How the h--- does anyone carry this?

J

jackknife

Joined
Oct 2, 2004
Messages
17,501
I admit I've never owned a multi tool, and never had plans to. Fate must have have decided to screw with me.

Here in Maryland, spring is making it's way in, and Karen and I pried the bikes out of the basement hibernation. We peddled off to the walking/biking trail around the lake nearby, a nice little spring ride for a retired couple. It was Karen's fault what happened next. We're going along the shoulder of the road, Karen following me about 15 to 20 feet, and I hear her yell to me to stop. I stop, thinking she's got a flat, or some other problem, and I see her getting off her bike and bending down to pick up something. She found a Leatherman Wave. A little beat up, just laying there in the street next to the curb in the gravel. The main knife blade was open but broken off even with the center of the thumb hole for opening. The reversible flat and phillips driver tool shows wear, and the serrated knife blade was dull.

We took it home and cleaned it up, and I was amazed how heavy and ungainly it was. How the hell does anyone carry this thing? I've got a couple of small handguns that are lighter weight. Very square cross section of bare metal, I guess it would do in a very short pinch, but emergency only. Maybe I'll toss it in the truck's tool kit, or the emergency kit in Karen's Element. After looking it over, I can't see where it does anything more than a sak like a farmer or hiker, with the exception of the pliers. The pliers seem to take up the bulk of the weight by virtue of their function, with the rest of the tools being not any more useful than a sak.

I now, by the grace of the red gods of fate, own a multi tool. I'm not impressed. If I thought I was going to need a pliers, I'd rather stick a small channel lock or vise grip in my back pocket and have a sak in my side pocket.

Carl.
 
I picked up a Wave here several years ago in a trade and largely agree with your assessment. The thing is just a giant chunk of steel. Per my preferences, it's just a tad bit thick and about 3oz too heavy. Because of that, it has bounced back and forth between riding in a compartment in my car and being stuffed into a sheath and hung from a daypack. Comparing it to the SAK Farmer and Hiker, it does have a few major advantages. The most obvious is the pliers--that which sets a multitool apart from a SAK. The other two missing components to the aforementioned SAK models are, for me, among the most used on the whole tool; the scissors and the diamond file. As such, I would have to compare the Wave more towards the SAK Ranger (or Mountaineer for my own purposes, as I don't foresee need for the saw.)

That's the hard thing with multitools and SAKs... finding the one that has all the stuff you think you will need, without all the stuff you don't. For my money, I would pass on things like a saw, corkscrew, bottle opener and serrated blade, but in order to get all the stuff I do want (pliers, file, emergency blade, philips, large flathead, small flathead and if possible, scissors) I am seemingly required to pack on those little extras. But as the saying around here goes, "the best knife (or multitool!) is the one you have on you." And for that reason, I'm a sucker for the (long since discontinued) Leatherman PST. The same full-size length as the Wave and many other Leathermans, but a fraction of the weight and considerably more slim. No scissors, mind you, but also nothing that I feel is pointless for me to carry.
 
I own four SAKs. I use pliers a lot, so I carry a multitool far more often than a SAK. I've carried a large percentage of Leatheman's products, from the original Multi Tool, through the Supertool, Supertool 200 and 300, and Wave. If done properly, in a good belt pouch, it is not difficult to carry one of these. If you use the detachable pocket clip, then yes, the Wave is a heavy chunk of metal. The handles are far more comfortable than my SOG PowerPlier, but the SOG will cut concertina wire (once). I have large hands, so I've never had any problems with any of the tools' size. These work well for me.
 
Hey Jackknife- I enjoy your stories and perspectives. Spraking of first spring rides, I beat you by a week. The traditional multitool is a usefull thing in my mind. Like many bike tools, it can contain dfferent tools and finding the right combinations takes a little time. I preffer the smaller (less tool) ones and really only am familiar with leathermans and gerbers. I mostly carry on belt When not riding and under seat when I am. Not much of a weight issue either way as I usually bring along the "kitchen sink". Cant leave the chain break at home even tho the chance of need is very small. Like many things it just comes down to what works for you and even tho I have both (what a BF answer) and carry both sometimes-I like the feel of the LM over a small simple pair of needlenose.Multiuse syndrome??
 
