Although they got the tools at the end of the job, thus not a bribe, I must answer: a little from column A, and a little from column B! And speaking of column B, you'd be surprised how much good will you can buy with the gift of a multitool or a knife. I mean, one contractor is a guy to whom I am paying tens of thousands of dollars, and what does he remember about me? That I'm the nice client who gave him a Skeletool. A bargain at any price, as the saying goes.
Lovely pictures, great review. Good enough to convince me to get a Skeletool . . . not. Not enough tools for outdoor use, which is where it seems the weight savings and carabiner clip would be most useful. "Erudite" being an adjective, doesn't it require a noun or pronoun?
Well, I'm still waiting for my Skeletool CX to ship so I might just have to take you up on that offer & fly the several thousand miles probably over to where you are (unless you're in Singapore of course!). I'd like to think I'm a fair handyman especially if there's Grabthar & Worvan's sons around to help guide me too.
Just thought I'd add a quick review, I got my Skeletool CX about two weeks ago. As a computer tech, I am as urban as it gets. All I needed in a multitool for edc is an externally accessible knife, a couple of screwdriver bits and a pair of pliers with wire cutters. And now I can get all that, with nothing extra to get in the way or weigh it down, branded by Leatherman, and looking wicked awesome. It doesn't weigh enough to be an inconvenience, but is strong enough to not worry about breaking the blade or the pliers. It fits great in your hand in all three configurations, but it does start feeling a little "wrong" if you use the pliers for an extended period of time. The bits work great and feel sturdy, but have already lost a bit of the black coloring or coating or whatever it is. I like the pressure release on the bits, that way the bits will not fall out on their own. The knife is great, it came super sharp. Sharpening the serrated part might be a bit tricky, but it's still worth it to me, I use the serrated edge all the time for cutting cardboard and such. I love how it is so easily externally accessible, and the fact that it locks open and doesn't feel cheap (unlike sak blades). The bottle opener works just fine, and really it's just a good excuse to show off your knife to your friends, and the 'beaner clips nicely to belt loops and my edc 'beaner. I did end up taking the pocket clip off of it, it seems to throw off the sleekness and balance of the knife, and it's slightly redundantly redundant slightly, having both a pocket clip and a 'beaner. In summery: Pros: All the tools I need, nothing extra to get in the way, the curves feel great, solidly built, lightweight. Cons: Bits losing color, took the side clip off, pliers get less comfortable during extended use Overall: I rate this knife as "Perfect for my job" and would highly recommend it to anyone else in my line of work. I give it a 9.5 out of 10 on my scale, but I don't think a 10 is possible this side of heaven. Peace
just ordered my skeletool CX at amazon. rei had the stainless steel but gdit i need the carbon fiber to feed my ego. cant wait to get my new tool.
My CX arrived a couple weeks ago, and I EDC'd it for a week to break it in after a relube. While being a bunch lighter than the Charge Ti, I find it lacking the utility of the Charge to the point of relegating it to external attachment to the BOB. I've continued to work it every night, trying to loosen the pliers which still stick in both the open and closed positions. It won't replace my Charge for EDC. Larry
I purchased the Skeletool the other day at Target, like the Surge, I had to return it the next day. I was not impressed by the Skeletool, what was the point? Freakin Leatherman has lost it. I miss the old PST II and the Sidelip, they were perfect, compact, well balanced and were actually practical. The Skeletool handles when opened are just awkward and don't feel well balanced. The Skeletool is more gimmick than tool. What is Leatherman doing!?!?! They are making knives and pruners now? WTH!!! Stick to multitools . Stick with what you do best. TKD [mo] Edited for language. - EDCF administrator t: [/mo]
Couldn't make out from the pics, does the knife carry tip up or tip down when clipped into the pocket? Nice review.
I keep thinking about picking one of these up but everywhere I go the reviews seem so mixed that I'll just keep on using my Wave and waste invest my money on other things. If I do grab one (I'm sure i won't hold out forever ) it would likely be the CX but not for the carbon fibre, I haven't heard anyone mention the real difference for me is that the blades are different, the CX being a 154cm combo edge while the standard model is a 420HC plain edge
I got a CX a couple of days ago and like it so far. Only beef is the 154cm blade is ground same as 420hc, and too obtuse to show the advantage. I spent an hour reprofiled it to 30°.
Just to let you know, I own the CX and tried 3 different ones and can tell you that there is a lot of variability with the plier stiffness in the 3 different CX's that I tried. One took so much strength that although it loosened up a bit with repetive opening/closing, it still is "sticky". One CX just opens and closes smoothly and without any friction, like my Vic SwissTool Spirit. The third one had moderate plier resistance, but after a day of opening and closing (with oil) it's very smooth and although it sticks, it can be shaken loose so the handle will fall with gravity. if this resistance bugs you, I'd return it because chances are you'll get one with less resistance out of the box, which will then loosen up better with break-in.
Very nice review with great pictures. Although I own the CX, I always wish that it had the plain steel handles and aluminum of the regular model. I dislike it when Leatherman puts colored coatings on their metal which could only scrape off and look like crap over time. Although I have heard the tungsten DLC coating is tough.
I've had my CX for a few months now, love it. If you are a big multitool nut, you may find yourself missing some of the features of your other tools. However, if you want something that's light, strong, good looking, and (imo) has the most essential tools, then the Skeletool might be for you.
I now have both a regular Skeletool and a CX and I think the biggest advantages to them are: the one-handed opening knife blade, good low drag pocket clip, and relative lightweight. If you don't appreciate those three attributes, I can see why someone might think that the Skeletool is gimmicky and that the old PST was better. I, however, prefer it over all my other Leathermans at this point for those very reasons. Bucky
I just bought a skeletool stainless. It's been in my backpocket for about a week now. I'm pretty happy with the fit/finish, size, weight. I think it will become my EDC tool.
My machinist friend has not had much opportunity to experiment with removing the clip due to a heavy workload and protracted commitments. I called him yesterday and he is still planning to do the mod this Summer. After reading my earlier post in this thread some of you might have developed the notion that I don't like this product. In fact, I do. I don't waste time critiquing products in which I have no interest. I purchased the CX model and have been carrying it for a few days. More later on this model. I fully intend to purchase the standard model with the intent to forward it to my machinist friend for modification.
