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Leatherman Charge?
- Thread starter dennis75
- Start date
- Joined
- May 24, 2004
- Messages
- 319
how does the Leatherman Charge Ti compare to the Swiss Tool?
I have a Swiss Tool X and I think it is alot better than my Leatherman Wave. However, the Charge Ti seemed to have elimnated all the problems that I had with the Wave (clumping, not every single tool locks).
I have a Swiss Tool X and I think it is alot better than my Leatherman Wave. However, the Charge Ti seemed to have elimnated all the problems that I had with the Wave (clumping, not every single tool locks).
Don't have a Swiss Tool to compare.
The handle "slabs" only are titanium.
It's about half an ounce lighter than my Super Tool.
The slabs give it a much more refined look, and they shouldn't be any more likely to rust than stainless.
I like this one & the only thing I'd change on it would be to swap the serrated guthook blade, which I have no use for, for scissors, which I do. Just individual preference & needs.
This needs to go in a sheath pocket with a bigger knife, just haven't figured out which one yet. Probably the old KaBar with the newer nylon sheath. Good utility combination. Or, maybe a BK9.
Denis
Forgot to mention everything on it locks & there seems to be very little clumping so far.
The handle "slabs" only are titanium.
It's about half an ounce lighter than my Super Tool.
The slabs give it a much more refined look, and they shouldn't be any more likely to rust than stainless.
I like this one & the only thing I'd change on it would be to swap the serrated guthook blade, which I have no use for, for scissors, which I do. Just individual preference & needs.
This needs to go in a sheath pocket with a bigger knife, just haven't figured out which one yet. Probably the old KaBar with the newer nylon sheath. Good utility combination. Or, maybe a BK9.
Denis
Forgot to mention everything on it locks & there seems to be very little clumping so far.
"Quote: swisstool own the charge! "
In my opinion, even the "old" Wave own the Swisstool !
- For me one hand opening blade is a "must have" !
- With the swisstool u must choose between scissors and serrated blade !! (whereas u get both with the wave)
- The swisstool is way to heavy for a everyday carry tool, whereas the wave is just right.
Finally, (in my opinion), the charge will undoubtly be the "ultimate" tool (all the wave flaws are fixed with it (clumping, handle bending, non locking tools).
In my opinion, even the "old" Wave own the Swisstool !
- For me one hand opening blade is a "must have" !
- With the swisstool u must choose between scissors and serrated blade !! (whereas u get both with the wave)
- The swisstool is way to heavy for a everyday carry tool, whereas the wave is just right.
Finally, (in my opinion), the charge will undoubtly be the "ultimate" tool (all the wave flaws are fixed with it (clumping, handle bending, non locking tools).
- Joined
- Dec 25, 1998
- Messages
- 7,394
ckl said:lol,i dun like the charge just becos it is not all stainless steel....
The new wave is an all steel charge, maybe you'll like it better.
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2004
- Messages
- 4
Got my leatherman charge XTi from cabelas last week and here are my thoughts on it. Much thicker than the wave which was one of my complaints on the wave as my hands are big enough that it seems small and I had to grip tighter to hold it. The charge is big enough that this does not happen and the flat Ti sides make it easier to hold. The small bit holder might help me repair my glasses but other than that seems kind of useless. The tiny bit is double ended with a flat head and phillips head that is like a 000. The bit will fall out if you turn it upside down when open but there is a tab of metal to keep it in place when closed. The outside blades are easier to open with the larger holes and there are notches on the serrated blades back to itentify it by touch alone which is a big help when you open it in the dark. The pliers are even better than the waves. I have a friend at work who has an original wave and it has gotten "floppy" when opening the pliers. The charge has what looks like a split piece of spring steel that rides outside a ridge on the inside of the pliers and provides tension when opening and closing as giving a good snap when the pliers are opened all the way.
