Victorinox vs Leatherman?

I usually have either a Swiss Tool Spirit XC on my belt or a Squirt in my pocket.

Depending on what I'm doing, where I'm going, etc.; I might have either a Ruike S22, SAK Classic XD, or Jetsetter on my key ring. Those are less frequent and usually get bumped for a titanium pry tool. (Coincidentally, the most common use for the pry tool is nail nicks on other tools.)
 
Chronovore said:
I usually have either a Swiss Tool Spirit XC on my belt or a Squirt in my pocket.

Depending on what I'm doing, where I'm going, etc.; I might have either a Ruike S22, SAK Classic XD, or Jetsetter on my key ring. Those are less frequent and usually get bumped for a titanium pry tool. (Coincidentally, the most common use for the pry tool is nail nicks on other tools.)
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Interesting you say that because one other thing I have been looking into getting - a pocket prybar. It seems the medium screwdriver on the LM could serve the purpose, but I wanna wait and see if I end up using that before I pry with it. Was looking at either that Gerber Prybrid or something called a Pico. Just so I'm not tempted to pry with a knife and I have something to offer to all the people out there trying to pry.
And lol prybar for nail nicks! I imagine those can be a bit annoying when they are the only method of deployment and you have very short nails.
 
Leathermans are great tools with a great warranty, but I prefer Victorinox. Once I tried a Victorinox Swisstool I was hooked and I will never go to another brand again. I also have a Victorinox Spirit which I switch between it and the Swisstool.
 
Hashishiin said:
Interesting you say that because one other thing I have been looking into getting - a pocket prybar. It seems the medium screwdriver on the LM could serve the purpose, but I wanna wait and see if I end up using that before I pry with it. Was looking at either that Gerber Prybrid or something called a Pico. Just so I'm not tempted to pry with a knife and I have something to offer to all the people out there trying to pry.
And lol prybar for nail nicks! I imagine those can be a bit annoying when they are the only method of deployment and you have very short nails.
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There are a bunch of great titanium pry tools out there. Steel works but I like the look, feel, light weight, and corrosion resistance of titanium for gear and doodads.

Nail nicks don't require much leverage. I could get by with one of the smaller titanium pry tools that virtually disappear on a key ring. Lately, I've been pushing the envelope slightly with this one from TwoSun. I say "slightly" because it is just a little longer than my AA flashlight and mostly works in the "lump of stuff" form factor in a Wrangler pocket. I've kept it on there because the contours and tumbled finish of this pry bar make it surprisingly comfortable in hand.

Notice the modularity of this titanium ring set-up. I have the Ruike S22, SAK Classic SD, Jetsetter, and other doodads ready to swap in or out with the same size titanium split rings. (One of these days, I'll set up a hook board for my key-ring rotation.) The main difference from when I took this pic is that the Civivi titanium Torx tool has joined the party.


k81LmUQ.jpg
 
As mentioned previously regarding bigger (regular) pliers models Victorinox offers 2 main models/lines whereas LM has several. In my experience, though they may feel different when opening, in use both brands offer solid tools and the preference comes down to personal needs.

Victorinox also does offer some more pliers models, that may not be as well known. There are some bigger pliers models in the Delemont (what used to be Wenger) range, in the Rangergrip series, like the 74.

There are also some 91mm, 111mm and 85mm(Delemont) models with small pliers, like the Deluxe Tinker. They are smaller than the LM squirt ones but they can still be used for small tasks, like for fishing hooks, pulling zippers etc.

There are also discontinued models with pliers.
 
Leatherman offered a better selection of more budget friendly (not much now imo) pliers based mp while Victorinox offer better budget knife based utility tools. Their top shelves are about equal.

I edc a SAK Huntsman 2, for whatever reason I will need the wood saw when I forget it, and LM Wingman in backpack.
 
It has become increasingly obvious over the years that Leatherman's quality just isn't as good as Victorinox. I think this is at least partially because of all the regulations that make U.S. manufacturing so expensive, so Leatherman is always trying to cut corners to keep from moving outside of the US completely.

I love Leatherman. They have some really great multi tools. I think my favorite is the Style PS. It's so compact and it's such a great little pair of pliers with wire cutters and it's so easy to carry. It pairs great with a swiss army knife. There's just one frustrating issue with the scissors, but thankfully it's easy to fix because the Style PS uses barrel pivots with T6 screws for easy disassembly. All you gotta do is remove the scissors and replace them with the knife blade from a Style CS. It's a 1:1 drop in replacement. The reason you want to do this is because the scissor spring on the Style PS (and on the Squirt PS4) will straight up break while the tool is literally sitting in your pocket or in a drawer somewhere not being used. You'll find lots of people complaining about it online.
 
Guy McVer said:
It has become increasingly obvious over the years that Leatherman's quality just isn't as good as Victorinox. I think this is at least partially because of all the regulations that make U.S. manufacturing so expensive, so Leatherman is always trying to cut corners to keep from moving outside of the US completely.

