Paul Chen Multi Tasker

[WoodsDuck]

About the pliers; WeAllJuggleKnives (YouTube) mentioned he bent his trying to snap the blade off a utility knife. Which is something I can't imagine any MT pliers failing to do. Even the lightest duty tools like a Gerber Dime should at least handle a job that simple. They're pre-cut for smurf's sake 

I had that in my mind when I ordered it. I was thinking of just removing the pliers from it altogether. Alas, it was so terrible I returned it.

I would like to see a thread with ideas for modding this thing. I bet some of our awesomely creative MTo brethren could come up with something better to put there.

[ThePeacent]

I had that in my mind when I ordered it. I was thinking of just removing the pliers from it altogether. Alas, it was so terrible I returned it.

were your pliers grey (dull color) RP? 

Thanks, TP!
Mine are black. Is there a difference in quality?

I'm curious about this as well. Mine are also black.

I have had three different Multitaskers, two had grey pliers and the one I have kept has black ones. IME the black ones are very good quality whereas the dull grey ones are weak and fragile.  I broke a pair of grey pliers twisting a nut on a wooden door  , but the black ones have no issues with it, so in my limited experience they are tougher (especially regarding side to side torque) 

[ReamerPunch]

My pliers were black too.

[gerleatherberman]

I have had three different Multitaskers, two had grey pliers and the one I have kept has black ones. IME the black ones are very good quality whereas the dull grey ones are weak and fragile.  I broke a pair of grey pliers twisting a nut on a wooden door  , but the black ones have no issues with it, so in my limited experience they are tougher (especially regarding side to side torque) 

Thank you for the info, TP!

I spent a few minutes before I went to sleep last night and used reasonably strong finger pressure on the little pliers and they didn't twist or even bend. I even applied strong force on the handle and end of the plier tips without bending them. They are definitely made of some sort of tool steel and not aluminum or spelter metal.

My pliers were black too.

Did anything on yours break before returning it?
I can understand the weakish spring on the pliezers may give an impression that they are weak. And without some carry and usage, we may never know if the corner splitting would have ever led to tab spring failure. Once a tool is deployed, very little force is transferred to the tab spring edges. The most likely failure would have been a weakened retention of tools, but the retention isn't very strong, so it's up in the air if that would have been a problem.

[ReamerPunch]

True, it might have held up to actual use, but then again, it was supposed to be new and undamaged, so I did not want to keep it.

[gerleatherberman]

Understood, RP!

I'll order another one and give it a good reality check at some point.

One of the things that impressed me was the shears and pliezers have black oxide coating, where junk tools have the black stuff painted. The shears having thread & screw pivot AND blade tightening set screw in the back of the shears pivot are abnormally good features at the price point.

[mikekoz]

The first one I received was damaged and I had to return it.

What was wrong with yours?


      A part of the sliding mechanism inside the body was broken. It had a big crack in it, and if I kept sliding the shears in and out  it would have eventually just broke off.   



Here's mine, from the other thread on it:

Show content

I had gotten one of these. I returned it the next day. I am a fan of scissors and it looked decent enough just to have for the shears.

Every cut-out that formed the backsprings for the tools was cracked. Every single one.


The pliers felt like the cheapest aluminium ever. Might as well abandon them or have them made out of plastic. Absolutely terrible. I was thinking of cutting the little piece that they're attached to with a dremel, which would make the handle thinner.

I liked the design, but I was very disappointed with the poor quality. Even at its low price, it was a rip-off.

[mikekoz]

Got my Chen tool today. I figured it was going to be pretty good, but wow. Maybe my example is a standout, but holy smurf balls the thing exudes an aura of build quality. The shears meet very precisely and can be tightened if they loosen up with a pivot screw. The only thing I believe to be ridiculous is the pliers, but I think that was the only way to get some pliers on it and they are better than no pliers. The can and bottle openers w/ driver tips seem to be o.k, but not amazing.
Mine has superb fit and finish. I certainly feel like, at $25, the tool is more than worth it.

I hope I don't have to eat my shoe when I order another one to carry.

I'll post better photos at some point, but here are a few I took after I opened the package.

       I just dug mine up, and I do not see any pivot screw for the shears. I do not see it on the photos of your tool, but they are a bit dark. Where is this screw??   

[gerleatherberman]

I'll take a pic in a bit. 

[gerleatherberman]

First photo shows the pivot and tension adjustment screws. Second and third pic are close-ups of the pliezers. Mine line up and have no play. Teeth aren't well formed, but then again, I wouldn't want aggressive teeth on such small pliers. I imagine using them to turn stuff like an 8-32 nut and not leave tool marks or hold little wire while working with it.

[mikekoz]

   Thanks! Found the screw, but could not access it well enough to turn it.  As far as the pliers go, I cannot imagine them being able to turn a bolt. They are too small and thin, and look like they would break off the body of the tool if held incorrectly. Just holding the pliers themselves would be awkward, at least for me. 

