Charge Owners club !

[Jaypeebee]

Thanks Poncho 
She did appreciate it, I'm really proud of her.

  I'm sure I'll get another one at some point! Maybe more 

[Aloha]

Congrats to her Jaypeebee.  The Charge should suit her well and I hope she has many years of service from it an her job. 

[Jaypeebee]

Thanks Aloha 
 I think it's perfect for her.

[JustinCase]

[Aloha]

 

I've gotta ask, the grey sheath?  You poking fun of  . 

[Poncho65]

Nope,  it's because he has the real Best tool that LM makes

[JustinCase]

EXACTLY!!!! Thanks Poncho

[Poncho65]

[Max Stone]

So picked up my first Charge today, a like-new TTI at a good price. 

With a few Leathermans in my collection, and a fair representation across old and new models, I thought I'd provide a short summary of the Charge TTI seeing this is my first Charge.

The good

Premium look and feel. The machined and textured Titanium scales look really great, much nicer than the stamped stainless steel normally used by Leatherman. Also, Titanium has a lower thermal conductivity, so it feels uncharacteristically 'warmer' to the skin at room temperature.

Durability. There's no flex in the TTI. It really does have a solid feel and the thick Titanium scales add a sense of additional robustness over its stainless brothers.

Quality blade steel. Rather than the typical 420HC steel, itself a good general purpose knife steel, the TTI uses S30V which is a powder steel made in the US by Crucible Industries and recognized for good hardness and high toughness. Its a very good choice for blade steel.

Tool load and accessibility. A respectable collection of onboard tools, with two good-sized OHO blades (PE & SE), and a good saw and diamond file also outside opening. Inboard tools include the useful large bit adapter and scissors, along with an opener, small bit adapter and decent flat driver.

Plier Usage. The pliers with replaceable wire cutter are now top-notch and hand comfort is good compared to earlier LM designs. No pressure hotspots whatsoever.

Pocket Clip. Such a simple and elegant solution, and so easy to add and remove as needed.

The questionable

Complex construction. While the machined Ti scales are great, they are actually a two-part construction that includes liners for the ruler markings and various slots and folds needed to construct the handle. This complication adds additional width and material compared to the Wave+ which shares the same design, but only with one stamped/folded piece of sheet steel for each scale. So even thought Titanium is lighter than Stainless Steel, the Charge is about 10g heavier that the Wave because of this construction, and several mm thicker.

Pliers OHO. One hand opening of the pliers is difficult because the scales match up so well, with very little shoulder 'radius' on the handles to push your fingers between. The Wave has a larger handle edge radius, so its quite easy to slide your fingertip between the handles to push them apart. The reduced radius on the TTI's handles also means its ultimately not as comfortable on a hard squeeze test compared to the Wave. Marginal, but noticeable.

Missing tools. I'm an awl lover and I really would have preferred an awl (like the Rebar's) to the rather questionable small bit holder.

The bottom line
Do I love the TTI? Absolutely yes! Would I pay the retail premium over the Wave+? Absolutely not. It's a Work of MT Art, but even with the exotic scales and blade steel, I just cannot justify the 70% premium for what I need. I'm just pleased I managed to snag this used one in near-new condition.

[Poncho65]

Very nice Max I still have yet to get any of the titanium Charges I won't pay retail over here either Good thoughts as well

[Max Stone]

Thanks Poncho 

[gerleatherberman]

Nice overview, Max!

Have to agree on all points. But, even though I paid much less than US retail for three TTis I have(and one Ti), I must admit to paying almost retail for the Camo TTi. But, that said, my excuse is that it is a collection piece. 

Paid $82 for my first lightly used TTi(the one being used), $88 for the 2005 unused Ti, $120 for a NIB TTi, and $140 for the camo TTi(w/ camo leather sheath). $430÷4 = $107.50 per TTi. I can live with that. 

Personally, if the Mercedes Benz of Leathermans isn't desirable, my recommendation is the Charge+ over the TTi. Not quite as nice, but can be had for $80-$90 sometimes in the US and is slightly thinner than the TTi. You get 154CM PE blade steel the pull hook on the SE blade, and sculpted aluminum handles that have been coated black with the Charge+.
That said, every MT collector should have at least one TTi/Ti.

