Pliers in the wilderness??

Nic Ramirez

Nic Ramirez

Gold Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2003
Messages
1,884
Hey Fellas-

I, like so many of you out there, have replaced my carry SAK with a Leatherman for the outdoors.

I have the PST II, the Micra, and the Wave.

Now the one I'm talking about here is the Wave. I carry it on outings but the other day it occurred to me that I could only use it for minimal things (that I can think of) like pulling out a deep fishhook.

Now I can think of a thousand uses for my beloved Wave in an urban environment but at 8 ounces plus the sheath I can use a stick to pull a rooted hook.

My question is: What are some other uses that you guys use your Leatherman (Pliers Feature) for in the wilderness? Or should I just leave it for my light little SAK?
 
Pliers are very handy for all sorts of repairs to gear, zippers, etc. They also are handy for picking up hot items. I alternate between a Gerber multitool and a SAK cybertool 41 as EDC multitools. The SAK usually gets the nod because of its much lighter weight. It has smaller, less useful pliers, but they can serve many of the same functions. Also it has more tools, though they are lighter duty. If I carry the Gerber, I add a Camper or a Trailmaster to my EDC in order to make sure I have the excellent SAK saw on hand all the time. It's much less weight for me to just take the cybertool, accept the compromise with the pliers, and not have to carry an extra knife.
 
One thing I use my leatherman for more than anything is to untie knots. Yes the pliers on a leatherman work great to grab 550 cord right where you need too!
 
That hiker that had the boulder roll on his arm had a knock-off copy of a Leatherman.

He first used it to try and chip away enough rock to slide his arm out. After a few days of crumbs and running out of water, he sharpened the blade on the same rock, broke the bones in the arm (both of them)put a tournequette above the elbow and proceeded to cut.

A 50 foot one armed rapell down the rock face and a three mile hike till he found help.

Guess he never did use the pliers...

Ballsy dude.
 
For What it's Worth(No not the song!),

The military use to put a set of needle-nose pliers in their RSSK and survival vests for decades. They evidently thought that they had a lot of uses too. Other than the ones mentioned above,I can think of 100's of uses for them. Now days, pilots just use Leatherman's or Gerbers in their kits. I carry one everywhere I go and use it at least once a day for something.:)
 
I really like the leathermans of all the multitools but I have to say that I always carry my SAK (Climber) because it's lightweight. I do find that mutitools are nice for light utility but if you have any inclination that you might need it for heavier use, I find just regular pliers to be a better choice to have in your pack or your car. First off, although lighter than carrying around a pair of pliers, multitools are a touch heavier than regular knives. Regular pliers are insulated (usually) and I find that the steel on the SAK's are in general better than what is used on multitools. Although nice to have, I get buy very well without the pliers in an urban environment and teh lightweight SAK's seem to really fit my needs nicely. Plus, you can fidn some really nice small sized pliers at your hardare store for next to nothing. I think a SAK and a separate set of small pliers would work better than most multitools. Of course it's nice to have it all in one spot.

IMHO of course.
 
FWIW my 2cents says good old stout real pliers
would be much better in the wilderness along
with and SAK and fixed blade.

Why? Consider that in the wilderness you will have
make do with what you brought with you. So that
makes MAXIMUM versitlity a critical issue. Multi-
tools are compromise that work well in an urban
setting but would be lacking in a true wilderness
due to the need to use all you have in a million
different combinations. Multi tools fail there due
to having everything in one hand. They also are
less stout than real pliers so any abuse will cause
them to fail when you really need them. Don't think
so?? Ask millions of farmers who carry regular
pliers everyday.

It's true that a multi tool would be way better
than nothing but that's really all they have to offer.
 
Carried one of these for years-
Cooper_Tools_Fencing_Tool_Shop_Tools-resized200.jpg


Best damn farm implement I ever had.
-carl
 
I used to carry needlenose pliers out in the bush long before the multi-tools came out. My father-in-law thought it was a little odd, when we first backpacked together, until on that first trip he needed the pliers to pull a nail from his shoe ! The multi-tools now are nice because of the extra screwdrivers, file, and such to supplement ones SAK.
 
I think pliers are good because you can use them to make other items more useful.
With pliers it's easier to turn an old metal can into a "hobo-stove" or bottle caps into fishing lures. You're only limited by the junk you find and your imagination.

I think they're handy for cracking nuts and shells too.
And pliers make skinning the bark from a tree much easier.

I just thought of the movie Castaway--I would rather pull a bad tooth with pliers rather than use an ice-skate!

Good luck,
Allen.
 
For light carry, the LM P4 and S4 make a dandy team. Very light and you get all the tools except the saw of the big multitools. Did I mention compact? Handy to be able to hold something with the pliers in one hand and tweeze/cut with the scissors in the other.

Phil
 
I actually like to carry 3 sets of "pliers". I have the light-duty pliers that came on my Workchamp SAK, a Sebertool M2 folding mini-pliers, and a pair of 5 inch vise-grips. I used to have a Gerber 800 MT, but it was just too bulky and heavy, especially when so many of the tools were already/better covered by my SAK.

The reason I carry multiple pliers is that, quite often, if I need a pair of pliers to hold something, I'll likely need a second pair to hold the other end; like when bending a piece of metal, unscrewing a bolt and nut, etc..

As to uses, I've used mine for a lot of the above, plus making snares out of tripwire, tying a knot in my SAS wiresaw after the split ring handle pulled loose; I couldn't have ever gotten that saw to work in the sticks without a pair of pliers to tie the knot in that heavy cable.
 
Hmmm.

How about uses for a clamp, or the Leatherman Crunch?

I always liked that model but need some good wilderness applications.

How about heavy duty sewing??
 
I'll have a go at answering this one.
This thread has helped me to remember an item that I have forgotten to add to my pack essential list - the good old faithfull wire coathanger/fence wire. This handy piece of wire can be used for many tasks from hanging a billy over the fire, securing a wood tripod over the campfire, tent repairs, trap triggers, motorcycle repairs, hooking yabbies, catching fishing bait, stitching awl ...... the list goes on.
Now a tool that I am always happy to have for working this wire is a pair of pliers ..... out comes the leatherman :)
 
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