Victorinox Spirit X or LM Charge TTi

[New_World]

both great tools, can't go wrong either way.
I own both.

Its hard to pick just one.

[Craig]

I own a Spirit with a butter knife blade and a Charge SLV which has the same tool layout as the TTI. They are both good tools, but I've voted for the Spirit as it's more fun to fiddle with.

[sjian]

I'd actually prefer the Charge AL over the Charge TTI.  I find the crimper takes away from the usefulness of the pliers and the gut hook is an annoyance on the serrated blade.  I have yet to see any swisstool spirits in person so I can't really comment on it, but I needed the charge for the mini screwdriver. 

If your main purpose is something just to fiddle around with and not do too much work, I'd get a gerber flik or wait for the leatherman OHT to appear.  The sliding plier design will get you hooked despite the tool being "adequate".  You won't get as much work done as you do with a leatherman or swisstool, but you'll open and close all the tools a lot more just for the sake of opening and closing the tools because it's that much more fun.

[Nikos]

Thanks for the welcome, everyone!

I've gone with the Spirit, since you're only looking into "joy of owning"; the tactile feel and Swiss-like precision of movement of the Spirit's implements make it a real joy to fiddle with. That doesn't mean it isn't a utilitarian tool; I own both tools and have been EDCing the Spirit for the last few (>3) years. For the price you found them, though, I believe the TTi is a better choice; you can get Spirits for around that new-in-box, while TTis usually go for >$100.

Yes, to me it's more/only about the joy of owning and playing and using it for its own sake: it will be pleasurable to use a luxurious MT instead of a cheap heavy-duty tool which is all rusty, ugly and not fun to work with. Fun, pleasure, joy .. (instead of real need) would be my main purchase motivation.

Nikos, your post is rather confusing hehe

Heh, ok, here's the bottom line: Spirit X for the joy of it, Charge TTi because it's a steal at that price.

As the MT.o motto goes, if in doubt, get both (and then some...)

[Syph007]

Yes, to me it's more/only about the joy of owning and playing and using it for its own sake: it will be pleasurable to use a luxurious MT instead of a cheap heavy-duty tool which is all rusty, ugly and not fun to work with. Fun, pleasure, joy .. (instead of real need) would be my main purchase motivation.

You don't want a leatherman then as they rust.  The highly polished surface of the spirit ins't just for looks, its to provide no microscopic indentations for rust to ever start on.

[50ft-trad]

The Charge is a good tool, the Spirit is an EXCELLENT tool!

The Charge does have it's place and there ARE scenarios where it would have the upper hand (diamond file, bit driver for non-standard drivers), but for everything else ... Spirit X, no contest!!!

[kreisler]

let's continue to collect votes to see what your preferred taste is in this community.

meanwhile, i found out that on ebay (stuff-4-men) the Charge TTi costs 75$ plus 17$ shipping (it's not global FREE shipping as i had initially thought) plus 19% import taxes for my country. That's about 110$ grand total, or ~83.xx€. Far far away from the 65€ of the OP, and it would never come into my mind to spend that much money on a tool which i dont really need and just want to fiddle with.

and seeing that amazonDOTcom has discounted prices for all Leatherman products with FREE shipping to U.S. addresses i shouldnt buy *any* LM product from abroad. paying ~twice as much as a regular U.S. amazon shopper does totally spoils the fun and joy.

i've checked the price trend for the Spirit and Spirit X too. In the past years (e.g. 2010 and 2011) the price went up (as it does now!) during spring and summer and then all of a sudden dropped by >10€ in fall/autumn and stayed low until after Xmas. It will be my pleasure to pay 54€ for the Spirit X (should be easier to sharpen the main blade than the butter bread blade of the regular Spirit) in fall if i am still in the market for premium MT's.

SAK's (Tinker Deluxe, ..) offer much functionality for the money --i am impressed-- and are even handier for RL tasks so i will look into buying one too/instead. Personally i would assume that the Spirit provides much more joy .. and i do have joyous experience with 5$ MT's from the grocery discounter (LIDL, ALDI, Germany). If i really needed a multifunctional tool, especially for EDC, i wouldnt hesitate buying a SAK. Since my main motivation is not actual need but pure joy of ownership (fiddling, fondling, playing, caressing haha, admiring, showing off, .. you get the point ;=), i'll most likely stick with the idea of a MT, and no SAK.

EUR-prices of Leatherman's are not enjoyable so i would wait for a friend to bring a LM from his USA trip if, after the Spirit, i still want another MT (for the joy).

If you guys can remember what you had paid for your copy of the Spirit (Spirit X, ..) or Charge (TTi, Wave, ..), please share. Nutnfancy mentioned "55US$" for the Spirit at the end of his video review.. wow. That's a great price!! 

[Nikos]

If you do decide on the Spirit, you may as well contact Tim (Felinevet) here in the forums; he may be able to sort you out. You can also have a look at edcsource.com (I know there are at least two Spirits on there right now). You may also post a thread in the "tools needed" forum, but not many of us are willing to part with their Spirits...

[turnsouth]

The Charge is a good tool
(diamond file, bit driver for non-standard drivers),

And...
Needle nose pliers, ruler in the handle, --> Pocket Clip <--, lanyard ring, Eyeglass screwdriver, serrated blade.

Spirit X, no contest!!!

Charge scissors open wider

[kreisler]

i found a few youtube videos which compare these MT's, which means that i am not the first in line who wondered about the superiority of one MT over the other. For serious MT use i would have to setup a list with priorities and most often used tasks. If OHO is on top of the features wishlist then the Spirit would lose from the very beginning and no further discussion possible hehe.

thanks Nikos for the links. i've created a WTB thread and the way i composed it i dont expect any Spirit owner to part..

[sjian]

If you're going to compare prices, the leatherman wave is probably a lot closer to the swisstool X than a charge TTI.  To me it seems like the wave is 95% of the functionality of the charge, at 50% of cost. 

If I wasn't able to find my charge for $50, I would've probably went with a wave, since the lowest price I've seen for the swisstool locally is $115. 

[50ft-trad]

The Charge is a good tool
(diamond file, bit driver for non-standard drivers),

And...
Needle nose pliers, ruler in the handle, --> Pocket Clip <--, lanyard ring, Eyeglass screwdriver, serrated blade.

Spirit X, no contest!!!

Charge scissors open wider

All fair comments, Paul  I should clarify:
Personal opinion based on my own general needs ... Spirit X, no contest!!!

[turnsouth]

All fair comments, Paul  I should clarify:
Personal opinion based on my own general needs ... Spirit X, no contest!!!

Understood Al

[Beerplumber]

If you're going to compare prices, the leatherman wave is probably a lot closer to the swisstool X than a charge TTI.  To me it seems like the wave is 95% of the functionality of the charge, at 50% of cost. 

If I wasn't able to find my charge for $50, I would've probably went with a wave, since the lowest price I've seen for the swisstool locally is $115.

I agree, I think that's a much more realistic comparison. Still a tough contest of course.


Stay multi my friends

[pc61158]

I own both tools, compare on price, Spirit X is more expensive than TTi in HK, USD$150 VS USD$121...

About which one is better, my answer is they are same, just depend on what you using for. I use Spirit X for scout training camp; TTi for pioreering camp and cycling.

For my Exp:

Knife, Serrated Knife, Screwdriver----> TTI is better
bottle/can openers, scissors----> Spirit X is better