Help On Leatherman

A

acwire_2125

Joined
Mar 23, 2006
Messages
546
Hi!

I need help with my Leatherman Tool. IT is turning quite rusty and the tools are quite hard to move and some of them seem to "stick" together. Any idea how to solve the problem? Is it possible to send to Leatherman to repair it? BTW, I'm not living in the US.
 
What model LM is it acwire ?

If it doesn't have the Zytel handles like some LM models do, I'd just as soon put that multi in a bath of solvent or some kerosene for a few hours, then if all the gunk is somewhat removed, I'd take a small steel brush and just use a lot of elbow grease and scrub that rust away, I find it's fairly easier once you've had it in the 'bath' for a while.

After scraping everything thoroughly and drying it out with a clean rag, i'd liberally apply some WD-40 to evry centimeter of that thing to get rid of any excess water or other gunk.

After wiping that off, i'd lubricate it with some Slick-50 or some other good tool lubricant you have that's readily available.

Sending it to Leatherman from all the way there in S.E. Asia will take a long long time to & fro.

Just my 2 cents.
 
I recently had one like yours from a co-worker. I placed it in a pan of boiling soapy water for about 10 minutes and then under running water to flush out any crud and used an old toothbrush to clean it up and then oiled it up good. Worked very well after that.
 
WD40 is the old standby. Spray or soak liberally and let it stand for a few hours at least. You then need to work all the tools back and forth. A compressor with a blower head attachment, if you have acess to one will help to blow out any freed up gunk. Repeat the soaking/ spraying if necessary. For really rusted in tools, I' ve found success with "Rust Bust" spray. I have successfully loosened rusted in/ frozen nuts and bolts with this product. Wear gloves and don' t breath in this stuff.

N.
 
I have had to send an abused Leatherman Wave in for repair. Awesome customer service- it came back in less than 2 weeks, repaired free of charge. They included a letter that basically told me I needed to be nicer to my multi-tool.:rolleyes:
 
Hmm, My is a Leatherman TOOL, got it from a friend and I went around my country asking if any one want to help me repair. The tooll is a model from 15 years ago so It is quite bad condition. The file is quite worn out too. I try the methods you guys say and post the results. Thanks!

BTW, do I soak the whole tool in the bath of solvent? Wad about the tools that are sturbbon to come out of it's housing?
 
acwire_2125 said:
BTW, do I soak the whole tool in the bath of solvent? Wad about the tools that are sturbbon to come out of it's housing?
Click to expand...

That's what I'd do, soak the whole thing for at least 2 hrs. After that, if they still won't budge, try using another pair of pliers and move all of the tools as far as they can go.

Oh, and use heavy-duty industrial rubber GLOVES like the guys said.

From what you described, you probably have a Leatherman-PST. :confused:

Good Luck! :D
 
Hmm, in my country, we are not allowed to posses any guns, so I can't find any gun cleaning solvent.
 
We have a saying here in America:

"If it moves and it isn't supposed to, use duct tape. If it's supposed to move and it doesn't use WD-40."

A friend gave me an abused Leatherman Super Tool that was in a somewhat poor condition (by my standards) and I doused it in WD-40 then used the wire brush attachment on my Dremel rotary tool to get rid of the rust and stubborn adhesive and glue that was dried on the blades/tools. Like yours, the file on mine is nearly useless and I wish I could replace it. I'd like to know if Leatherman refits their tools and what the cost is. If you find out, please post here.

If you don't have access to commercial solvents, try gasoline or kerosine as stated above. Also the boiling soap method sounds pretty good too. You can use steel wool or fine-grit sandpaper on the rust. It might be a lot of work, but there is a certain sense of pride in taking a beat-up tool and making it "right as rain" as the Brits say. And make sure to sharpen those blades, bro, a sharp knife is a safe knife.
 
There's a post somewhere on here, probably the tinkering forum, about electronic rust removal. Think electroplating with reversed polarity. Supposedly works good, and I would probably try that if I ever have the need.
 
I use over the counter bathroom cleaner like CLR (calcium, lime and rust remover) and a toothbrush and everything comes off spic and span. Dry it off quickly with a microfiber cloth, followed by a quick burst with a hair dryer, then a good few drops of Militec 1 and everything is good to go.

Matador
 
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