I received a Wave this past Christmas & have been carrying it everywhere but church. It's not very noticeable carried in the belt sheath it came with, but that may depend on the pants/belt also. I usually wear jeans or cargo pants and a thick leather belt. There is pretty much no way I could just carry it in a pocket as it's just too heavy and bulky for that. I use it a few times a day for something or other just to save the time it would take to cross the shop for the "proper" tool. It's definitely not as convenient as a SAK, but you get the pliers & diamond file and it's much easier to carry around than a small toolbox.

-Neil
 
jackknife said:
How the h*ll does anyone carry this thing?
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Everything we do in life results from a cost/benefits analysis, and the vast majority of them are undertaken subconsciously. When the utility of a full size multitool outweighs the hassle of carrying it, it ends up on our belts. A person can get used to just about anything if he's properly motivated. Think about the guy on a job site. He can either walk back to the toolbox 97 times a day, or he can carry 8 oz. on his belt. So for him, its easy to carry one.

I just replaced a toilet handle and arm. No MT on my belt, so I hoof it in the kitchen and grab a Swisstool Spirit. And the dang jaws don't open up big enough for my job. So I grab some big pliers and that does the trick. Though I have carried MTs on and off for a long time, my current cost/benefit analysis is telling me that its not worth it. So I guess it all comes down to priorities.
 
I own a Victorinox SwissTool RS and it weighs 11oz. There is no way in hell I'm even carrying that thing on my belt, let alone my pocket. I keep it securely tucked away in my day pack, and it has paid for itself multiple times.

I remember my team and I were competing for some grant money in D.C. at an EPA expo. Well, our 10'x30' poster showing our project was missing the bars on its bar graph due to a format issue with the printer. We used colored stickey notes to make the bars, but I was the only one with scissors at that competition. It was on my SwissTool to cut the damn thing to make the bar graph. Not to mention the screw driver and pliers on it to fix the loose poster board, chairs, and table for my team and other teams that the EPA cheaply supplied us with.

Having a multitool is smart, carrying in on your person gets kinda hard.
 
Bishop2Queen's6 said:
Having a multitool is smart, carrying in on your person gets kinda hard.
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Thats where you get into the "fun" of balancing weight and size vs. utility, to see what works best for you. Mr. Carl and I are into minimalism, and other folks will carry a big, honkin' Swisstool or Surge.

I do find, as a general rule, that the older a person gets, the less he wants to carry. He packs a Colt 1911 when he's 23 years old, and has a J-frame airweight in his pocket when he's 50. Its often the same idea with knives, MTs and other goodies.
 
The Wave's a great tool, these days I carry a Spirit. If I'm doing something bigger, I'll grab a supertool. I just wear it in a sheath on my belt. I honestly never notice it there until I need it. I'd go out of my mind without one. I end up needing pliers or screwdrivers countless times a day.
 
As Powernoodle said, it's all cost/benefit, for me anything larger than a Juice for EDC is overkill, and now I'm even lighter and using a SAK because I don't find myself needing pliers that often.

There are a ton of people who carry tools, and each of them has their own preferences and wants, fortunately there are also a ton of tools to choose from! No one perfect tool :) Hey, gives us an excuse to buy more and keep this great industry alive.
 
To me the pliers are just indispensable. Not just for turning nuts and bolts mind you, but for countless other things where a strong gripping hand is useful. Need to move something hot and a mitt isn't readily available? Pliers. The little locking tab on an ethernet cord breaks off and you need to remove it? Pliers. Something needs bending? Pliers. Need to pinch something and it's too much for my dainty hands LOL? Pliers. Stupid nut holding my truck's jack in place is stuck? Pliers.

I look at it as a really strong, heatproof hand. I love my Spirit. If I'm wearing a belt, the Spirit is with me.
 
I carry a sog powerlock b-61 everyday, and wouldn't leave the house without it. I use it so much it ridiculous.
 
jackknife said:
I now, by the grace of the red gods of fate, own a multi tool. I'm not impressed. If I thought I was going to need a pliers, I'd rather stick a small channel lock or vise grip in my back pocket and have a sak in my side pocket.
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Carl, by that rationale, if you thought you'd need a knife, you'd always carry the right knife for the job too. It doesn't always work out that you think you'll need a tool, carry it, then you have the tool.

Take your traditional pocket knives for example. Generations of American men have carried them just to be prepared, as Mr. Van has taught you. Folks carry multi-tools and SAKs for the same reason.

Sometimes, a more subtantial pliers is wanted than is on a SAK, but it is more of a "just in case" type of thing. Having the 'multi' part means that this big lump also contains many other useful tools, in addition to a proper pliers.

