Leatherman, Gerber or Swiss Army

[Ex-SolentBoy]

Father Christmas needs advice.

What do I tell him?

 

[sarabande]

Leatherman Titanium Charge. (well, it's Ti on the outside and stainless steel workings.)

or email Csail for his latest offer. They seem to be breeding in his garage.

 

[wklein]

Leatherman

I have the leatherman Charge TTI and the weight difference between it and the wave is negligible (232g vs 241g). Blade is a bit better steel and serrated blade has cutter on it. Good tool but if money is an issue id go for the wave. Whatever you get make sure you can access blades without opening up tool (preferably one handed).

 

[ccscott49]

Gerber, better quality IMHO than a leatherman.

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

Gerber, better quality IMHO than a leatherman.

What is the best model?

 

[flipper]

I have had a Leatherman 'Kick' for years and am very pleased with it.

£31 from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000VJE4...de=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B000VJE40M

 

[prv]

I prefer the slide-out mechanism for pliers to the rotating one. The former is typically found on Gerbers while the latter is well-known as a Leatherman speciality (though I think there may be exceptions both ways). It's easy to flick slide-out pliers into place with one hand in order to more tightly grip something you're already holding with the other hand. In theory there is a one-handed motion for opening a Leatherman-style tool, but it seems clumsy to me.

Pete

 

[JayBee]

I have owned a Leatherman Original, then Wave, Crunch and Squirt, but the last acquisition is my favourite:

http://www.leathermans.co.uk/Leatherman-Skeletool-CX.html

Best "heft", best looking and most useful.

Less is More!

 

[Neil_Y]

Gerber are (or were) by far the best, I researched this when selecting products for a retail chain. Victorinox may be perceived as better but that is due to their marketing efforts more than product I believe.

 

[DarkBlue]

I have bought my Leatherman Charge TTi through ebay and I'm very happy with it

 

[Coaster]

Does Gerber offer a lifetime guarantee? I have been very pleased with Leatherman's actions on the two occasions when I returned products to them. Both times the damage was due to my own misuse of the tools. The returned items were effectively new products.

 

[Long John Silver]

I carry a knife and marlin spike. Not sure who made it but lots of the modern designs don't tend to have a spike anymore.

 

[Morven]

Gerber Suspension, about £22 on Amazon, used mine for 2 years. It has a far superior locking mechanism to my Leatherman Wave which has been consigned to a shelf. You also do not cry if you loose it overboard at that price.

 

[sailingjoy]

I've got the Victorinox (Swiss Army Knive) and I'm very happy with it. It feels nice in the hand.
After 6 years it started to show a little bit of rust and I immediately received a new one. No more rust scince then.

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

Thanks all. Father Christmas has been passed all this advice.

His decision will be known next weekend.

 

[Haven't-a-Clue]

Gerber for me, managed to break my 1st one tightening up a loose nut on the m/bike by the roadside. Sent it to Gerber with a letter saying "I love this, please repair it". They sent it back unfixed...........along with the latest upgrade model. It'll do, I suppose (8 years and still going strong!!).

 

[snooks]

To see how they cut...a few years old, but the knives haven't changed much

 

[jonic]

Having had most types over the years I always come back to this Leatherman as the best all rounder

 

[Csail]

I sell leatherman (or used to) but prefer gerber.
Still one or two leathermans available.
Blast and wave are best.

 

[SailorBill]

Having had most types over the years I always come back to this Leatherman as the best all rounder

Amazon seem to offer some pretty good deals. Their delivery is pretty fast and reliable too and when I had a problem with a faulty item a year ago they resolved the problem PDQ. It's always best to deal with a well known and trusted company, I find.