Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About MTO (But Were Afraid To Ask!)

[Grant Lamontagne]

Last week I asked the Charter Members for any questions they might have about Multitool.org to see what people wanted to know.  Here are the questions we got, and the answers to go with them:

Ill start
How many MT's has been given away in official MTO giveaways through the forums history?


Sent from a device made from star dust using tapatalk

Yeah, we give away a lot.  Many things have been donated to the site to give away, many have been out of my pocket as well.  For years we didn't have an ad service, there were no Charter Memberships and there was no donation button.  We gave away less back then, but we still gave things away. 

Between the anniversary giveaways, the monthly draw, the early bird prizes (when applicable), the birthday giveaways, I'd say we give away at least an average of one item a week officially.  Given eight years multiplied by 52 weeks I'd say we have officially given away over four hundred items- not necessarily all tools.

As a side note, I hate referring to some giveaways as official which is why it's in italics.  I hate the idea of suggesting that something I am giving away is any more important or legitimate than a member doing a giveaway.  In fact, I feel awkward about members giving things away since I figure that is their item, something they wanted and bought with their own money and I don’t want to see folks giving their stuff away.  The flip side of that is that I am so stoked that people like this place enough to contribute.

In the spirit of celebration,can I please have a week off for being blamed for everything?

My first thought was to say no, but then since it’s the Anniversary Celebration I decided to be gracious.  You may have February 13-20, 2073 off. 

Boss,  what MT/light/knife/OPT/etc does your wife carry?

I have given my wife a few knives and tools etc over the years but she seems remarkably uninterested in all of them, except one- a Wenger Swiss Clipper.  She doesn’t carry it though, it just lives in the bathroom.  For the rest, she will just grab whatever knife I have left lying around and that is handy, use it, be scared of the fancy lock mechanism and leave it open somewhere.  :

Boss,

when did you wake up to MTO being a community (family) not just a niche forum?

That was actually my plan all along.  How it actually happened I’ll never know, but it was the plan!  It actually ended up working out better than I'd anticipated. 

Going back a ways to the old days on KF (a few of you will know what I am talking about) I was part of a clique of guys that were really not welcome in some of the serious sub forums there.  Guys like Inkster, Peter Lezard, Pipedreams, Cabmad and a number of others just couldn’t take much seriously, and we littered the joke forum there (The Cut Up) with all kinds of nonsense.  It spilled over into my forum there, the Secret Order of Swiss Army Knives and it got so intense that I was posting constantly and no matter how fast you posted, at least two of the other guys had already posted.  We just kept feeding off eachother, having virtual real time chat on a forum, and boy was it cool!

The great thing about it was we weren’t required to stay on topic, which is good because we didn’t.  We ran on nonsense, talking about bloomers, making fun of ourselves and each other, perhaps getting a little risqué (for those keeping track that is actually where the photo of my naked ass started!), but always having a great time.

That’s what I wanted to build here- multitools are an excuse to bring people in.  Once we are here, let the BS fly in a judgment free environment and just relax and enjoy yourself.  Sure we can talk intelligently about tools, but members are (and should be) free to discuss whatever they want.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again- a conversation is like a living thing, and needs to be allowed to grow in whichever way it needs or wants to.

That’s it for now- if anyone has any other questions I’ll do my best to answer. 

Def

[kirk13]

Feb 13-20,2073?

Aw,come on Boss! I washing my hair(well wig collection) then!

 


Here's another serious one: How many new tool/knife/gear related products has the forum inspired?

[MadPlumbarian]

Feb 13-20,2073?

Aw,come on Boss! I washing my hair(well wig collection) then!

 


Here's another serious one: How many new tool/knife/gear related products has the forum inspired?

Hey you asked, and well your received! You didn't specify! lol, JR

[derekmac]

   Good questions though!


Is there anything that you wished you would have done differently with the forum?

[Grant Lamontagne]

Feb 13-20,2073?

Aw,come on Boss! I washing my hair(well wig collection) then!

 


Here's another serious one: How many new tool/knife/gear related products has the forum inspired?