So I guess that's a long-winded way of saying some folks feel like they have a good chance of needing a good pliers, but not enough that they'll carry a big, clunky pliers in their pocket or on their belt all day long.

For the record, I have 3 multi-tools: An original Leatherman (don't carry it), a Victorinox SwissTool (don't carry it), and a Leatherman Micra (I carry this one).

For something more your speed, you may want to take a look at the Leatherman keychain or compact series' of multi-tools. Some are keychain sized, even if they're bigger than your classic. Heck, maybe consider that to be about the same bulk as a medium stockman? But with a lot of tools on it.

Now, let's get back to how/where you found the MT. I wonder how it came to be at the side of the road? Here's the scenario I imagine:

Some half-drunk idiot had it out, trying to pry something with the blade. He broke the blade off, then figured: "It's ruined now, and I'll feel like an idiot if anyone ever sees that knife blade. Out the window with it."

Or maybe a guy was flying overhead with his ultralight airplane and trying to cut something on the fly, and just dropped it, breaking the knife blade when it hit the highway?

What do you guys think?

I can understand some folks with no class throwing old sneakers and stuff out the windows of moving cars, but not MTs.
 
I'm with you on trying to pocket carry a full sized multitool. I compromise by carrying a Surge in my pack (okay, okay, it's a man purse, but I promise it's super tactical!). For me that makes for a good combination of access and convenience.
 
Also Carl,

I used to carry a big MT like that. I worked as a technician in an electrical test lab for many years. Quite often, I'd be at one test station after having grabbed a handful of tools I grabbed from the other side of the lab. This lab is BIG. It takes a good couple minutes to walk from one end to the other. If I had to walk back and forth each time I found that I needed a tool I didn't take, I would waste hours every week just walking. Instead, I would pull out the MT, select the right tool, do the job, and I'm done. Time saved, efficiency improved.

Before that, I took to carrying a tool belt like a carpenter. That was REALLY clunky and gave me a back-ache in short order. I don't know how those guys carry those things. In comparison, even a large MT is refreshingly light.

Now, I'm an engineer who works at a desk. I carry a traditional pocket knife in my pocket, and my small toolbox is in a cabinet in arm's reach. Not much need for a MT most of the time.

But if I'm doing handyman work around the house, I carry the MT for the same reason I used to carry it as a tech. I find it saves me a lot of time and energy walking back and forth to get the ideal tool for the job.

As a pensioner, you may have forgotten this. ;)
 
That is why they come with a belt sheath.

I carry one in my briefcase.

It has been useful on occasion.
 
I've carried a Leatherman PST II occasionally for almost 15 years, mostly for travel. I have lots of tools at my house and usually I have tools in my car, but when I travel I might need some tool that I don't have. Plus I frequently travel somewhere with questionable knife laws so I use my multitool blade and leave my big folders at home. Recently I decided to update my stuff so I bought a 3 new Leatherman tools- Juice, Skeletool and Charge. I could carry the PST in my jeans pocket but it was a little big for that. The Juice is shorter and more streamlined and works better for pocket carry. Of course with it I carry my EDC folder with its pocket clip. The Skeletool I carry with its pocket clip in place of a folder. The Charge also has a pocket clip available so I will experiment with carrying it instead of a folder. The Charge is big and heavy but not any bigger or heavier than some of the big folders that I occasionally carry so I don't think it will be difficult to carry.
 
Smaug said:
Also Carl,
This lab is BIG. It takes a good couple minutes to walk from one end to the other. If I had to walk back and forth each time I found that I needed a tool I didn't take, I would waste hours every week just walking. Instead, I would pull out the MT, select the right tool, do the job, and I'm done. Time saved, efficiency improved.
Click to expand...

Nailed it. At work I have plenty of tools, at home I have 1.5 workshops. The Spirit saves me the time of stopping what I'm doing and walking across the building or running to the basement to get the "correct" tool for a simple job.
 
I've carried a full-size Multi-tool of one brand or other on my belt daily for almost 20 years. They have saved me from countless trips to the tool chest for screwdrivers, pliers, etc. for small jobs that I come across at work and home. Before I carried a Multitool, I carried a SAK, and I got real tired of the screwdriver blades shutting while I was bearing down on a screw, so when the Leatherman Supertool came out with locking blades, I got one and never looked back.

Leatherman has a pretty good warranty policy. If you send that broken Wave back to them there's a good chance they will replace the worn and broken parts for free or a pretty nominal fee. Give carrying it a try when you are doing chores around the house or working in the yard. You might find you like it.
 
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