The pliers are very very smooth to open. The outer blades are also very easy to open and lock smoothly. The problem of clumping of the inner tools when opened is gone, of course there are not a whole lot of things to clump. The double large bit drivers seems a bit redundant as the bits are easy to change out (they also snap in place so will not fall out like the small one) so why would you need two of them? The charge Ti has the scissors and a large flat head screwdriver in place of the second bit driver. The sheath does stick out pretty far with the bits in the back but if you do not want that you can snap and lock in the pocket clip which leaves you with what to do with the bit holder but with two large bit drivers on the charge you can have your four favorites in the tool, well they are double sided bits so you will have your favorite pairs of bits. The lock on the blades and tools is easy to use and you you do not have to push them very far to unlock like on the supertool 200.
Overall I like the tool and think it was worth the $100 spent on it. Being a single guy without a girlfriend right now I ordered the Ti also but have not gotten it. I think I am going to like the Ti even better than the XTi but will have to wait.
The pliers are very very smooth to open. The outer blades are also very easy to open and lock smoothly. The problem of clumping of the inner tools when opened is gone, of course there are not a whole lot of things to clump. The double large bit drivers seems a bit redundant as the bits are easy to change out (they also snap in place so will not fall out like the small one) so why would you need two of them? The charge Ti has the scissors and a large flat head screwdriver in place of the second bit driver. The sheath does stick out pretty far with the bits in the back but if you do not want that you can snap and lock in the pocket clip which leaves you with what to do with the bit holder but with two large bit drivers on the charge you can have your four favorites in the tool, well they are double sided bits so you will have your favorite pairs of bits. The lock on the blades and tools is easy to use and you you do not have to push them very far to unlock like on the supertool 200.
Overall I like the tool and think it was worth the $100 spent on it. Being a single guy without a girlfriend right now I ordered the Ti also but have not gotten it. I think I am going to like the Ti even better than the XTi but will have to wait.
The titanium steel sides are more impervious to rust and corrosion than plain stainless steel (unless its the kind of stainless steel that has a very high percentage of titanium in it 
). The titanium sides give the Charge a more rounded feeling on both sides of each handle whereas the old Wave was rounded only on one side -- the outside if yo had the pliers open - the inside if you had the pliers folded up -- which helped with the pliers but not the other tools. Sides rounded along each edge is a small but appreciated improvement, making the tool more comfortable during any use. The sides are just a little bit darker than the stainless steel, not the dark gunmetal/ black-chrome color you see in the Leatherman website pics.
In the holster with the bit holder, the whole thing weighs 2.5 ounces more than the Wave in its holster. Of course, if you added the Wave's extra bits and bit adapter, the Charge would be lighter by a hair.
The items all have nice little crooks you can easily catch with your fingernail to open them. Much nicer than the small nail nicks in the old Wave. Clumping is indeed gone and the tools open out very smoothly. The clumping was used on the old Wave so you could access the "inbetween tools (pull out the one next to it and they both came out, then put back the one you weren't really after). The Charge tools come out one at a time so each item has its own little crook to grab it by.
Outer blades do open more smoothly than the old Wave and on the old Wave they were pretty smooth.
Pliers gives a bit more resitstance for the first few degrees of opening, but they work slick as silk once opened.
I found that the mini-bit screwdriver fits very snugly into its seat. Won't fall out by gravity alone -- in fact, it takes a pretty good tug to yank the bit out to reverse to the mini-philips head. I suspect that if it comes out via gravity alone, that's a defect in that unit.
The bit holder is not the dipped-in-batter type that came with the Super Tool, etc. It's a strong plastic plate about 1 1/4" by 4" by 1/4" and the bits fit into slots molded into this plate.
The holster comes only in black. The holster has internal elastic (Lycra style) panel that holds the bit-holder flat against the inside back of the holster. The sides of the holster are narrow double layers of elastic with no leather over them. Yes, the sides of the holster are just elastic (Lycra) panels! This holds the Charge very snuggly in the holster and it takes a yank to pull it out. I don't like the elastic sides, myself, but they will let you insert a small maglite or such between the double layers. I suppose the elastic sides also help hold the Charge in place when you have it inserted in the pliers-open position. The bottom of the holster has a hole cut-out so you can insert the Charge pliers head down in the holster while the Charge is in the pliers-open position. Although I've seen photos of the holster closed with the Charge in the pliers-open position, mine won't come even close to closing that way -- only closes when the Charge is all folded up and even then you have to pull down hard on the flap to get it to reach the snap. I suppose some of that will loosen up with breaking in. The holster is a thick high quality leather but I liked the brown deluxe old Wave holster better. Since the Charge is thicker than the Wave, the old Wave holster is a little too narrow to fit the Charge into it. You can force it in but it's hard to remove once you do. The whole holstered Charge shebang sits on your belt about about 1/4" or more thicker than the old Wave.
