I have been a big fan of the Gerber Compact Sport for years, now. Here's my latest modification to make the Compact Sport a bit more pocket-friendly.
In this picture, you can see 2 mods. I elongated the rails, and I also added locking notches. If you "flick" to open, you wouldn't want to add locking notches, for obvious reasons! To elongate the rails and make the locking notches, all I used was a Dremel. The bits used were cutting discs, a tile cutting bit, and a small conical stone for finishing.
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b103/klee27x/MT_Mods0_ps.jpgSo now.... tada! The pliers close all the way. And lock.
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b103/klee27x/MT_mods0_ps-1.jpgdetails:
I had to slightly reprofile a couple tools for this. You'd have to lose about 3/16" from the end of the large screwdriver (making it even in length with the small screwdriver next to it), as well as reprofile your bottle opener a touch. In my case, the can opener was already broken off, so I just swapped it with the large screwdriver. So I only had to touch up my bottle opener. You can see this in the following pics, if you are curious.
Secondly, now the locking tabs do not necessarily have enough room to operate while the plier heads are in the closed position. In realilty, they actually work ok, because the plastic tab slides OVER the end of the metal washer. But sometimes they catch. No biggie. Just open the plier head before unlocking a tool.
Here's the broken can opener. I turned it into an awl and swapped positions with the large screwdriver.
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b103/klee27x/MT_mods2.jpgHere's a pic of the bottle opener, which is on the opposite handle. To make room for the mod, I thinned one side of the bottle opener on a grinding wheel. The plier head now slides up against the thinned tip of the bottle opener.
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b103/klee27x/MT_mods3_ps.jpg
Donations
Community Links
