I Just received the Leatherman "Surge."

transmaster

transmaster

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Sep 11, 2023
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This is my second Leatherman, the first being a Wave+, other than the can opener and the pliers, I never had much use for it. It was just too small. Leatherman had a sale going, so I purchased the larger Surge. I instantly liked this one. Its two knife blades are 3.1" one makes for a great paring knife, and the other has a serrated edge that can slice transparent tomato slices. The scissors are large enough to be useful. The saw blade got put to work, cutting a plastic drain pipe repairing a bathroom sink; it did a great job. The saw blade can be swapped out for a file. The needle nose pliers are almost as good as a set of Klein's; their replaceable blades are a great feature of the Leatherman multi-tool. The advice I can now give to anyone getting a Leatherman for the first time is to get the biggest one.

Because of my historical grounding looking at this Leatherman Surge, I wonder what Horace Kephart would have thought of it.
 
I was considering the Surge , for the T-shank holder .

But decided it was maybe too big for my old age needs .

Just ordered : Swiss Tool Spirit X Plus Ratchet . $136 with the nylon sheath .

Almost always, I will carry other knives , so that was not a factor .

Ratchet and bits was the deal maker . Like that it uses standard bit size . :cool:
 
I almost went with the surge, but in the store testing it I pinched my hand. I decided on the Arc, which is amazing but kind of overkill. If I hadn’t got it at a steep discount I would’ve probably gone with the Surge ir a Victorinox Spirit X. I rarely use a multitool blade because I always have a knife in my pocket.
 
DocJD said:
I was considering the Surge , for the T-shank holder .
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Did you know?
A SAK with both the split ring and multi purpose Package Hook, can use T-Shank saw blades?

Saw blade through the split ring. Package hook on the shank. (there is a vid on you tube about it.)

I have tried it with my Huntsman. It works. The saw blade is held secure enough to use.
 
I thought about getting the Surge but at 12.5 oz that’s a bit heavy. Idk, if I could have found a store display to try it in hand maybe I’d have liked it. I just don’t like getting something costing that much without trying it in hand first. Then again I’m pretty happy with my Wave , Signal and Arc.
 
Lesknife said:
I thought about getting the Surge but at 12.5 oz that’s a bit heavy. Idk, if I could have found a store display to try it in hand maybe I’d have liked it. I just don’t like getting something costing that much without trying it in hand first. Then again I’m pretty happy with my Wave , Signal and Arc.
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I tried them out at Cabella’s. I thought the the Surge had better pliers and scissors, and I liked the T-shank adapter, at least in concept; but I didn’t like having to choose between easy access to the saw or file, I don’t really care about the serrated blade, I found the Surge too heavy to carry except in a bag, and I like the Arc’s easy access to all tools.
 
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VTer said:
I tried them out at Cabella’s. I thought the the Surge had better pliers and scissors, and I liked the T-shank adapter, at least in concept; but I didn’t like having to choose between easy access to the saw or file, I don’t care about the serrated blade, I found the Surge too heavy to carry except in a bag, and I like the Arc’s easy access to all tools.
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I have to agree about the weight of the Surge. It is not a pocket EDC. But I carry a possibles bag instead of a wallet, it is OK there. There is the rather pricey bit driver set that uses proprietary bits and drivers that you can only get from Leatherman. What I carry in my larger cross-shoulder bag is this nifty tool set from Wera. The Tool-Check Plus comes in Imperial (SAE) and Metric. Its 1/4-inch ratchet is so cute you almost want to use it as a necklace.

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I love mine. Its a pocket carry for me though everyday. I find the extra size very useful. Especially the pliers and scissors. It's a small world, I have the same wera set in your picture, I keep it in the trunk if my wife's car for emergencies
 
My range of leathermans for general work is the Rebar at the small end for "probably just need knife and pliers" and the surge on the big end, and I carried that for the year and a half I did factory maintenance. For constant use, it was better, and I chose it over a wave due to the size of the scissors. But it's big enough that it was a work only tool. Skinth sheath, Fenix E30R, bic, mini pry and a chunk of tig electrode as a scribe.
Then when I moved to the AV rack build place, I used it somewhat less, because specialized tools were always in reach, but pulling big staples, or opening boxes were ideal.

As for the wera set, I picked up the kompact 2 for my rack build kit, and it's great for a simple kit. I'll be adding another string of sockets for "real" work, but in AV land it was enough. I think the biggest factor for me is that a year of near constant use and the PH2 bit is a bit worn, needs replacing. Considering how hard I used it, and how long some bits last, it's well worth it. I also love the "hollow" end sockets, got me out of a couple jams that would have needed a box end wrench and a lot more patients.
 
transmaster said:
I have to agree about the weight of the Surge. It is not a pocket EDC. But I carry a possibles bag instead of a wallet, it is OK there. There is the rather pricey bit driver set that uses proprietary bits and drivers that you can only get from Leatherman. What I carry in my larger cross-shoulder bag is this nifty tool set from Wera. The Tool-Check Plus comes in Imperial (SAE) and Metric. Its 1/4-inch ratchet is so cute you almost want to use it as a necklace.


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Love my Tool-Check.
 
transmaster said:
uses proprietary bits and drivers that you can only get from Leatherman.
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They essentially lost my business because of this ! 👎

Got a Swisstool Spirit X with Ratchet driver and standard bits kit , on order . :cool:
 
Surge is no 1 in my book! I have one of the early ti Charge and it has been with me all over the world. Today I use it while fishing and during some tent nights. There are situations when the more delicate scissors on the Charge is more useful than the Surge-scissors ant it is lighter than Surge, both in hand and in the pocket. But in all otter situations. In the car, in the yarden and in the cabin I bring my heavy duty Surge. It feels like having a toolbox in the pocket or in the holster - by the way I put a pocket clip on it. It is on the heavy side, but it fix 99 percent of my problems.
 
With what I have read here. I purchased a Signal. Of the three Leathermans I now have, this is the best one. Because of its weight, I keep the Surge in my shoulder bag. The Wave+ has been replaced in my Possibles Bag by the Signal. Curious about the fire starter, I have a couple of them, and they do wear out with use. Does Leatherman sell replacements?

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transmaster said:
With what I have read here. I purchased a Signal. Of the three Leathermans I now have, this is the best one. Because of its weight, I keep the Surge in my shoulder bag. The Wave+ has been replaced in my Possibles Bag by the Signal. Curious about the fire starter, I have a couple of them, and they do wear out with use. Does Leatherman sell replacements?

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Yes Leatherman has replacement parts for the Signal and other models that have removable parts such as the fire starter and sharpening tool and the bits. If it’s a part of the base tool then you have to send it in for warranty repair or replacement. Leatherman warranty and parts has always done right by me and took care of everything.
 
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