Officially?  Very few if any at all.

Unofficially, well, there have been more than a few coincidences, like the Style PS and Freestyle from Leatherman, as well as Gerber almost completely dropping the 2D phillips and putting the Shard into production.  We also put Ray Kirk from Raker Knives in touch with the Powers That Be at CRKT which lead to the Ring Tool seeing full production as the KERT.

Unfortunately lawyers cannot allow them to publicly acknowledge any influence gained from this forum as I could then start looking for money or other allowances and we wouldn't want that. 

I will say that most of the designers we have met from each company have admitted to crawling the forum to do research, so it's entirely possible to conceive the possibility that we may have some modicum of influence. 

  Good questions though!


Is there anything that you wished you would have done differently with the forum?

I wish I'd made it an adult oriented chat room and added a lot more ads. 

Seriously, I am overwhelmed by what this place has developed into.  There's always going to be regrets, thoughts about what could have been or what we would have done differently given the opportunity, the money, the software etc, but in the end I am very happy with what we have as is. 

If I had it to do all over again, the one thing I know I would avoid like the plague is using a cheap server host like Serverloft.  It pays not to put your entire project in the hands of the cheapest host you can find and expect them to look after your stuff as well as you would.

Keep em coming everyone!

Def

[detron]

Feb 13-20,2073?

Aw,come on Boss! I washing my hair(well wig collection) then!

 


Here's another serious one: How many new tool/knife/gear related products has the forum inspired?

he gave you 8 days!  seems more than generous?

[kirk13]

Feb 13-20,2073?

Aw,come on Boss! I washing my hair(well wig collection) then!

 


Here's another serious one: How many new tool/knife/gear related products has the forum inspired?

he gave you 8 days!  seems more than generous?

Yeah,but Detron,by that point,I'm going to have SO many wigs...shampooing,conditioning,blow drying...it'll take all eight days and them some!

[Monrogue]

Hey Grant,
What do you carry regularly?  I don't think I've ever seen any comments from you regarding your carry or favorite MTs/SAKs   Do you have several in a rotation, or just whatever suits your fancy each day?

[Poncho65]

Mint Chocolate Chip

Owe and  !!!MINI!!!

 

Couldn't resist a ask a question thread without the above reference

[Grant Lamontagne]

Hey Grant,
What do you carry regularly?  I don't think I've ever seen any comments from you regarding your carry or favorite MTs/SAKs   Do you have several in a rotation, or just whatever suits your fancy each day?

I've done a few "work vest dumps" in the past, but the one tool that gets more pocket time and use than anything else is my yellow scaled Victorinox Compact.  That and my Wenger Swiss Clipper see the majority of mileage.  Here's a pic of my SHOT 2012 EDC:



The multitool changes up fairly consistently as I like to actually use them for a while before writing a review.  I have a job that really abuses tools, so I get an idea of what is going to work and what won't pretty quick.  Anything that is likely to fall by the wayside probably will in short order- I refer you to my experiences with the Wingman. 

Def

[Monrogue]

Thanks for the reply Grant   Looking back at my question, I realized that it wasn't really one pertaining to MTO itself, but rather one about you.  I was curious though   The Compact is a good SAK indeed, and probably all I really need if I wanted to go the minimalist route.  That's not my way currently though  

[derekmac]

That Charge is sooooo   

[Grant Lamontagne]

Any question I can answer I will!

And yes that Charge is indeed awesome. I carried it quite a bit too, and the coating is so tough it never got a scratch.

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

[MadPlumbarian]

Any question I can answer I will!

And yes that Charge is indeed awesome. I carried it quite a bit too, and the coating is so tough it never got a scratch.

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

What's the square root of "2" JR

[detron]

Any question I can answer I will!

And yes that Charge is indeed awesome. I carried it quite a bit too, and the coating is so tough it never got a scratch.

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

What's the square root of "2" JR

that is SO irrational!       

[MadPlumbarian]

Any question I can answer I will!