[gerleatherberman]

I'd just use them like scissors. Swing the pliezers out and use thumb pressure to operated. And the nuts I'm talking about would be small and not rusted/loc-tited on.

I've got a second Chen tool on the way( ), so I'll be doing some usage experiments.

[ReamerPunch]

 
I hope the quality you experienced with the first continues.
I was sad when I returned mine. I liked the shears.

[gerleatherberman]

I hope the quality you experienced with the first continues.
I was sad when I returned mine. I liked the shears.

Thank you much, RP! It is coming from a different seller, so I am not so optimistic. You (along with other Chen detractors) are usually spot on about stuff. I feel lucky having gotten the first one that was good.
Here's hoping for the best.

I am looking forward to a comparison thread with the Bear & Sons Bird Shears/Toolzall Pro.

[mikekoz]

   The build quality on it I think is actually pretty good. The pliers looks like the designer forgot to add them to the tool, then just slapped them on the side!!  . The shears are the best part, and I like the removable file. My blade was a bit dull when I got it, but have sharpened it a bit. The saw is also pretty sharp, but the smaller things like the can opener, are a bit hard to open. The main issue with it for me is the body of the tool digs into my hands when I squeeze it closed using the shears.

[ReamerPunch]

I returned this before starting my can opener thread. Now I am left wondering if its can opener works or not. 

[gerleatherberman]

   The build quality on it I think is actually pretty good. The pliers looks like the designer forgot to add them to the tool, then just slapped them on the side!!  . The shears are the best part, and I like the removable file. My blade was a bit dull when I got it, but have sharpened it a bit. The saw is also pretty sharp, but the smaller things like the can opener, are a bit hard to open. The main issue with it for me is the body of the tool digs into my hands when I squeeze it closed using the shears.

Indeed. The removal of the pliezers would make the tool much better.

I returned this before starting my can opener thread. Now I am left wondering if its can opener works or not. 

If you'll remind me, I can try the opener out at some point when the second one arrives.
It won't be like doing it yourself, but I can show the cut quality and discuss the operating ergonomics.

[mikekoz]

One more thing. Until I read this thread, I was not aware of how far back this model goes. I thought it was relatively new!!

[gerleatherberman]

One more thing. Until I read this thread, I was not aware of how far back this model goes. I thought it was relatively new!!

Indeed. It explains why some production runs are slightly different in looks and quality.

[gerleatherberman]

My second Chen Multitasker arrived. It is consistent and almost identical to the first one I received. The only difference I can detect is the second one I received(different seller mind you) had zero play in the pliezers. The first one had a tiny bit of play in the pliezers.

I'll be carrying it with me tomorrow to try it out.

Sorry about the dark photos.

[gerleatherberman]

After using the Multitasker for a bit, I have one serious conplaint about them.
It started with my father wanting to check it out, but he doesn't know much about MTs and with the scissor head deployed, he thought he could close it, for some reason I can't think of, by roughly spreading the handle apart. 
Well, I heard something make a faint "crack" noise. It seems to be O.K, but it wasn't deploying properly. I removed the scissor head and looked at the engagement mechanisms closely. The metal scissor blades attach, at the base inside, to plastic slider spacers. He had broken one of the the internal slider spacers. I found the crack and used PVC cement on it and it is fine. But, why? That is like having a tow chain with a single chandelier chain-link in the center.
The plastic spacers have two screws that mount it to the scissor blades by threading it into the plastic spacer. And two screws go into the outer slide button cover, and they are threaded into the plastic spacer as well. A true weak-link. I will probably make some metal spacers at some point, but that is just crazy that they did that to start with. Those plastic spacers take a lot of force with the spring mechanism and they need to be metal.
I know the plastic slider spacers make it more quiet to deploy, but they could have made them out of metal and had the screws just use a piece of plastic as a washer to keep it quiet.

I am disappointed with that, as it isn't something everyone can remedy.
I'll take a photo of the plastic thing in a minute and post it.

[gerleatherberman]

Here are two photos showing the metal scissor head with plastic structural spacers.

And you'll have to use PVC glue on it. SuperGlue won't work.

[ThePeacent]

Here are two photos showing the metal scissor head with plastic structural spacers.

And you'll have to use PVC glue on it. SuperGlue won't work.

do I know...

https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,78020.0.html
 

[gerleatherberman]

Many thanks, TP! I had forgotten you had a similar issue. When I make some metal internal spacers, I will be copying your slide modification setup. Thank you. What you did is what they should have done at the factory.

[mikekoz]

Here are two photos showing the metal scissor head with plastic structural spacers.

And you'll have to use PVC glue on it. SuperGlue won't work.

   The square tip of that part looks like the thing that was broken on my first MT. Being plastic explains it, and I now have very little confidence that this tool would hold up to hard or long term use. 

[gerleatherberman]

 

If I decide to make metal spacer replacements, I'll make a thread on doing it.  They have such a cool tool with the Chen. To cheap out on structural spacers is insane. If they want to save money, nix the pliers and give us some steel spacers.