Here's another Leatherman review, this time for the very small Squirt P4. How small? Well, it's 2-1/4" closed. That's even smaller than the Micra by 1/4", and the same length as a Victorinox Classic. They come in several colors - red, blue, pink, and grey. The model I'm reviewing is the blue version, model 8004. You can find these in stores for about $22-$28. Let's see how it does in an everyday carry setting...
Size: The Squirt is 2-1/4" long and 3/4" wide. It's 1/2" thick and weighs 2 ounces. The small size allows the Squirt to be carried on a keyring, yet it opens to a respectable length for even my larger hands. Open, it's 3-3/4" long. Using the tools can be done easily by most people with just three fingers (thumb, index, and middle fingers).
Construction: The P4 is made of stainless steel components, liners, rivets, and backsprings. The handle scales are anodized aluminum.
The Tools: You get as nice assortment of tools in such a small package. First, you get Leatherman's famous Pliers. They're 1-3/4" long when fully extended from the handles, and they're just over 1/8" thick. You get three plier surfaces: a needle-nosed surface 7/16" long that opens to 1", a standard bolt plier 5/16" long that opens to 9/16", and a wire cutter 3/16" long and opening to 1/4". The pliers are spring-loaded just like the scissors on the Micra; they use a bar that is fastened to the handle and the backspring acts as the springing lever to keep the pliers open. I've found these to be very useful for light-duty jobs, but they will flex if forced to do something they are underengineered for. These aren't the pliers to use to take apart your lawn mower or perform car maintenance. For everyday chores like tightening a bolt or bending a wire coat hanger, they'll do nicely.
The pliers are the only tool available when the Squirt S4 is open. Everything else is accessible without opening the tool. None of the tools lock open, but they all snap open like a slipjoint and stay open under pressure from the backspring. There's no blade play in any of the tools when they're opened. They all open via nailnick, except for the micro screwdriver. First we'll look at the tools on the side of the Squirt marked squirt P4. That brings us to...
Bottle Opener: This is a combination bottle opener / large flathead screwdriver. The bottle opener works well, as does the screwdriver. Specifically, this tool is 3/4" long and the screwdriver is 3/16" wide. Across from it we have the Flat Phillips Driver.
It's also 3/4" long and sports a flattened screwdriver 1/16" wide and tapered to be used for Phillips-head screws. I haven't used this tool yet simply due the lack of need, but from all indications it will perform as advertised.
File: It's not a fingernail file; it's too coarse for that. One side is slightly more aggressively-textured than the other, so you have two different surfaces to use. The "edge" of the file is rasped also, giving you a light-duty metal saw. This tool is 1-9/16" long and 1/4" wide. It works well for smoothing down wood or plastic, and does a fair job at light-duty metal sawing. I find it a bit too rough for sharpening blades; I'd like to see Leatherman's diamond file on this tool.
Moving to the other side of the tool, we get to the last three tools.
Micro Screwdriver: Like the other screwdrivers, it's 3/4" long when open. This is the ideal size for eyeglass screws and other tiny jobs. The tip is 1/16" wide. It works as expected, but I'm not sure about applying loads of torque to it.
Awl: This one is a full 1" long. It's got a nice sharp point, but no cutting edge. There's a swedge where you'd expect an edge, but it's unsharpened. In terms of making holes, the awl performs nicely. While there's no real need to sharpen the swedge, I sharpened mine anyway.
Blade: What's a Leatherman without a knife blade? The one on the Squirt is stubby at 1-3/4" long, and is the same exact blade found on the Micra. It's 1/16" thick and chisel ground. Out of the box, it had little trouble cutting paper. In less then 30 seconds on 1000-grit sandpaper and a strop, I had a blade I could shave with.
The Squirt S4 packs a lot of utility in such a small package. It's the same length as a Victorinox Classic; just 1/16" wider, and only 1/8" thicker. In my opinion, it's definitely worth the low cost. Leathermans continue to be made in the USA from American and foreign parts, and the quality is just as I remember from the PST that started my Leatherman collection. Check it out.
