Pliers: Swisstool vs. Swisstool spirit?

A

aeliv

Joined
Dec 10, 2004
Messages
5
Hello,

I just recently purchased the original swisstool from Amazon.com, but the first one they sent me had a damaged pouch. I asked for a replacement which they sent expedited, so I have two swisstools in my possession right now (for a short time).

What I noticed is that the replacement swisstool has what appears to be the spirit's pliers.

-The spirit's pliers are wider at the base (pivot) at 2.5cm versus the swisstool's 2cm plier base.
-The spirit's pliers have an area for cutting hard wire indicated by a raised point in the cutting surface followed by a notch adjacent to the pivot; the swisstool merely has a notch in the cutting surface.
-The spirit's pliers have a smaller coarse plier grip area.
-The spirit pliers open only 3cm whereas the original swisstool pliers open 3.8cm measured from tip-to-tip on the inside. As a result, the spirit pliers are limited to grasping smaller objects than the original swisstool.

Given the differences in the pliers between the two, it would be my uninformed opinion that the original swisstool's pliers are more versatile than the spirit's pliers. Is this assessment correct? I have to return one of them back to Amazon.com - if you were me, which would you keep?

Thank you for your opinions and advice.
 
Hi aeliv i had my swisstool replaced and i think ive got one like yours .If you compare the two side by side with the pliers open the pliers are the opposite way round too each other , on one the left jaw is on the top and the other is on the bottom , is this the same with yours ? http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=319492 this is another thread about it .If you would like i will email you a couple of pics of the two to see if we are talking about the same thing.

Dunc
 
dunc5, thank you for the welcome. I checked out your thread, and yes, my observations are like yours. I too believe that the new swisstool uses the spirit's plier jaws. My original swisstool, however, also had the corkscrew slot instead of the round one. The only thing that was different in the replacement was the plier jaws, wire cutter, and slot in the plier mechanism that allows for a solid click when the ruler is used.

Have you formed an opinion on which pliers you prefer: the original or the new? Side by side comparisons on mine show that the old pliers open wider and that the handles squeeze closer, which for my smaller hands is more helpful.
 
I think its going to be down to personal choice , im quite happy with the new pliers but neither are as good as the leatherman pliers for needle nose use .Imo the swisstool is one of the strongest and well made tools on the market .If you serch around the internet there is very little or nothing said about the new pliers on the original swisstool and i couldnt find any pics ,only of the new spirit.If i was you i think i would keep the newer one but thats just my opinion ,ive also got a supertool and a charge so i have a good choice of pliers to use.Hope this helps.

dunc
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top