Leatherman C305 problem

[cptmike03]

Hello all
I just bought a leatherman C305 from target.com for $30 (even though the same knife is in thier store for $45). Upon receving this knife there are 2 problems
1) The blade has many scraches on it. Not deep, but long surface scraches.
2) The Carabiner moves when in the "locked" raised postion. I'd say about 1/8 inch from eather side. On the Target.com website under this product, someone else posted the same problem under reviews.

Does anyone eles have a 300 series with these problems? I am not new to the knife world, but I am new to these posts. Any help would be appreciated.

Thank you

P.S. Other then these problems the knife seems ok. Blade lockup is very tight,

 

[gatch]

Yes, I bought one of these because I also saw it on clearance at Target,com. I don't have the same problems, but I do find the lever for he laucher/lock is very stiff and does not move well between the two sides of the knife, like it is hitting the chassis.

I really want to like this knife, the carabiner idea is a good one, but can't. All the knives I have handled in this series appear to be poorly made. Sadly, I am starting to see this in a lot of the Leatherman products.

 

[LukeC]

I have the e304, and the carabiner does move around a bit when open. I didn't have any problems with scratches though, that would have annoyed me. My launcher works great, the only problem i had was that the blade ocasionally wouldn't lock it it wasn't opened hard enough. I tightened the pivot screw up a tiny bit and that fixed that. All things considered I really enjoy the knife, although I wouldn't ever use it too hard.

 

[cptmike03]

Yeah I feel the same way about the knife. It's a great idea, but quality is lacking a bit. I went to Dick's sporting goods today and handled different versons. I feel that the 300 series is the best as the 500 series was bulky and non-ergonomic. The 300 I handled also had the same play on the carabiner that mine had, so I quess I'm keeping mine. There's opened alot smoother with the assisted opener then mine. I bet it's from people playing with it in the store and I quess ours will be the same way over time (mine requires a flick of the wrist now)

 

[Steely_Gunz]

I don't have any problems with my 305. However, it is not as robust of a knife as you would expect for the price. The blade launcher is great as I use it for a work knife cutting rope or opening boxes on the fly. Nonetheless, and I really hate to say this, most of Leatherman's new products since 2004 have felt kind of thrown together. Things don't look as polished as they did prior to the new line (kind of Gerberish IMHO). I've kicked around the idea of getting a Core to replace my aging ST200, but I'm kind of scared to give up the ST200 based on what I have seen from the lower end of their line. I have never so easily twisted Leatherman screw drivers as I have on my new wave and fuse.
I really wanted to like the 305 as well. I bought it as an EDC knife for camping and canoe trips. However, with it's quality lacking, I settled on a trusty ol SAK. I really hope Leatherman gets their act together soon. I have been a huge fan of theirs for some years. All of my products marked 2003 or earlier have been great and very rugged tools. Everything after that has had sloppy play, loose springs, or poor finish.

Jake

 

[gatch]

Nonetheless, and I really hate to say this, most of Leatherman's new products since 2004 have felt kind of thrown together. Things don't look as polished as they did prior to the new line (kind of Gerberish IMHO).

Yes, I agree. They seem to have got very gimmicky at the cost of fit and finish.

I bought it as an EDC knife for camping and canoe trips. However, with it's quality lacking, I settled on a trusty ol SAK. I really hope Leatherman gets their act together soon.

I find the 30x series knives equivilent to the SAK 111mm lockblade knives (such as the OHT), which not only have are superior in quality and more robust, but they are also less bulky and more reasonably priced. In fact I think most of the Leatherman products are overpriced for what they are and only buy them when I find them discounted.