The Leatherman Squirt S4 in glacier blue...
And here's a video review on it from YouTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0LV6tC2PuE
EDITED: Some Squirt models come with a leather slip case; this model didn't.
Size: The Squirt is 2-1/4" long and 3/4" wide. It's 1/2" thick and weighs 2 ounces. The small size allows the Squirt to be carried on a keyring, yet it opens to a respectable length for even my larger hands. Open, it's 3-3/4" long. Using the tools can be done easily by most people with just three fingers (thumb, index, and middle fingers).
Construction: The P4 is made of stainless steel components, liners, rivets, and backsprings. The handle scales are anodized aluminum.
The Tools: You get as nice assortment of tools in such a small package. First, you get Leatherman's famous Pliers. They're 1-3/4" long when fully extended from the handles, and they're just over 1/8" thick. You get three plier surfaces: a needle-nosed surface 7/16" long that opens to 1", a standard bolt plier 5/16" long that opens to 9/16", and a wire cutter 3/16" long and opening to 1/4". The pliers are spring-loaded just like the scissors on the Micra; they use a bar that is fastened to the handle and the backspring acts as the springing lever to keep the pliers open. I've found these to be very useful for light-duty jobs, but they will flex if forced to do something they are underengineered for. These aren't the pliers to use to take apart your lawn mower or perform car maintenance. For everyday chores like tightening a bolt or bending a wire coat hanger, they'll do nicely.
The pliers are the only tool available when the Squirt S4 is open. Everything else is accessible without opening the tool. None of the tools lock open, but they all snap open like a slipjoint and stay open under pressure from the backspring. There's no blade play in any of the tools when they're opened. They all open via nailnick, except for the micro screwdriver. First we'll look at the tools on the side of the Squirt marked squirt P4. That brings us to...
Bottle Opener: This is a combination bottle opener / large flathead screwdriver. The bottle opener works well, as does the screwdriver. Specifically, this tool is 3/4" long and the screwdriver is 3/16" wide. Across from it we have the Flat Phillips Driver.
It's also 3/4" long and sports a flattened screwdriver 1/16" wide and tapered to be used for Phillips-head screws. I haven't used this tool yet simply due the lack of need, but from all indications it will perform as advertised.
File: It's not a fingernail file; it's too coarse for that. One side is slightly more aggressively-textured than the other, so you have two different surfaces to use. The "edge" of the file is rasped also, giving you a light-duty metal saw. This tool is 1-9/16" long and 1/4" wide. It works well for smoothing down wood or plastic, and does a fair job at light-duty metal sawing. I find it a bit too rough for sharpening blades; I'd like to see Leatherman's diamond file on this tool.
Moving to the other side of the tool, we get to the last three tools.
Micro Screwdriver: Like the other screwdrivers, it's 3/4" long when open. This is the ideal size for eyeglass screws and other tiny jobs. The tip is 1/16" wide. It works as expected, but I'm not sure about applying loads of torque to it.
Awl: This one is a full 1" long. It's got a nice sharp point, but no cutting edge. There's a swedge where you'd expect an edge, but it's unsharpened. In terms of making holes, the awl performs nicely. While there's no real need to sharpen the swedge, I sharpened mine anyway.
Blade: What's a Leatherman without a knife blade? The one on the Squirt is stubby at 1-3/4" long, and is the same exact blade found on the Micra. It's 1/16" thick and chisel ground. Out of the box, it had little trouble cutting paper. In less then 30 seconds on 1000-grit sandpaper and a strop, I had a blade I could shave with.
The Squirt S4 packs a lot of utility in such a small package. It's the same length as a Victorinox Classic; just 1/16" wider, and only 1/8" thicker. In my opinion, it's definitely worth the low cost. Leathermans continue to be made in the USA from American and foreign parts, and the quality is just as I remember from the PST that started my Leatherman collection. Check it out.
The Leatherman Squirt S4 in glacier blue...
And here's a video review on it from YouTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0LV6tC2PuE
EDITED: Some Squirt models come with a leather slip case; this model didn't.