I love Leatherman. They have some really great multi tools. I think my favorite is the Style PS. It's so compact and it's such a great little pair of pliers with wire cutters and it's so easy to carry. It pairs great with a swiss army knife. There's just one frustrating issue with the scissors, but thankfully it's easy to fix because the Style PS uses barrel pivots with T6 screws for easy disassembly. All you gotta do is remove the scissors and replace them with the knife blade from a Style CS. It's a 1:1 drop in replacement. The reason you want to do this is because the scissor spring on the Style PS (and on the Squirt PS4) will straight up break while the tool is literally sitting in your pocket or in a drawer somewhere not being used. You'll find lots of people complaining about it online.
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Wow, that's gnarly! My Wingman is holding up great, I really hope it stays that way because I love it!
I just ordered a Victorinox though, because the Finnish Design Shop was releasing some with pictures of this old 70s remake of an even older WWII era Finnish cartoon. So, I have my first small Victorinox! Does anyone know the model? It doesn't say on the site https://shop.moomin.com/collections...appa-in-the-garden-pocket-knife-by-victorinox
It lists the tools as follows, but I see no corkscrew. Includes 14 different tools: "large blade, small blade, corkscrew, can opener, reamer, puncher, multi tool hook, Tin opener, Screwdriver (5mm), Screwdriver (2mm), Phillips screwdriver, Scissors, Toothpick, Tweezers, Keyring, Wire stripper." and I do not know that a keyring is a tool, but I love it, lol

I'd rather keep supporting LM with decent work than support Gerber, though. I can always carry an LM and a Vic :)
 
Hashishiin said:
Wow, that's gnarly! My Wingman is holding up great, I really hope it stays that way because I love it!
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Only the small scissors on the Style PS and the Squirt PS4 are affected, because they use identical scissors on both models and they both use the same flawed spring. As far as I know, none of the other scissors designed by Leatherman have the same tendency to fail.

Hashishiin said:
I just ordered a Victorinox though, because the Finnish Design Shop was releasing some with pictures of this old 70s remake of an even older WWII era Finnish cartoon. So, I have my first small Victorinox! Does anyone know the model?
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It looks like a Super Tinker.
 
Have multiples of both; love 'em both...

I carry a Swisschamp every day as my EDC. It handles 99% of everything. But, in the yard it's a Leatherman of some stripe. I like the bigger, more robust tools and grip on the Leatherman for rougher tasks. I also always EDC a 3'-5" fixed blade as well, again depending upon around the house/office or in the yard. Just no substitute sometimes for a solid full tang piece of steel.
 
I wouldn't compare a regular SAK to a Leatherman but the Swiss Tool to a Leatherman is worth comparison. I personally only have experience with the regular SAK pocket multi function knives and they blades do have similar edge retention to a Case however with their blades being so much thinner I think it is reasonable most of the SAKs I have had have a blade nearly half the thickness of any Case and with such a reduced amount of material I don't expect as much from the edge plus I treat a SAK as a tool of conveniences with less expectations from the blade. I want to see a Swiss Tool compared to a Leatherman as I have been looking for a good multi-tool and want to see if anyone is making something to rival Leatherman and I am not wanting to bother with anything made in China.
 
Guy McVer said:
Only the small scissors on the Style PS and the Squirt PS4 are affected, because they use identical scissors on both models and they both use the same flawed spring. As far as I know, none of the other scissors designed by Leatherman have the same tendency to fail.


It looks like a Super Tinker.
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My Wingman, which came as a gift from a kind giveaway on BladeForums, was supposed to have spring-loaded scissors but the spring was not there. It's okay, they are still usable, but I am thinking of writing to Leatherman, see if I can get a replacement maybe? What's wrong with it, is a SAK style leaf-spring thing?

And thanks for identification! I'm psyched for it, I just kind of want one with a magnifying glass to look at edges. It has been said SAKs are addictive and the candy of the knife world like Case slipjoints, but I think Victorinox beats case out and is better and more useful. I still need to try the Victorinox steel, but I'm hoping the fit and finish will be a little better tha on my Case, which had a bit of a rough, toothy, unfinished edge which had no retention.
 
XJ-linux said:
Have multiples of both; love 'em both...

I carry a Swisschamp every day as my EDC. It handles 99% of everything. But, in the yard it's a Leatherman of some stripe. I like the bigger, more robust tools and grip on the Leatherman for rougher tasks. I also always EDC a 3'-5" fixed blade as well, again depending upon around the house/office or in the yard. Just no substitute sometimes for a solid full tang piece of steel.
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Nice. When we are talking about the Swisschamp, we mean the big, huge XL right?

I would love to carry a nice stout fixed blade of that size on my belt, but, where I am doesn't allow it. The whole rest of CA allows you to have a fixed blade of no length openly carried, not here though! Ugh. At least there is no limit on folder length? So I can carry what's practically a fixed-blade on me in the form of a Cold Steel Tri-Ad folder that I can carry, GRIK in AUS8a, Espada XL in 10a, and S35, Voyager in 10A...
Sometimes I carry the tiny pocket Mora, the dual-grind Eldris, when I go hiking, just because it's small enough, even though technically this is not allowed.

Can't wait until my custom Moomin Victorinox Super Tinker comes through and I can take it head to head with the LM!
 
Hashishiin said:
My Wingman, which came as a gift from a kind giveaway on BladeForums, was supposed to have spring-loaded scissors but the spring was not there. It's okay, they are still usable, but I am thinking of writing to Leatherman, see if I can get a replacement maybe? What's wrong with it, is a SAK style leaf-spring thing?
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Not doubting you missing the spring, but I have noticed my Wingman scissors don't engage the spring unless they are fully locked open. If you don't hear the snap of the lock the spring does not work.
 
Sharp Steel said:
Not doubting you missing the spring, but I have noticed my Wingman scissors don't engage the spring unless they are fully locked open. If you don't hear the snap of the lock the spring does not work.
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Is LM known to replace parts, do ya know?
 
Sharp Steel said:
Not doubting you missing the spring, but I have noticed my Wingman scissors don't engage the spring unless they are fully locked open. If you don't hear the snap of the lock the spring does not work.
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That has happened to me a couple times, and it usually takes a minute to figure out what I did wrong.
 
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