off most shows (and thereby staying employed). I've gone through a number of previous tools--I destroyed the jaws of a Leatherman PST and a PST II on two separate occasions, so I knew I needed something heavier-duty, but the Super Tool was always a little too heavy/cumbersome for me. The Wave seemed kinda fragile, along the lines of a PST II. I've succesfully used a SOG Paratool for the past couple of months, but I got tired of bashing my fingers into the amplifier racks when the philips bit decided to fold under duress. So the big question for me was, would the Gerber be light & tough enough to carry. So far the answer is YES. On the hip, it actually feels about as light as the Paratool or a Leatherman, even though it is a bit heavier than both.
As to the tool combination I picked, I knew I needed a philips bit, the saw coupler, a file, a knife blade and scissors...I really like the P1/P2 combination so far, except I also got the bit kit, which makes the mini flat screwdriver a little redundant. Otherwise it's an excellent combo (for me).
My only real concerns are: the locking bar only uses one spring to secure the bar in place, I would have liked redundant springs (although this is minor); and that the pliers only touch at the very tip--this seems very common on multitools, but still, I always hope for the perfect alignment.
So, all in all, it's pricey, but for the unmistakable pleasure of designing it yourself, not to mention (for now) unique styling (read: color), I think it's worth it. We'll see how long it lasts...
-vikram
p.s. Sorry for the extrememly long post, just trying to be thorough.
I went ahead and ordered a Canary Yellow Needlenose w/ packages P1 and P2 (all black), choosing yellow because I thought it would be the easiest to see in low-light and the black just because I like it
Anyway, I ordered it on Halloween and received it in the mail today. One minor note--since I ordered mine, the "wine" color they have has changed to a nice looking red, which would probably be my first choice next time around <sigh>.
On to the tool itself: the first surprise was that the tool is not anodized, but powder-coated. For me, this was a little disappointing, as the pictures on the web site looked a *lot* like anodized (to me), but oh well. The powder coat seems baked on there pretty well, and will hopefully be as durable (I don't actually know if *all* colors are painted, or just yellow). The needle nose jaws are, as pointed out by others, not true needlenose, but more of a cross between needle and blunt. It's fine for me, and it seems incredibly stout. The much heralded "flicking" action works like a charm, and the saw coupler feature (of which I was both very curious and somewhat skeptical), although not super-tight, works well enough and I'm amazed no one thought of this before.
I work in pro-sound part time, and having a decent multitool is instrumental to pulling off most shows (and thereby staying employed). I've gone through a number of previous tools--I destroyed the jaws of a Leatherman PST and a PST II on two separate occasions, so I knew I needed something heavier-duty, but the Super Tool was always a little too heavy/cumbersome for me. The Wave seemed kinda fragile, along the lines of a PST II. I've succesfully used a SOG Paratool for the past couple of months, but I got tired of bashing my fingers into the amplifier racks when the philips bit decided to fold under duress. So the big question for me was, would the Gerber be light & tough enough to carry. So far the answer is YES. On the hip, it actually feels about as light as the Paratool or a Leatherman, even though it is a bit heavier than both.
As to the tool combination I picked, I knew I needed a philips bit, the saw coupler, a file, a knife blade and scissors...I really like the P1/P2 combination so far, except I also got the bit kit, which makes the mini flat screwdriver a little redundant. Otherwise it's an excellent combo (for me).
My only real concerns are: the locking bar only uses one spring to secure the bar in place, I would have liked redundant springs (although this is minor); and that the pliers only touch at the very tip--this seems very common on multitools, but still, I always hope for the perfect alignment.
So, all in all, it's pricey, but for the unmistakable pleasure of designing it yourself, not to mention (for now) unique styling (read: color), I think it's worth it. We'll see how long it lasts...
-vikram
p.s. Sorry for the extrememly long post, just trying to be thorough.
