Quality Expectations = Price

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randomcut

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Sep 8, 2004
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I thought I would post this in here since it pertains to a new Leatherman Charge I just purchased. The price was $90 which I think is kind of mid to high for a multi-tool. So when it finally arrived I was disappointed in the fit and finish it was in. One side of the pliers rubbed against the inside of the handle and left marks. Opening the tool was gritty (it soon went away) and the tools still clumped a little even though Leatherman supposedly fixed that. I've handled Waves and other Charges and they all exhibited the same type of rough finish.

Anyway, I guess my question is should we expect a higher level of quality from a leading brand when they themselves charge more than the competition? If the Charge was priced at $50.00 I would be more forgiving but maybe that is my price point when I do expect more.

Now Swiss Army is a great example of high quality for a cheap price (even MSRP and just not online pricing.) Other companies include Spyderco and Benchmade. These knives do cost a bit more but one you get them they are in outstanding finish. So why can't Leatherman have this same type of quality/finishing?

Anyway just want to see what peoples opinions are on quality vs. price.
 
Maybe because its american made and it has outstanding customer service results? Not sure just throwing out suggestions! Plus what do you have to whine about, you only have to pay $90 for it (in canada it cost $139.99).
 
I think we should expect higher F&F especially from a company that positions itself as the premium brand. I was disappointed in the Micra I bought recently. My older, USA-stamped Micra was much better. At $50-60 the Swisstool and Swisstool Spirit really make Leatherman look pricey, with tip-top F&F and no tool clumping. Too bad they're not sold in many retail stores like Leatherman is.
 
I don't know if you are being sarcastic about being American made but that just makes it worse. Sure I'll pay more for "Made/Assembled in the USA" but I want the quality that goes along with it. That's what I mean - is Leatherman just living off their brand to charge a premium price? I'm sure their customer service is top notch but that shouldn't excuse them for making a rough finished product. And I don't think I'm asking for much - smooth out the burrs, make sure things aren't rubbing/scratching, sand out the the tool/die marks, and at least polish or clean the product.

Don't get me wrong. I see the beauty in what Leatherman is trying to do. I like the function of the product and will continue to use it but what if . . .


idontknow312 said:
Maybe because its american made and it has outstanding customer service results? Not sure just throwing out suggestions! Plus what do you have to whine about, you only have to pay $90 for it (in canada it cost $139.99).
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Bought a Charge Ti right after they were discontinued for the new TTi version.

I don't think I've ever been so disappointed with a tool purchase.

The liners on both knives failed very light spine taps. The knife blade rubbed on the liner, as did the file. The knife blade was unevenly ground and, quite literally, dull as a used butter knife. I've never bought a knife, even used, as dull as this thing. Scratches all over the handle.

Usually if I'm underwhelmed with a purchase, I'll keep it and use it to see why I dislike the design or whatever... then I'll sell it. This went right back to the place where I bought it from. The high price made this purchase even more disappointing.

The only Leatherman I'd buy again would be if I could handle a couple in-store and snag one with good fit-and-finish.
 
symphonyincminor said:
Bought a Charge Ti right after they were discontinued for the new TTi version.

I don't think I've ever been so disappointed with a tool purchase.

The liners on both knives failed very light spine taps. The knife blade rubbed on the liner, as did the file. The knife blade was unevenly ground and, quite literally, dull as a used butter knife. I've never bought a knife, even used, as dull as this thing. Scratches all over the handle.

Usually if I'm underwhelmed with a purchase, I'll keep it and use it to see why I dislike the design or whatever... then I'll sell it. This went right back to the place where I bought it from. The high price made this purchase even more disappointing.

The only Leatherman I'd buy again would be if I could handle a couple in-store and snag one with good fit-and-finish.
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Looks like you may have got a used/abused Charge that had been repackaged and returned as new to a dealer. It should have been exchanged for another, or even better, sent to Leatherman with a note. I'll bet they would have returned to you a showpiece sample.

OTOH, although my Charge was well executed, I had the same problem of the liner lock failure. It happened on the very first time I used it, fortunately with no injury. A week later, after the same thing happened again, I sent the Charge off to Leatherman Warranty, which returned it unrepaired with a note that the lock was in specs.

