leatherman skeletool vs gerber crucial tool

T

Tallone

Joined
Nov 3, 2005
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32
Looking to buy a multitool which the cutting blade can be opened with one hand. These two seem to pop out. Appreciate any thought or possible alternatives.
 
I have not handled the Gerber, but the Skeletool is just awesome. Great utility for it's size and weight. I highly recomend getting the CX with the 154 CM blade. There are many other one-hand opening ones, so I assume you picked those based on the tools they contain. I don't like the partially serrated blade on the Gerber, I find them less usefull. The Leatherman looks like it has better wire cutters on it, for bigger harder wire. In general I have found Leatherman products to be better quility as well. Gerber is a bit shorter overall when closed which might be nice.
 
I use my Skeletool daily around my shop. It is great to always have a screwdriver or pliers handy, not to mention the sheeple friendly blade. You will be amazed at how much you use one of these once you have it. Sorry no info on the Gerber.
 
As a rule , avoid Gerber stuff . Some but not all of their product line is dreck . The Skeletool is neat , as is the Freestyle .

Chris
 
The Skeletool is fantastic. it was my EDC of choice until i realized that i really liked having scissors on my multitool.
 
I use the crap out of my Skeletool CX. It's an awesome tool!!!:thumbup: Can't imagine having a Gerber.:eek:




:)
 
The Skeletool has a pretty thick blade (the 420 steel blade). I had to re-profile my blade to get a good edge on it. Way to thick at the edge especially near the tip.

Once that was done it is great.

I am waiting for them to make the Skeletool with the 154CM steel without the partial serrations. When they offer it with a full plain blade I will buy it.
 
ricklee4570 said:
The Skeletool has a pretty thick blade (the 420 steel blade). I had to re-profile my blade to get a good edge on it. Way to thick at the edge especially near the tip.

Once that was done it is great.

I am waiting for them to make the Skeletool with the 154CM steel without the partial serrations. When they offer it with a full plain blade I will buy it.
Click to expand...

The current Skeletool CX has a full plain 154cm steel blade, and has had it for close to a year now. The Skeletool SS now has the half-serrated blade.

If the tool loadout suits you, the Skeletool (either version) is a much better tool than the Gerber. If nothing else, at least you know what kind of steel you're getting with the Leatherman blades. The bits also work surprisingly well for being flattened, and are widely available.
 
The Gerber tools SUCK. When they were U.S. made, they were nice. Offshore is horrible. I broke three different ones at the blade lock before I gave up and went back to Leatherman.
 
ricklee4570, they are now making the cx skeletools with plain edge on the 154 steel and partially serrated on the standard steel.
 
ricklee4570 said:
The Skeletool has a pretty thick blade (the 420 steel blade). I had to re-profile my blade to get a good edge on it. Way to thick at the edge especially near the tip.

Once that was done it is great.

I am waiting for them to make the Skeletool with the 154CM steel without the partial serrations. When they offer it with a full plain blade I will buy it.
Click to expand...

I agree with you. The edges on leatherman tools are really acute. I have all the ones I intend on using reprofiled by my sharpening guy. For $4 a knife, you can't go wrong really.
 
Nikkogi said:
I agree with you. The edges on leatherman tools are really acute. I have all the ones I intend on using reprofiled by my sharpening guy. For $4 a knife, you can't go wrong really.
Click to expand...

The edges on the Gerber Crucial are smooth. It's actually pretty comfortable to grip.

The Crucial and Octane pliers are ultra light use and the quality of the manufacturing could use some improvement. The blade lock on the Crucial didn't hit dead center but it was fairly secure. The lockup much worse on the Gerber Octane - I could actually make the Octane lock slip by pushing on the back of the blade. The Phillips driver on the Crucial is poorly shaped. ...It's hard to understand why they wouldn't have put at least a little more effort into the manufacture of the Phillips driver. ...Even the Octane had a decent Phillips driver even though the overall quality of the rest of the construction was fairly poor... If Gerber put a little more effort into the manufacturing of the Crucial and Octane, I think they could be competitive. But as is, the Skeletools from Leatherman are the clear winners.

gerber-crucial.jpg


skeletool-crucial-octane.jpg

(top to bottom: skeletool, octane, crucial)
 
I agree on all that's said about the Skeletool -I have one - only Gerbers I have are an old -very old Black Multiplier and a one of the "Suspensions" and have no trouble - I like them very much. I picked up the Skeletool because of the clip and compactness which is superior! but the old Multiplier deploys the plier with a flick of the wrist which is why I love it for fishing! Especially with a too small muskie or northern on the line to be released.
Peace
Revvie
 
I tend to agree with everyones comments. I own both the Skeletool and the Crucial. However, with all of its flaws, I tend to still grab for the Crucial. Perhaps it's ergonomics or ease of use, but I never liked the feel of the Skeletool.....and I love everything Leatherman manufactures. Go figure.
 
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