Not carrying a multitool

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brentondan47

Joined
May 28, 2022
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35
Recently I've been thinking about changing my Edc and removing my multitool. I'm a painter by trade,and while I always carrying a multitool, I feel as though I don't use it enough to warrant carrying it. the screwdrivers and the pliers get the most use, but I'm never far from my tool tote that has the actual tools. Has anyone stopped carrying a multitool in favor of the real tool? If so why did you stop? Or why do you continue to carry one?
 
My primary EDC tool is a SAK, and I never leave home without it. It is such a versatile tool perfect for quick fix, and the corkscrew is a real party saver.

I too carry a MT sometime, but I find it a little too hefty for daily carry. In fact, I think I'd rather pair my SAK with a Knipex cobra xs than a full scale MT.
 
comis said:
My primary EDC tool is a SAK, and I never leave home without it. It is such a versatile tool perfect for quick fix, and the corkscrew is a real party saver.

I too carry a MT sometime, but I find it a little too hefty for daily carry. In fact, I think I'd rather pair my SAK with a Knipex cobra xs than a full scale MT.
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The weight really isn't an issue with me it's just the fact that the most used tools are the screwdrivers followed by the pliers which don't always accomplish the task and I always wind up grabbing my slip joints or my Klein's lineman's pliers or at times even a wrench
 
I'm currently working in a workshop doing assembly, and all the tools (well, most of the tools) I need are easily to hand. While I'm mostly using the knife blades on my Surge for breaking boxes, there is the odd wire to strip, that doesn't play well with the stripping pliers, or I need to do something else, and the right tool is in use, or farther away. Plus, the sheath holds my light and overall it gets used enough in a day to justify not just replacing it with something in the Olfa family. It's more like insurance these days, but it's so much part of my pattern that I'd have to seriously consider why I'd be changing things.
 
As much as I love multitools I just don't need them in my trade so often to justify carrying one. I even used to carry some sort of multitool with me on dog walks. Now I carry Victorinox Classic SD on my keychain and I even barely use it. :D
 
I’m not in a trade so if I‘m doing something requiring actual tools that’s what’s getting used. I had a Victorinox Farmer X on my keychain for the last year and a half. Super useful every day. I removed it in favor of a Vic classic and a different main blade. The classic doesn’t cover nearly what the Farmer did so this setup may not last.
 
I don't like to feel the bulk, so rather than edc one multitool I've broken it down to a few smaller ones. This makes it kinda modular and easier to carry without me noticing too much.

It starts with a Victorinox Waiter with a mini screwdriver in the corkscrew. This is paired with a Leatherman Style CS. Between these two small tools I'm covered for most everything including a pretty good range of screws. Next I can throw in a set of Knipex Cobra XS pliers if I choose. Finally I can add a small saw if needed.

For the saw I have a few options but currently I'm partial to carrying a Coghlan's Pocket Sierra Saw. It's the lightest weight option without resorting to a wire saw, but the handle is a bit thicker than I'd like. I've removed the rubber grips to thin it down a little and further reduce the weight, but the sides still stick out in the middle. I might try trimming and sanding those down next.
 
brentondan47 said:
The weight really isn't an issue with me it's just the fact that the most used tools are the screwdrivers followed by the pliers which don't always accomplish the task and I always wind up grabbing my slip joints or my Klein's lineman's pliers or at times even a wrench
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I definitely get this. I carry a SOG Power Litre because I'm not often close to tools and it's saved the day a number of times, but I've considered replacing it with a small ratcheting screwdriver and a small pair of Knipex pliers just because those are the tools on it I use 99% of the time.
 
I recently stopped carrying the LM Surge that I had been carrying clipped inside the left front pocket of my jeans. I replaced it with a LM Charge ALX, because I had recently acquired it and thought it deserved some pocket time. All the while I still had my fully accessorized original Surge in a Skinth Plus pouch hanging on my belt over my right hip. Soooo are you suggesting that there are other tools available that are dedicated for one purpose only? Like pliers and screwdrivers and files?? That's news to me!! T-A
 
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Byrom Hermo said:
I’m not in a trade so if I‘m doing something requiring actual tools that’s what’s getting used. I had a Victorinox Farmer X on my keychain for the last year and a half. Super useful every day. I removed it in favor of a Vic classic and a different main blade. The classic doesn’t cover nearly what the Farmer did so this setup may not last.
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I'm in the same situation. The jump from a Farmer X to Classic is drastic though. Personally, I carry a Manager (basically a Rambler with a pen) and second knife (84mm SAK or larger). If the blade of an Executive is enough for you, that might be the ideal middle ground.