The scissors is much smaller and thinner than the old Wave, which had very nice scissors for small scissor -- as good as those on Squirt. I like the old Wave scissors much better than the Charge Ti scissors. The Wave scissors, they were beefy enough to be used as scissors on more than just fishing line. The Charge scissors might be as strong -- time will tell -- but they are significantly smaller and thinner.
All the internal tools lock and unlock the same way on the Charge. Opened, they catch on a small tab of a springloaded bar that's onthe back of the handle -- you press the other end of the bar with your thumb and the tabside comes up, thereby releasing any tools on that side of the Charge. I thought there might be a problem with accidentally depressing the thumb bar and unlocking a tool while grasping the tool tightly in use. But the thumb bar must be depressed below the surface of the handle to unlock any item and I haven't had a problem with unintentional unlocking.
The external blades lock and unlock via the same mechanism as the old Wave -- was a very nice and reliable mechanism.
The bits being narrow in one dimension certainly won't be an issue for standard blade screws. But it might for philips, square drive, and hex head screws. For those, the narrow bits mean the bits won't grab on all the surfaces -- for example, a philips bit will only get a full bite on two of the wings instead of four. I haven't used it enough yet to know if that's going to matter in practice or not.
Overall, a decided improvement over the old Wave in the ways it was meant to be an improvement. A little bigger and heavier -- which might be good or bad or neither here nor there, depending on the individual user. And "fixes" the major peeves folks had with the old Wave.
Wish list for the next generation Charge Ti?
- A holster like the old Wave deluxe holster but with an internal elastic panel to hold the bit-holder plate.
- Scissors like the ones on the old Wave.
- And maybe, full width bits, too.
sh
). The titanium sides give the Charge a more rounded feeling on both sides of each handle whereas the old Wave was rounded only on one side -- the outside if yo had the pliers open - the inside if you had the pliers folded up -- which helped with the pliers but not the other tools. Sides rounded along each edge is a small but appreciated improvement, making the tool more comfortable during any use. The sides are just a little bit darker than the stainless steel, not the dark gunmetal/ black-chrome color you see in the Leatherman website pics.In the holster with the bit holder, the whole thing weighs 2.5 ounces more than the Wave in its holster. Of course, if you added the Wave's extra bits and bit adapter, the Charge would be lighter by a hair.
The items all have nice little crooks you can easily catch with your fingernail to open them. Much nicer than the small nail nicks in the old Wave. Clumping is indeed gone and the tools open out very smoothly. The clumping was used on the old Wave so you could access the "inbetween tools (pull out the one next to it and they both came out, then put back the one you weren't really after). The Charge tools come out one at a time so each item has its own little crook to grab it by.
Outer blades do open more smoothly than the old Wave and on the old Wave they were pretty smooth.
Pliers gives a bit more resitstance for the first few degrees of opening, but they work slick as silk once opened.
I found that the mini-bit screwdriver fits very snugly into its seat. Won't fall out by gravity alone -- in fact, it takes a pretty good tug to yank the bit out to reverse to the mini-philips head. I suspect that if it comes out via gravity alone, that's a defect in that unit.
The bit holder is not the dipped-in-batter type that came with the Super Tool, etc. It's a strong plastic plate about 1 1/4" by 4" by 1/4" and the bits fit into slots molded into this plate.
