Gerber Multi-tool?

[Leatherman4life]

I don't see much said about them on the forums.
Does anyone use one. I used one for years until leatherman come out with the first wave.

 

[Tsquare]

I have had several over the years. The original version would pinch your finger. The later models had great improvements but lately the fit finish and quality have gone down.

 

[jaymankent]

I too have had several. I don't know why though, quality and design are poor compared to the swiss tool. The only one I use now is the model with changeable plier heads so I can use the extra long needle nose to get hooks out of fish.

 

[parnass]

I had the original Gerber multitool with a blunt head pliers and nonlocking blades. The Philips screwdriver was too short in some situations. The straight blade screwdrivers had rounded corners, permitting them to slip off a screw head.

As mentioned by a few other posters, the handles were positioned so close together that they pinched my palm when the pliers slipped off a nut, raising a blood blister at one point.

I hated the Gerber tool ever since and it sat idle for several years until I sold it. I passed up the opportunity to buy a current model Gerber when Target was clearing them out for about $8.

 

[Gryffin]

I own about three dozen assorted multitools (not including SAKs), including several Gerbers.

I hate them.

In general, they're big and heavy compared to Leatherman, Victorinox or SOG tools that offer similar functionality. Finish is invariably bead-blasted, making everything feel gritty and rough. Knife blades are thin, and won't hold an edge fer crap. Scissors are short and stubby, with that highly-curved Fiskars design that can't cut much thicker than paper reliably or comfortably. The slide-out models (400 and 600 series) are fitted loosely, and rattle when open and when closed; the handles ae also prone to pinch your fingers, since there's almost no space between them when closed, and don't open very far at all, limiting their usefulness.

On the plus side, every tool locks, except on the keychain-sized tools. Also, the plier design itself is sturdy; they take a beating and come back for more.

Then there's the issue of the parent company, which has transformed one of the great American knife and tool companies into an outfit that resells cheap Chinese knock-offs of *real* knives, and has lowered their already questionable quality standards to sell their cheapest crap at Wal-Mart.