Looking for suggestions.

I am an aircraft mechanic, since waaaay back in my military days.

A Leatherman is a great idea... get him the Wingman!

Nobody trashed their knife on any of our aircraft, the shop had all the tools we needed to get the job done.

Where's he going to school, Kim?[/QUOTE]
Pittsburg institute of aeronautics.
Velitrius said:
I am an aircraft mechanic, since waaaay back in my military days.

A Leatherman is a great idea... get him the Wingman!

Nobody trashed their knife on any of our aircraft, the shop had all the tools we needed to get the job done.

Where's he going to school, Kim?
Click to expand...

He’s going to Pittsburg institute of aeronautics. This is his first semester, he seems to be doing well.
 
In Desolation said:
Only drawback is that the Grips have horrible handles.
Click to expand...
Everyone is entitled to their opinion.
I would strongly beg to differ.
I am a mechanic, I am all about the handles on my knives to the point of making my own scales from raw materials or taking fixed blade handle material off another knife and putting it on my folders and the two folders that I haven't considered doing that to (lately) is my Griptillians.
I was carrying the Mini Grip this past week.
Maybe one day I will make titanium scales for them but the knives will be far heavier.

The mini is solid (not hollow) material from the factory and is very robust. I find no problem with the hollow large Griptillian. It is plenty strong / never seen a broken one in the forums here. it just sounds hollow. So does the hollow titanium handled knives (they clang rather than click with a hollow plasticy sound). In any case it is just a sound guys DOESN'T MEAN THEY ARE CHEEP OR INFERIOR. They are just made lighter because they are hollowed out.

What I am saying to the OP is : Its a fine mechanic's knife out of the box . ;) :thumbsup:
 
A Leatherman seems like a good suggestion. If you think he'd prefer a modern one hand opening folding knife then also check out the Spyderco Delica. The Delica has been very popular for many years for many reasons.

He will need some sharpening equipment too. A Lansky guided system isn't a bad entry level kit and quite affordable.
 
Spyderco Delica
Benchmade Bugout
Leatherman MultiTool
All around $100 or less & are more than capable of handling the majority of your cutting tasks. Benchmade offers a better warranty than Spyderco. I can't speak of Leatherman's warranty because I've never needed to use it.
 
I will say, an affordable Leatherman Wingman is a great gift idea as a useful multitool, but then include with it a $75-100 gift card to; BladeHQ, or DLT, USAmadeblades, Knifeworks: any reputable knife site, (the list of sponoring sites here on this site is as good a place as any to start, in order to get a decent list of places to look), as that would still give him the opportunity to pick out his very own "pocket knife" that suits his taste and needs more specifically. And $75-100 gives a good cushion to buying a pretty decent knife (or even 2 if you're super savvy in deal spotting, and know your stuff).

And a "knife specific" gift card helps to ensure that it still buys him a knife for school, rather then cash which sometimes pays for a vice ;)...
 
Ok, this is what I finally decided on....

Leatherman wingman
Ontario rat 1

The Spyderco Delico 4 and the Ontario rat1 were tough to choose between. The cost ended up being the final decision maker.

I really had no idea what a leatherman was prior to looking all these options up. I have to say I am very impressed. It has so many tools that I have needed at one time or another in a handy compact case. I ended up adding the leatherman keychain mini multi tool to my Christmas list!

Thank you all for you suggestions. I feel like I made good choices and I think my son will be happy.
Kim
 
Kim Cusano said:
Ok, this is what I finally decided on....

Leatherman wingman
Ontario rat 1

The Spyderco Delico 4 and the Ontario rat1 were tough to choose between. The cost ended up being the final decision maker.

I really had no idea what a leatherman was prior to looking all these options up. I have to say I am very impressed. It has so many tools that I have needed at one time or another in a handy compact case. I ended up adding the leatherman keychain mini multi tool to my Christmas list!

Thank you all for you suggestions. I feel like I made good choices and I think my son will be happy.
Kim
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I have the RAT1 and Wingman and use both a lot. I have almost 100 knives/multitools and most are more expensive, but these are two of my favourites.

You got 2 of the best values available IMO. He should be very happy!
 
The Spyderco Delica will make him a fantastic knife and you can get it in his favorite color. There are standard colors of blue, yellow (salt water), black, brown, orange, green (2), gray, and purple. However, there are some companies that dye the handles and have other color options. I have a gray and a purple (my wife bought for me). I have a hundred or more knives and this is likely my favorite. It cuts, and does it very well, and is strong for its size, and will never slip out of his hand.

knifework-sc11fpgy_1.jpg

There is even a black on black Salt 2 that cannot rust, ever.
c88sbbk2.1.jpg

I've got this one in my cart, now.
 
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Glad to hear we were able to help! You made a great decision and I’m absolutely positive he’ll be pleased.
 
DocT said:
The Spyderco Delica will make him a fantastic knife and you can get it in his favorite color. There are standard colors of blue, yellow (salt water), black, brown, orange, green (2), gray, and purple. However, there are some companies that dye the handles and have other color options. I have a gray and a purple (my wife bought for me). I have a hundred or more knives and this is likely my favorite. It cuts, and does it very well, and is strong for its size, and will never slip out of his hand.

knifework-sc11fpgy_1.jpg

There is even a black on black Salt 2 that cannot rust, ever.
c88sbbk2.1.jpg

I've got this one in my cart, now.
Click to expand...

I am considering it for my oldest son.
 
You made good choices, Kim.

The Wingman is one of the less expensive multitools out there, but I use mine all the time. The spring loaded pliers make for a very handy addition to the tool.

And the RAT is a very utilitarian piece that is really easy to maintain.

I hope your son has a blast in the aviation field. Tons of opportunities out there for a motivated air-dale.
 
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