One of the things I really look for in a multitool is ease of tool deployment. For example, some of the factors I consider are: Are the blades and tools accessible one handed? How easy are the tools to get to (do they require lilliputian finger size)? Do the tools deploy smoothly (or do they require Hulk-like strength and a can of Teflon)? For example, the Buck X-Tract Essential has a perfect score in this department because every single tool can be deployed easily with one hand. Similarly, a Leatherman Skeletool CX scores very high in this regard. A little farther down the list, I find that nearly all of the tools in a Victorinox SwissTool Spirit X, the Leatherman Wingman, and the Gerber MultiPlier 400 deploy smoothly and are easy to get to. More perplexing are tools like the Leatherman Wave and Juice S2 which have fantastic accessibility on the exterior tools and interior tools that are frustratingly difficult to get out. How do you rank multitools and SAKs in this regard?
Scissors in wingman can be a pain in the rump if you don't have strong (or any!) fingernails Sent from my Mobile Command Center via Tapatalk II
I can almost balisong my SOG PowerAssist's pliers open. And, of course, the knife blades are assisted opening. The other tools, however, take two or three hands to get open..
I just OHO it thumb on the spring like a thumb stud left handed, and the same manuever right handed, just use my index finger. Little practince and its easy. Both my Surge and Wave would balisong/flip open fine after they got broke in, a couple weeks from new. After that I practiced some, I can now open, lock, unlock and close all the tools on them one handed, with either hand. Can do the same with the Vic spirit, except the pliers are a little harder to start since it clicks closed firmer. I practice with my Wave every couple weeks, make sure to enforce dexterity and muscle memory. If I'm ever hurt and only have use of one hand, I want to be able to use as much as possible. Wingman is great for the tools, except opening the main handles one handed is a complete B!@tch... I'd never do it in pain or with a wet or cold hand. G.
Perfect example. I don't have one (yet!) so I didn't include it. I open them the same way, thumb stud style. Much easier! I don't really open any of my pliers balisong style (because I'm not that coordinated!) but I do use a trick I read about. After the Civil War, there were obviously many soldiers with terrible wounds, including amputation of an arm. Several knife designs were created designed to be able to flick open off the edge of a shoe, a pocket or the seam edge of pants, etc. I use the same trick to get the pliers open one-handed on many multitools. I find the interior tools on one side of the Wave (and Juice S2 also) to be a complete pain to open. Leatherman packs them in really tight and I've never gotten them loosened to my satisfaction on two different sets, even after oiling and breaking them in forever. On my Rebar, the interior tools are almost too loose but they're really easy to access.
My wave I think is too loose when using the pliers. They have like no resistance so if I screw up I get booboos from the knife hole thingy. Hurts like a when you it in the then you upside down.
Grab a security torx bit, and loosen the pivot ever so slightly. There is a bit of variance between snug enough to not fall open, and squeezing the tools too tight, that variance can be played with a little to get better opening. G.
I've attempted to play with the pivot but I didn't have a Torx bit that would fit just right. I'll see if I can find a security Torx bit and give that a shot. Thanks!
Not sure of my scissors on this wingman are off a bit but since brand new when you close them there is the initial "stop" but then it can close in even further kinda binding the scissors up & making it really hard to get to even with a flat head screwdriver. Might just be mine & I'm really nor that worried abt it based on the price point anyway & the fact I have other (standalone) scissors as well I am going to try and tweak the pivot screw though to see if it will help Sent from my Mobile Command Center via Tapatalk II
I've never noticed mine binding like that. We have something like 8 Wingmen around the house since all of my sons have one. I'll check theirs.
I am playing with mine now so I can better describe. On the movable side of the scissors. there is the little curved area that acts as the stop. On mine it can flex enough to go past the stop which the result of it it, the curved area pretty much meets up with the area that is provided for a fingernail to get scissors out If I close up the scissors (in a hurry or something) with them like that, that is what makes it hard to open again cause the area which is the fingernail dent is "closed off" pretty much, that and when it does that it is thicker, therefore sticks in its slot more so. If you can understand that. Its the flex of the movable blade that allows it to happen. As long as I am fairly careful closing it up, its ok (still a bit difficult for no fingernails but I can get it open) When it closes in the bad position, I have to get a small flat head to get them out again
I just looked at my eldest son's Wingman and it had closed exactly as you described. His scissors are a good bit tougher to deploy than mine too. Weird. The one in my pack was from a really early run. I'll take a look at some of the others.
I wish this one had a removable bit driver just to be able to yank a flat head out to use to open scissors Next good priced wave I see tho is mine when spare funds allow I really only have the wingman for the spring loaded pliers anyway so when I do use the scissors I just am careful closing Sent from my Mobile Command Center via Tapatalk II
I found that I can often get a good 2 out of 3 combination of quick pliers, great tools, and quick tools. Each multi-tool has a compromise.
I'm going to take a look at the pivot screws on my son's Wingman. It's funny, the Wingman is the first pocket or full size Leatherman tool that I didn't feel the need to lube right out of the box. Everything from my Juice S2 up to my SuperTool 300 have required an initial coating because they were stiff, sometimes ridiculously so. The Wave was probably the worst out of box (on some of the interior tools) while the Rebar or Skeletool CX probably were the best in that respect. On my little Leatherman tools, such as the Style CS and Micra, I've never felt the need to do this. The smaller tools usually operate very smoothly out of the box.
This is very true. I think overall, my SwissTool Spirit X has been the best balance for me but it doesn't have the wonderful OHO blade of the Wave or Wingman. The action of the tools themselves is as smooth as butter though.
I've been EDCing a multitool since the original Leatherman Tool (before it was called the PST, even), and I learned that trick quickly. Just spread the handles a part slightly with your fingers slightly, catch the end of a handle on a pocket or the seam of my jeans (or, heck, just my thigh itself),and push the handles all the way open. Close it the reverse way: grab one handle, push the other around against my leg. Works with any tool, even stiff ones, or those that "snap" open and closed like the SwissTool Spirit. If you can "balisong" a tool open, it's too loose in most cases, since almost all rely on pivot tension and/or friction to hold the handles and plier head in place. (Exceptions: Gerber Multi-Plier family, SOG multis with the gears.)
After 9 years with an original Super Tool, handling got so automatic that outside or one hand access to implements are barely a factor for me when considering a new Leatherman. All are easy enough to manipulate that I am usually more concerned with tool and blade capabilities. That said, although not an automatic deal maker or breaker, one thing that I do find very convenient is the ability to one-hand a blade. Every so often I'm in a situation where with one hand I'm wrangling something that needs cutting, and it's really convenient to be able to pull out my Charge, make the cut, close the blade and return it to pocket or sheath without having to release what I'm gripping or put down the tool (extra benefit; less likely to misplace it). With screwdrivers, scissors and such, there is rarely such a need for quick access and all the time in the world to dig them out. At least, that's the way I look at it. But that's not across the board. For a heavier duty multi-tool, I tried a Surge for a while. Seemed like a good idea, a "Super Wave," but turned out for me to be a "Clunky Wave" instead. For heavy I now rely on a Super Tool 300, an improved version of what was previous to the Charge my favorite. In fact, for that reason I also picked up a Rebar as a lightweight version for EDC. So far, it's been a sweetheart. Sometimes I wonder to what extent nostalgia plays a role in what we like in multi-tools.