And yes that Charge is indeed awesome. I carried it quite a bit too, and the coating is so tough it never got a scratch.

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

What's the square root of "2" JR

that is SO irrational!       

what? I'm still trying to figure that out after over 20yrs, fig he might know,, lol. JR

[Yadda]

Best Multitool experience?
Worst?
Most disappointing?

[Grant Lamontagne]

Some good stories for that, but they will have to wait till I get back to a keyboard.  Way too much for a tablet!

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

[Monrogue]

I bet the Wingman is one of the worst/most disappointing based on the link he posted...

[captain spaulding]

Boxers or Briefs..........?

Oh wait this is supposed to be about tools right. 

Leather Sheaths or Nylon. 

[Aloha]

In the past 8 years I'd like to know if you were asked to sell MTo, to maybe a tool manufacturer?   

[kirk13]

Best Multitool experience?
Worst?
Most disappointing?

 

Boxers or Briefs..........?

 

In the past 8 years I'd like to know if you were asked to sell MTo, to maybe a tool manufacturer?   

Remember that root vegetable chap?

[derekmac]

Boxers or Briefs..........?

Oh wait this is supposed to be about tools right. 

Well, they kind of are a sheath of sorts... 

[derekmac]

What's your favourite MT.O branded MT?

[Grant Lamontagne]

Best Multitool experience?
Worst?
Most disappointing?

Best multitool experience huh?  There's been quite a few good ones out there, but I think if I had to choose one tool I was most pleased with, I'd have to say I keep coming back to the Spirit series.  The Spirit was the most anticipated tool when it was released and it didn't disappoint.  It proved that tools could be elegant and beautiful while still being tough as nails and well equipped, and to this day if I had to choose one forever, that would probably be the one. 

It gets funnier though, as I remember many discussions where people talked about how much they hated the peanut butter blade and wanted a drop point like on most SAKs.  I don't mind the peanut butter blade, but I could understand the desire to have something more traditional.  So, Victorinox answered by releasing the S version which had the drop point, but got rid of the scissors instead of the peanut butter blade!     We all thought they were drinking a bit too much in the Alps....

Finally they released the X version, which was set up just the way everyone wanted and, to quote Monty Python, there was much rejoicing.  Hooray.

The worst (and I won't say who) is when small designers come up with a project and they send it to me for evaluation.  Some of them are just horrible.  I could name a few, but I'd rather not as these guys have worked hard on their ideas and I really would rather encourage them to keep trying rather than shoot them down.  Instead I'd like to say that there is absolutely an art to making a decent multitool, one piece or otherwise.  Some of these designs for the sake of a design are just not worth the cheap pot metal they are stamped from.  It bothers me that guys have put a lot of effort into producing these awful tools and are so proud of them despite them being complete and utter crap.  I don't want to review them because I don't want to say anything bad about something someone has put that much of their effort into, but by the same token I run a website dedicated to providing honest reviews so that people don't waste money on crap tools.  It's a real conundrum.

Also, I hate bandwagon jumpers and people who doesn't understand costs.  We've had a few that fell into the above category that cranked out a half assed hunk of water jet cut steel and tried to charge Atwood type money (second hand Atwood type money, which is significantly higher than buying them from Peter) for their junk.  Peter makes some beautiful stuff.  It is art, but it's also functional art.  The man has real talent.  Taking off cut hunks of steel or titanium and carving one end into a phillips like screwdriver doesn't make a good tool.

In all, there is a serious art to making a tool- you really can't just take an every day item like pliers, a lighter or an iPhone, attach a folding blade and a bottle opener and just expect the money truck to stop at your house. 

There is one particular manufacturer (I won't mention his name either as I wish nothing but the best for him) who used a generic multitool handle design and stuck a bunch of parts into the handle.  Good enough I suppose, but when you look at something like the SwissTool or the PST you see how the placement of each tool is crafted to fit into place, and how in many cases the tool is specifically designed to fit in that slot, occasionally around another one.  Look at the handle cutouts in something like the Rebar, the Micra or the MP600ST.  These are tools and features that someone thought about and put effort into figuring out how to put the most function into a tool and make it as small as possible. 