[Aloha]

Welcome.  The TTi summary is very well said.  I've often said if you are looking at the Wave/Charge series the Wave is the best bang for the buck.  For those with a thing for Titanium or who want higher end blade steel then.......  I've got the TTi and Ti and both are users.  I preferred the Ti as the pliers were not cap crimpers.  In use for me the CC are not a problem so the TTi became my go to work tool.  I don't recall what I paid for my Ti but the TTi was darn near a steal.  I posted the story of how it got it.  It was cruddy and looked a mess.  I think the seller thought it was done for.  It cleaned up beautifully and has been flawless in use. 

[Mechanickal]

Got my TTI in used condition too.
Mine is the older gen and I do believe those scales are made from one piece each.

[Max Stone]

The outer scales are one piece, but there’s an additional inner layer (liner) for the ruler that the Wave does not have. Maybe different on the older gen? 

[SteveC]

[Poncho65]

Nice one, Steve

Mine today

[gerleatherberman]

Is it just the newest TTis that have the phosphor bronze washers between the Ti scales & blades and between the blades & steel frame?
All of my TTis(2017 and older) have a spacer formed on the inside of the scales instead of the washers. I'll take some pics tomorrow. But, that said, I like the idea of phosphor bronze washers on each side of the blade pivots, hypothetically anyway. I know my Charge+ and AL have PB washers on each side, but I am not sure if I really notice a difference. But, perhaps someone with some metallurgy knowledge could chime in.

Any help would be much appreciated. 

[gerleatherberman]

(Image removed from quote.)

Nice!

Nice one, Steve

Mine today

(Image removed from quote.)

Nice!

[Max Stone]

Is it just the newest TTis that have the phosphor bronze washers between the Ti scales & blades and between the blades & steel frame?
All of my TTis(2017 and older) have a spacer formed on the inside of the scales instead of the washers. I'll take some pics tomorrow. But, that said, I like the idea of phosphor bronze washers on each side of the blade pivots, hypothetically anyway. I know my Charge+ and AL have PB washers on each side, but I am not sure if I really notice a difference. But, perhaps someone with some metallurgy knowledge could chime in.

Any help would be much appreciated. 

Posted this pic earlier on my TTI. Not sure of the age of this model, probably 2018 as a guess.

I know that the threads of screwed watch backs of Ti watches can ‘bind’ and lock up, so this is maybe a friction-reducing measure, as much as a spacer requirement. Ti is highly corrosion resistant and has no bi-metallic corrosion risk like you can sometimes get when two different metals are in direct contact.

[Poncho65]

Thanks glbm and my Charge+ the Al model, open very well with all the outside tools So the washers may make a difference

[gerleatherberman]

Posted this pic earlier on my TTI. Not sure of the age of this model, probably 2018 as a guess.

I know that the threads of screwed watch backs of Ti watches can ‘bind’ and lock up, so this is maybe a friction-reducing measure, as much as a spacer requirement. Ti is highly corrosion resistant and has no bi-metallic corrosion risk like you can sometimes get when two different metals are in direct contact.

Awesome. Thanks for the info and insights, Max!
I'll be needing to add a new Charge TTi to the collection.

Thanks glbm and my Charge+ the Al model, open very well with all the outside tools So the washers may make a difference

Thanks for the insight, Poncho!

[Aloha]

My 04 Ti has the phosphor washers.  I can darn near flick the main blade out. 

[gerleatherberman]

My 04 Ti has the phosphor washers.  I can darn near flick the main blade out.

All Ti and TTi versions have phosphor bronze washers between the blades and steel body. But, does it have phosphor washers between the scales and blades?

[Vadim]

[Poncho65]

Great pic, Vadim

[Vadim]

Great pic, Vadim

Thank you,Poncho! 

[gerleatherberman]

Nice one, Steve

Mine today

(Image removed from quote.)

Pic nominated. 

[Poncho65]

Thanks glbm 

[Heywood Floyd]

This has been a consistent, relatively reliable and capable edc kit for many years ...
HF's LM CTTi 120514

MULTITOOL: Leatherman Charge TTi
+ LM Nylon sheath
+ LM Bit driver extension
+ LM Bit kit - most useful bit selection in LM carrier
Ferrocerium rod (Exotac NanoStriker rod)
Awl (ex SAK 91mm) - Modded with Devcon Epoxy for bit driver fit
Tweezers (ex SAK 91mm)
Hair Pin - respectfully in memory of Angus MacGyver
Pocketwrench II
PEN: Fisher bullet space pen + clip