Leatherman REBAR Multi-Tool

[Grant Lamontagne]

Yup- start abusing it right away!  After all you only have 25 years to find a fault with it! 

Def

[Mercury]

I'd like to see better heat treatment for less tool chipping and breakage.  Its place your bets on how many broken plier heads we're going to see once the REBAR is finally released.

Unfortunately that's a real fear with Leatherman tools.  I too am a bit worried about chipping with the Rebar.  Luckily my EDC blast has held up very well for the last year.

It's just a matter of getting a good one off the assembly line and the best way to ensure that is to start using the hell out of it right away and see how it holds up 

That's what I do.  I push my blast hard all the time, and it holds up great.  I've only had one fail, and it was a screwdiver tip that cracked under very little pressure. 

[gadgetman7]

Leatherman has done some innovation over the last few years. My edc is a Skeletool and I have a MUT in my shooting bag. But there is a point that  both CRKT and Gerber are producing many more designs.

Having said that, I've worked with development of weapon systems for over twenty years and I suggest that Leatherman may be caught in the old dilemma. Developing a new product with new tooling, processes and materials is expensive and time consuming. It takes a while to get back the R&D costs, not to mention marketing and delivery. I'll also mention Victorinox here. When you have a worldwide market with many guidelines and extended lines of supply innovation happens but many other factors influence the decision about whether to bring something to market. I do think both Victorinox and Leatherman could be a little more innovative but I haven't seen their books.  These decisions are based on long term goals and finances. I'd love to see new tools every few months but the reality is that it isn't profitable in most cases unless you use make small batches and use commercial off the shelf parts. I'd love to have Leatherman and Victorinox reply to these comments but I know that won't happen.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Just for the record, the guy who designed the Skeletool for Leatherman is now with CRKT.

Just saying...

Def

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[gadgetman7]

Just for the record, the guy who designed the Skeletool for Leatherman is now with CRKT.

Just saying...

Def

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk 2

That's a shame. Leatherman lost a good designer. In my experience CRKT products are not as good quality as Leatherman.

[sawman]

The Skeletool design is pure genius.  If I was LM I would have paid him whatever he asked for and kept producing killer multitools...

[Grant Lamontagne]

Notice any design similarities with the Skeletool? 

Def

[sawman]

Yep... everything but the carabiner 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Since all Leatherman's designs are corporate property the designers don't get credit for what they come up with.  Despite the Skeletool being his design and Leatherman continuing to modify it into the Freestyle, Style, CS, PS and MUT, he doesn't get a dime from it.  However if he goes to a company like CRKT they attach his name to it and while he may not get the basic salary he did with Leatherman, he does get credit, and he's allowed to shop his design to other manufacturers and possibly arrange for a better deal.  Plus, if CRKT decides to do special runs, reissues or small design changes then he gets more credit/money.

So, basically Leatherman owns the Skeletool he designed and can do whatever they ike with the concept and he gets nothing.  If CRKT released the Skeletool he would have gotten paid for that, then he would have made more for the Freestyle, then more for the Style, then more for the CS, more for the PS and more for the MUT.

Not to say that Leatherman's designers get shafted or anything- there is something to be said for a decent, steady paycheck, but Glenn has a day job designing stuff for Crimson Trace and designs knives and tools in his spare time.  Since he has a lot of kids (four I think) that's going to be a heck of a college bill and I can see the appeal of being a free agent.

Def

[sawman]

Indeed, there are creative folks that forfeit some of their super ideas all in the name of the manila intellectual property agreement they signed as part of their hiring agreement.  The current system is designed to protect the big greedy corporation, but I'd like to see it lean the other way for a change 

[gadgetman7]

Since all Leatherman's designs are corporate property the designers don't get credit for what they come up with.  Despite the Skeletool being his design and Leatherman continuing to modify it into the Freestyle, Style, CS, PS and MUT, he doesn't get a dime from it.  However if he goes to a company like CRKT they attach his name to it and while he may not get the basic salary he did with Leatherman, he does get credit, and he's allowed to shop his design to other manufacturers and possibly arrange for a better deal.  Plus, if CRKT decides to do special runs, reissues or small design changes then he gets more credit/money.

So, basically Leatherman owns the Skeletool he designed and can do whatever they ike with the concept and he gets nothing.  If CRKT released the Skeletool he would have gotten paid for that, then he would have made more for the Freestyle, then more for the Style, then more for the CS, more for the PS and more for the MUT.

Not to say that Leatherman's designers get shafted or anything- there is something to be said for a decent, steady paycheck, but Glenn has a day job designing stuff for Crimson Trace and designs knives and tools in his spare time.  Since he has a lot of kids (four I think) that's going to be a heck of a college bill and I can see the appeal of being a free agent.

Def

Thank you, I did not know that. I think Leatherman should change their policies. It's a shame to lose a talented industrial designer.  I just wish CRKT used better materials and the fit and finish was better.

Back on topic, does anyone know if the Rebar has shipped?

[turnsouth]

Perhaps title of this thread should be changed to:

"Here's why Leatherman sucks, and why no one should buy the Rebar"

 

[J-sews]

I applaud Gerber for their innovative designs, but lets face it, the quality of most of their products is simply not in the same league as Leatherman's. So as a multitool enthusiast, I can get genuinely excited about an off-the-wall concept like the Radius, or the Grappler, or the Steady, but most tool-using folks I know would toss them into the cheap junk category and never look back. Leatherman on the other hand, while being more conservative in their design approach, at least consistantly delivers tools that are solid and robust for their class. Kudos to them for that, and from what handling I've done of the new Rebar, I feel it meets this same high standard. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Since all Leatherman's designs are corporate property the designers don't get credit for what they come up with.  Despite the Skeletool being his design and Leatherman continuing to modify it into the Freestyle, Style, CS, PS and MUT, he doesn't get a dime from it.  However if he goes to a company like CRKT they attach his name to it and while he may not get the basic salary he did with Leatherman, he does get credit, and he's allowed to shop his design to other manufacturers and possibly arrange for a better deal.  Plus, if CRKT decides to do special runs, reissues or small design changes then he gets more credit/money.

So, basically Leatherman owns the Skeletool he designed and can do whatever they ike with the concept and he gets nothing.  If CRKT released the Skeletool he would have gotten paid for that, then he would have made more for the Freestyle, then more for the Style, then more for the CS, more for the PS and more for the MUT.

Not to say that Leatherman's designers get shafted or anything- there is something to be said for a decent, steady paycheck, but Glenn has a day job designing stuff for Crimson Trace and designs knives and tools in his spare time.  Since he has a lot of kids (four I think) that's going to be a heck of a college bill and I can see the appeal of being a free agent.

Def

Thank you, I did not know that. I think Leatherman should change their policies. It's a shame to lose a talented industrial designer.  I just wish CRKT used better materials and the fit and finish was better.

Back on topic, does anyone know if the Rebar has shipped?

For the record, I have no idea if this is why he left Leatherman or not.  All I know is he was there and now he's designing with CRKT.  I have no knowledge of what transpired and why he's no longer there. 

Def

[scrappy]

the rebar is a must have for me. it may not be innovative but if it's anything like the super tool 300 then I know the quality and usefulness of the tool is better than anything i purchased from gerber in the last year. I have purchased the steady, balance, bg strata, dime, mp 600st and by far and away the best built is the 600 but for me the super tool 300 is more useful. The 600 is the only Gerber I have purchased lately that is even in the same category as leatherman for quality. (but it cost me a lot more than the super tool).
That said, to me the rebar may not be innovative, however it fits my needs better than any other tool released  in the last couple years and I will purchase at least 1