These are what disappoint me the most.  I could list one or two of them as examples, but then I'd be giving some of the rest some credit, which many of them don't deserve. 

Bottom line- If you are going to go to the effort of designing a tool, think about what you are doing.  Don't just ram a bunch of features together and expect to retire off the income.  Make something that is going to be useful enough that it helps someone out when they need it, and convenient enough that they will have it with them in those times.  Then, take that concept and test market it to refine the design and see if it's really a good idea before you mortgage your house on it.  Otherwise, someone on the internet might just have to give you a poor review.

However, if you wanted to know what my worst multitool experience was with regards to a specific tool, well, the winner of that would probably have to be the Charge XTi.  I had spent a lot of money on it (full Canadian retail price) and was disappointed as soon as I got it out of the package.  I didn't like the tool load out, I didn't like the "awesome" titanium that was completely worthless on it, the fancy steel was only used on one blade, and frankly I really felt cheated.  If that had been my first Leatherman I doubt I would have ever bought another one.

I hope that answers your questions.  A bit more long winded than I'd planned, but then, that's why I figured I needed a keyboard! 

Boxers or Briefs..........?

Oh wait this is supposed to be about tools right. 

Leather Sheaths or Nylon. 

None, since well into the last millennium.  Never ask questions you don't want the answer to. 

I like leather.  I really do.  But for sheaths I gravitate towards nylon because of the better mounting options of MOLLE sheaths and they won't kill a tool as quickly by retaining moisture, and I live/work/play in a very wet environment.  As much as I love the smell and feel of leather, it just doesn't compete with the feel of a rusty tool.

In the past 8 years I'd like to know if you were asked to sell MTo, to maybe a tool manufacturer?   

I have been approached a couple of times about selling MTO, and it's no secret that if the right offer came across my desk that I would sell it.  That being said, I love this place, I have put all that I have into this site on many occasions and am very proud of what we have built here, so that offer would have to be extremely generous to be worthwhile.  Additionally there are quite a few others here that would have to get a share as well, as they have put just as much effort into making this place possible, so the offer would have to be enough to go around as well.  As of yet, no one has satisfied that amount in my head.

None of the manufacturers have come to me about buying this place though, and I doubt they ever will.  This place, as it is, is a gold mine for them.  They have a completely unbiased, absolutely free place to see what their clientele want in a product.  There have been a few people at a few companies that didn't think we were a valuable asset, and I'd like to point out that most of them aren't at those companies anymore.  If a company like Leatherman bought us out, it would cost them too much to maintain and user comments would be biased towards Leatherman products, people might feel bad about criticizing their products, which means they can't fix problems since they don't know about them.

Our honesty is more valuable as a free service than our sucking up would be if they were paying for it.

What's your favourite MT.O branded MT?

That's a hard one.  I was very proud of the green and blue Charges we did, although they were very limited production.  My green one was made soooo much more interesting when Tim signed it.





The Fish Ting was the first tool we actually designed here at MTO, and will always have a special place for me as well:



But if I had to choose one that I would never part with, I have to say my tiger striped Charge TTi.



I will sell a lot more of my precious things before I ever consider letting this one go.  That coating is bullet proof, and it's a reminder of a good friend and great member, who I believe is no longer with us, but who I hope miraculously got better and is sipping drinks on a beach somewhere.

Keep them coming- this is fun! 

Def

[sawman]

I never get tired of seeing that Charge TTi

As for the idea of ever selling this forum, if it were ever taken over by a greedy corporate entity who would no doubt censor things to their devious agenda, I know myself and many others would quit coming here rendering the place a real smurf hole... 

[MadPlumbarian]

That fish ting is awesome! JR

[tosh]

I have a question Def

Have you ever/Would you ever consider commissioning a MT manufacturer to design & build a multitool to your spec'?

I've read in the past your frustration with needle nose pliers. I'm also guessing cast steel would be favoured.