To the OP's question, I always carry a multitool! If nothing else, there is a Manager in the keychain with me anytime I go out of the house. And even inside the house, there is always a multitool within a 10 second reach.
 
In Powernoodleworld, a Swiss Army Knife is not a multitool. A multitool, in my view, is always pliers based. But this a philosophical argument.

I do carry a true MT from time to time, but really I never need pliers in my daily life as a highly skilled laptop jockey. But I do always carry a SAK - usually an Explorer or Explorer Plus - in addition to a Manager. These get used regularly or frequently, and make me feel good to have in my pocket even when they aren't used.

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I've never been a fan of the multitool, especially the full size multitool. It just seemed like an answer to a question that was never asked. I don't mind a few tools along, like my old Sear's 4-way keychain screw driver in my wallet with my old P-38. I rarely needed pliers, and if I did, there was a real tool kit in the car truck or under the seat of the BMW motorcycle. I loved SAK's so very often had one around.

But...that little three letter word that pops up...in 2014 I was gifted a Leatherman squirt. I was at that time advancing through the senior citizen years and had encountered the fumble finger syndrome. The small pliers proved useful to the old fart like me, and I grew like the squirt. But even that gets left behind now and then. I have my wallet tools and a real tool kit in the car if something comes up. Thats the only multitool I like. I still idon'thave any use for the full size Leathermans, or even the big SAK's like the 4 layers and up. I just have very little use for the plier based multitool. But a knife based tool like a SAK, is just way more useful to me, as ev very single day I need a knife for something. Cutting open plastic packaging, cutting twine in the garden, cutting gun ch out someplace, opening my mail and Amazon/UPS/FEDEX packages that get dropped off at the door, cutting fishing line, and sometimes cutting bait. Being a retired old guy, I fish nearly every other day.

Pocket knife, a daily needed item. A few tools in the wallet to deal with lose screws or opening cans or bottles, good to go. A full size multitool? Nah, no need.
 
I stopped wearing a Leatherman (usually my Curl) on my belt at work. Whereas I used to be spending a lot of my time at my company's fabrication shop, now I spend most of my time at work at a desk, and my EDC SAK (an Explorer or Champion Plus for the magnifying glass) has me more than covered for office tool use. I have yet to encounter an Excel spreadsheet that required a multitool to open!

I still keep a multitool in my backpack, and it sees occasional use at the office. I've used the pliers multiple times to extract a hot metal tray (along with my lunch) from the toaster oven in the break room!
 
Guy McVer said:
I don't like to feel the bulk, so rather than edc one multitool I've broken it down to a few smaller ones. This makes it kinda modular and easier to carry without me noticing too much.

It starts with a Victorinox Waiter with a mini screwdriver in the corkscrew. This is paired with a Leatherman Style CS. Between these two small tools I'm covered for most everything including a pretty good range of screws. Next I can throw in a set of Knipex Cobra XS pliers if I choose. Finally I can add a small saw if needed.

For the saw I have a few options but currently I'm partial to carrying a Coghlan's Pocket Sierra Saw. It's the lightest weight option without resorting to a wire saw, but the handle is a bit thicker than I'd like. I've removed the rubber grips to thin it down a little and further reduce the weight, but the sides still stick out in the middle. I might try trimming and sanding those down next.
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Sounds like you need a 91mm Waiter with added saw.View attachment 1837904View attachment 1837905
 
I ironically, I've shifted to just replacing my pocket folder with a multitool. Granted, I need heavier pants and better pockets, but I've found when I carry and use the multitool, it becomes a more frequent problem solver. I may trim down to my pocket-clipped SAK, but it's been an interesting experiment:



ROCK6
 
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