The holster comes only in black. The holster has internal elastic (Lycra style) panel that holds the bit-holder flat against the inside back of the holster. The sides of the holster are narrow double layers of elastic with no leather over them. Yes, the sides of the holster are just elastic (Lycra) panels! This holds the Charge very snuggly in the holster and it takes a yank to pull it out. I don't like the elastic sides, myself, but they will let you insert a small maglite or such between the double layers. I suppose the elastic sides also help hold the Charge in place when you have it inserted in the pliers-open position. The bottom of the holster has a hole cut-out so you can insert the Charge pliers head down in the holster while the Charge is in the pliers-open position. Although I've seen photos of the holster closed with the Charge in the pliers-open position, mine won't come even close to closing that way -- only closes when the Charge is all folded up and even then you have to pull down hard on the flap to get it to reach the snap. I suppose some of that will loosen up with breaking in. The holster is a thick high quality leather but I liked the brown deluxe old Wave holster better. Since the Charge is thicker than the Wave, the old Wave holster is a little too narrow to fit the Charge into it. You can force it in but it's hard to remove once you do. The whole holstered Charge shebang sits on your belt about about 1/4" or more thicker than the old Wave.
The scissors is much smaller and thinner than the old Wave, which had very nice scissors for small scissor -- as good as those on Squirt. I like the old Wave scissors much better than the Charge Ti scissors. The Wave scissors, they were beefy enough to be used as scissors on more than just fishing line. The Charge scissors might be as strong -- time will tell -- but they are significantly smaller and thinner.
All the internal tools lock and unlock the same way on the Charge. Opened, they catch on a small tab of a springloaded bar that's onthe back of the handle -- you press the other end of the bar with your thumb and the tabside comes up, thereby releasing any tools on that side of the Charge. I thought there might be a problem with accidentally depressing the thumb bar and unlocking a tool while grasping the tool tightly in use. But the thumb bar must be depressed below the surface of the handle to unlock any item and I haven't had a problem with unintentional unlocking.
The external blades lock and unlock via the same mechanism as the old Wave -- was a very nice and reliable mechanism.
The bits being narrow in one dimension certainly won't be an issue for standard blade screws. But it might for philips, square drive, and hex head screws. For those, the narrow bits mean the bits won't grab on all the surfaces -- for example, a philips bit will only get a full bite on two of the wings instead of four. I haven't used it enough yet to know if that's going to matter in practice or not.
Overall, a decided improvement over the old Wave in the ways it was meant to be an improvement. A little bigger and heavier -- which might be good or bad or neither here nor there, depending on the individual user. And "fixes" the major peeves folks had with the old Wave.
Wish list for the next generation Charge Ti?
- A holster like the old Wave deluxe holster but with an internal elastic panel to hold the bit-holder plate.
- Scissors like the ones on the old Wave.
- And maybe, full width bits, too.
sh
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2004
- Messages
- 290
Great Review !
I cant understand why they changed the scissors and they could have very easily incorporated the Cutting Hook and Crimper into the Ti instead of leaving them out to give the XTi some USP's !!
The Ti kix the XTi's azz anyhow
I cant understand why they changed the scissors and they could have very easily incorporated the Cutting Hook and Crimper into the Ti instead of leaving them out to give the XTi some USP's !!
The Ti kix the XTi's azz anyhow
- Joined
- Dec 25, 1998
- Messages
- 7,394
Perfectionist said:Great Review !
I cant understand why they changed the scissors and they could have very easily incorporated the Cutting Hook and Crimper into the Ti instead of leaving them out to give the XTi some USP's !!
The Ti kix the XTi's azz anyhow
I dont know. I think I prefer the Xti. I have my Micra for scissor duty. Thats the only advantage I see the Ti has.
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2004
- Messages
- 290
Dude !!
All you really get with the XTi is an extra bit holder !!
All you really get with the XTi is an extra bit holder !!
- Joined
- Dec 25, 1998
- Messages
- 7,394
I got my Xti yesterday. It's nice, but I think I had higher expectations. The small screwdriver does just push in. There is nothing but friction holding it in. I can see that if you switch it around much it will wear to the point that it is not being held in place. The one on mine barely appears to be held in place now. The larger bits at least have a spring that fits into a notch. I think I would rather do without the small screwdriver and have an awl.
My pliers close up fine, with no gap.
The grinds are really bad, but it still cuts and is fixable.
It doesnt "wiggle" when closed as bad as the original wave.
All in all I like it, but I dont think it is my "perfect" multitool.
My pliers close up fine, with no gap.
The grinds are really bad, but it still cuts and is fixable.
It doesnt "wiggle" when closed as bad as the original wave.
All in all I like it, but I dont think it is my "perfect" multitool.