After twelve years of rock solid reliability, I have no complaints about their other tools, but no longer trust Leatherman's liner locks.
 
znapschatz said:
Looks like you may have got a used/abused Charge that had been repackaged and returned as new to a dealer. It should have been exchanged for another, or even better, sent to Leatherman with a note. I'll bet they would have returned to you a showpiece sample.
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I suspect you're right. I looked for signs of use on all of the other tools, but couldn't find anything definitive except for the knife blade.

OTOH, although my Charge was well executed, I had the same problem of the liner lock failure. It happened on the very first time I used it, fortunately with no injury. A week later, after the same thing happened again, I sent the Charge off to Leatherman Warranty, which returned it unrepaired with a note that the lock was in specs.

After twelve years of rock solid reliability, I have no complaints about their other tools, but no longer trust Leatherman's liner locks.
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I like liner locks, but like any lock, only if its done right. The liner locks on the Wave and Charge models are absolute crap. Not only are they crappy, but you can find four (!) of them on either model. I understand why they are forced to use that type of lock due to the constraints of the design, but I'll pass. The lockback style locks on any of my other Leatherman's are rock solid...
 
durbanposion said:
buy a vic.
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That is always good advice. Vics are great, the gold standard for design, fit and finish. Over decades I have accumulated several, which have been endlessly useful and, in addition, are great finger toys. However,
Leatherman makes better tools. I came to this conclusion after side by side comparisons and in practical use with comparable Vic and LT products.

Lately, I have carrying a Spirit for evaluation. Just a few days ago, I needed to tighten some ph screws in hard wood. The Spirit screwdriver kept slipping unless I bore down hard. I retrieved one of my LTs and applied its driver. There was no slippage with normal pressure. On an earlier occasion, I needed to loosen a stuck filler cap on a camp stove. A Swisstool pliers couldn't be opened wide enough to do the job, but my Super Tool could.

Another time, I was doing an emergency repair with the Swisstool under a cold rain, and after about 20 minutes, it became a real trial to pull out the implements with my numb fingers with softened nails. Even under normal conditions, if I use the Swisstool for any length of time, my fingertips get sore from using the nail nicks to open the tools against the firm backspring. LT tools, OTOH, can be opened easily with the flat of my thumb, or even with thick work gloves on. Sometimes I can't reach countersunk screws with the stubby Swisstool drivers, but have never had that problem with any of my Leathermen, except for a CS4, which is the most SAK-like of them all (actually, there is no SAK equivalent.) Most of the time, the tools on each were okay, but in every case where one was better, or even useable, it was the Leatherman.

When it comes to models such as the Farmer, Swisschamp, Tinker, Rambler etc., Vic rules. As pocket knives for that kind of use, they are just fine, and so pocket friendly and beautifully made, I enjoy fondling them as well (which I admit to this forum but not elsewhere :o ) However, for "serious" multi-tool work, experience over 12 years has drawn me to Leatherman.
 
I have used many different multi-tools for 35 years and have always gravitated back to LM. My most recent purchase is the TTi. I use it daily at work(usually with fairly heavy gloves on) just as hard as any other tool or knife. I have had other multis, knives and tools fail after only a week or so. I have even broke the jaws on a Supertool and ground them down even because I did not want to be without it. When I did send it in they sent me a new one back. I have had no issues with the liner locks on my TTi, they all pass the whack test. I would be dismayed if they told me that a failing lock was within spec.
I would definitely send one back if it was in the condition that symphonyincminor encountered when bought as a new item.
 
I own three LM Pulses (a now-discontinued model that's basically a PST II with SuperTool-style locking mechanism for the tools). I also own three Squirts and a Micra. These three models have always had fantastic fit and finish out of the box.

I briefly owned an original Wave that I ended up giving to my brother, and that had nice F&F, too. However, I've handled new Waves, TTis, and new SuperTools and their F&F seemed not up to par compared to the old Pulse and the smaller Squirts and Micra. This is just my personal experience and I would still give new LM models a look-see but I've been disappointed at the F&F of LM's recent large locking-tool models.

I own both a Vic SwissTool and the SwissTool Spirit and they seem to have better F&F than even my Pulses. I agree with the grip re. the screwdivers, which are polished or coated in some weird way (many SAKs have the same issue). I just take a bastard file and grind down the screwdriver tips on my SwissTools and SAKs so they have a bevel (not sure how to explain it). Anyhow, that makes the Vic screwdriver heads much more useful for me.
 
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