Swiss Army Tool

Gary W. Graley

Gary W. Graley

“Imagination is more important than knowledge"
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Mar 2, 1999
Messages
27,494
For those of you guys or gals that own a Swiss Army Tool, here's a tip that you might not have considered, as these are pretty rugged pliers.

OIL the joints where the pliers unfold. I had mine now for, man it's well over 20 years I think, carried around the world, just a great working tool, but I never oiled it or even thought about it. Until when I was making a lanyard I thought to myself, 'gee this opens pretty rough' and BING that really small and dim light flickered on and I thought 'hey, oil it?' and wow, what a difference, it's like a new pair of pliers!

So, be sure to use your best pivot oil and give a few drops to your pliers, I imagine the Leatherman brand can also use a bit now and again.
And for those that already knew to do this, you're the best ;)

Untitled by GaryWGraley, on Flickr

G2
 
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:thumbsup:
It's a pretty big testament to the quality build of such tools and the 100-years-old miracle of stainless steel, that the benefit of oiling the joints is sometimes nearly forgotten these days. After reading here, I had to look at my ol' reliable Leatherman Wave multi-tool, to see if it could use a few drops. I don't recall if I've ever oiled it, come to think of it.
 
Exactly right, very versatile tools and often neglected
Since doing that, every time I go to make a lanyard or zipper pull and open the Swiss Tool I always smile
;)
G2
 
I have the larger version.

I purchased it over 20 years ago.

I made the mistake of cutting some really heavy wire with it and it put a dent in the wire cutter section that makes the opening action real rough.
 
You might see about sending them in they might just replace them for you
G2
 
GCG199 said:
I have the larger version.

I purchased it over 20 years ago.

I made the mistake of cutting some really heavy wire with it and it put a dent in the wire cutter section that makes the opening action real rough.
Click to expand...
Sounds kinda familiar. Did something similar to my Leatherman Micra's scissors a few years ago. Tried to cut off what I assumed was a plastic / nylon cord attached to a bird feeder for hanging it. Turns out the 'cord' was a stainless steel wire with plastic or nylon cladding. Put a nice dent in the scissors's edge and failed to cut the 'cord'. But I was able to repair that, as it turned out. Sort of a fortuitous way to discover the scissors on the Micra are pretty easy to sharpen & repair. So, it was a good learning experience in more ways than one.
 
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