Where are Leathermans made?

S

SouthDakotan

Joined
Sep 5, 2005
Messages
58
New here and as the title says, where are Leathermans made? I always assumed they were made in the U.S. until I was looking at an REI catalog. Some like the supertool said imported, the micra U.S. made, and no mention to where the wave came from. Also after looking at my wave, kick, and micra nowhere on them does it show its origin now does the packaging. I'm confused.
 
I think they are assembled in the USA...I believe in Oregon. I have a the Original Wave, Original Supertool, Sideclip, several Pulses and Micras...They all have Leatherman and USA stamped on them (the pivot point on the pliers). The newer ones you see in the stores now just say Leatherman Tool. I think they may contain some material/parts that are foreign made. You know the sheaths are going to be made overseas...even Gerber does that. I consider anything...especially tools and knives rare when they say Made in USA on them, and that's the only way I'll buy a product like that. There was some discussion here a while back about this very subject...try and do a search to see what you come up with if somebody else doesn't reply with a link to those threads. I would still buy a Leatherman product if I needed it bad enough, but I think I would have to consider Victorinox's Swiss Tool line...there other knives are great!

John
 
A lot of retailers like REI automate their catalog information, which can limit their ability to accurately describe country of origin. For example, their software might only have options for "Made in USA" or "Imported". Because a few parts on most Leatherman tools have a portion of their processing conducted outside the United States (Canada, Mexico, Western Europe), the State of California currently doesn't allow us to say our products are Made in USA without qualification. Even if 30 other parts were 100% US made, processed and assembled, the existence of one imported screw in a tool would preclude us from saying Made in USA. Such is life in an era where Ford imports half a billion dollars in parts from China. At any rate, this makes it difficult for some catalogs to accurately state where our tools are made, especially if their catalog or Internet production software pre-defines limited options. At Leatherman, an overwhelming majority of the parts and processes occur here in the US; a few pieces undergo some processing outside the US. All assembly and inspection are done here. (An exception to all this is our Micra, which is 100% US parts, processing, etc.) Come by for a factory tour sometime and see for yourself!
 
Any word on when the new Leatherman knives will be available?
Just saw something about them on the equipped.org site awhile ago.
 
Thanks for noticing! Somehow, my signature didn't appear on the message; I intended for my employment status to be clear. (BTW, you guys are good at figuring things out on your own and sharing accurate information, so my posts are pretty infrequent.)

Tsquare, all I can tell you for sure is that you'll have plenty of time for Christmas.
 
Hope to hear from you here often bakmr. Lots of Leatherman fans :thumbup:
 
Thank you for answering my question bakmr. I recently got a wave and am pleased with it. Its nice to see someone from Leatherman joining this board.
 
A close friend toured the Leatherman factory (by the airport so a tour candidate for those visiting Blade West the end of the month), in Portland Oregon, the other day. Craftsmen were seen industriously making blades for the new line of LM knives. ;) Thank you kindly Tim Leatherman.

Where are Leathermen made? I want to say something like "Marlboro country my friend, waay out west in Marlboro country." But I won't. They are made where the mighty Columbia River meets the beaver-filled (I saw a fat shiny beaver in the river downtown not too long ago) Willamette River. A place ignored twice by Lewis and by Clark. First traveling down the Columbia to the Pacific Ocean and again on the way upstream. Native Americans upstream asked them how they liked what would later be called Portland. They said what? Clark came back downstream and went a few miles up the Willamette to a high spot on the riverbank overlooking what would later become the Portland industrial waterfront. A life-size bronze statue of Clark marks this spot on the grounds of the University of Portland.

Best,

oregon
 
Matches said:
Hope to hear from you here often bakmr. Lots of Leatherman fans :thumbup:
Click to expand...

indeed!

your sig wont show up unless you pony up for at least a BASIC membership.

but still, no worries!

Leatherman Tools rule!
 
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