Or let me re-phrase the question... What's your biggest frustration with multitools or more to the point their designers??

[Aloha]

This may have been answered but, What/Who got you started with Multitools or SAKs?  What was your first MT/SAK/Knife? 

[Grant Lamontagne]

I have a question Def

Have you ever/Would you ever consider commissioning a MT manufacturer to design & build a multitool to your spec'?

I've read in the past your frustration with needle nose pliers. I'm also guessing cast steel would be favoured.

Or let me re-phrase the question... What's your biggest frustration with multitools or more to the point their designers??

Have I ever thought about commissioning a multitool to our spec?  Yes. 

However, there are a lot of problems with that.  For starters, we can't all agree on what the "perfect" tool needs to have.  It's like trying to get everyone here to agree what is best to have on a pizza.  I could make my own choices on what works best for me, but then others here would just see it as yet another tool, since it would amoutn to the same thing- other people deciding what is most important.

Another problem is patents.  I would want to take this tool from Manufacturer A, the handles from Manufacturer B, the plier head from Manufacturer C, lock mechanisms from Manufacturer D etc.  Then some of my own ideas/concepts.... the tool would end up costing a fortune just to cover patent permissions! 

We are also a critic/review organization.  Designers work hard to do what they do and critics don't put in near the effort to belittle many of the features that talented people spent a lot of time working on.  For me to walk in and pretend I know it all simple because I am someone who complains about things on the internet could be seen as a slap in the face of everyone who has ever done any professional design work.  If I ever made that step, I'd want to be sure that I did it respectfully.

Which leads me to the next problem- I have absolutely no idea how the hell to design a tool.  Or anything.  I am trying to teach myself to use CAD software (specifically Google Sketchup at this point) but I haven't have a lot of time to devote to it lately.  One of these days I'll figure it all out...

My biggest frustration with multitools and designers?  That's easy- lawyers!   

I see guys here coming up with great ideas, designs and mods and then the next year I see those ideas at SHOT being rolled out to the world.  It frustrates me that the guys actually coming up with the ideas can never get credit for them.  Think about it- members buy the tool with their own money, then modify it to make it better, sometimes spending more of their own money and putting their time into it, then the design staff and Company X takes the idea (as well they should) and produce it, making that company a good chunk of money.  And none of the credit goes to the MTO member who came up with the idea in the first place because the lawyers can't acknowledge us in any way or everyone on the internet would claim ideas were theirs and companies would be forced to pay out millions of dollars.   

HUGE frustration.

This may have been answered but, What/Who got you started with Multitools or SAKs?  What was your first MT/SAK/Knife? 

No worries about asking questions that may have been covered in the past.  I don't mind a bit. 

My father was a combat engineer in his early days, and had a rough upbringing being dragged from logging camp to logging camp.  He taught me early on that the right tool for the job is good, but if things need to be done you can't always get the right tool, so you need to have good, reliable, all purpose tools handy.  He kept a lawn mower running for over 20 years by using bits and pieces lying around- Lego pieces, Mechano parts, and bits from toys.  It didn't matter as long as the thing kept running.  I may not have gotten his mechanical ability, but I did get his appreciation for good tools.  Dad had a couple of good knives, a good hatchet (he still has/uses it today) and a few other good tools that he uses for just about everything.  He has a well stocked tool box and a number of power tools as well, but he can accomplish pretty well anything with just what he has on hand.  And in addition to using them hard, he maintains them well, which is why they are still around today.

I guess you could say my father is indirectly responsible for Multitool.org and getting me into SAKs.  My first one was a Camper, a gift from one of the guys he worked with.  You can read all about it here:

http://swissarmyknights.com/articles/2007/539-collection-highlights-april-07



My first multitool was the Leatherman Micra.  I bought it at a knife shop in Toronto because I was curious about these Leatherman things.  I liked it so much I gave it to my girlfriend at the time and went back the next day to get a PST II.

My first knife?  I don't really recall, but if I had to guess it was probably one of those awful Rambo knives that were huge in the 80's.

Def