Unusual Daily Carry

[AimlessWanderer]

There's quite a few people here who will carry an obsolete tool, but it seems to be the same tools that keep resurfacing time after time. The Pulse, Mini, PST's and Supertool geneology seem to be favourites. What I'm interested with here though is the people who carry a Bucktool, or a Paul Chen Multitasker, or anything else that seems to have otherwise been reduced to only being in the clutches of the collectors for safe preservation. I'm not talking about occasional usage while sat at a desk (but of course we want to hear that too  ) but actually carrying it and going about your daily business

For me a current favourite is the Gerber MP700 or Urban Legend. In my mind it's a beefed up Juice with a bucketload to offer which seems to have fallen off peoples radar for whatever reason. I do find it a little surprising that this list of ingredients hasn't had broader appeal over those who like a smaller multi:

• Sprung pliers with reasonably strong jaws yet delicate tips AND indexable (3 sided) carbide cutters
• Three flat drivers and a Phillips just like a Juice, but outboard and locking
• OHO Locking blade with a less "wedge shaped" cross section than a Juice
• Pefectly adequate (for most peoples chores) scissors and a pair of tweezers you cant lose
• Rubberised and comfortable handle grips
• Torx screws so the tool could be stripped down for servicing if necessary

OK, it's a bit bigger and heavier than a Juice, but without going all the way to the size of a Wave or Spirit ... and yes ... it's discontinued, but I'm still surprised it doesn't get more airtime here.

I'm also (still) waiting for a Li'l Guppie from Heinnies, which is another tool which doesn't get much mention but looks like it could potentially be a winner for me. So who else carries something ... different, and why? 

Lets hear some praise for those oddities that maybe didn't win the popularity contest but deserve a second chance   

[Grant Lamontagne]

I have a ZillaTool Jr in my work vest.  It's not a discontinued tool, but I don't think a lot of people EDC them.

Def

[cerbera147]

I carry my Swiss Business Tool* with me every day 

I'm out on the road so my car is my office and the SBT comes in very handy. It may not get used every day but it's always ready for action 

*See Chako's thread for more details on this one 
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,32653.0.html

I also carry the Juice KF4 every day. It's UK legal and has all the essentials an EDC multitool needs I was very lucky to score a new one from a member here but was always very nervous about abusing it too much as it is retired. Then luck struck again and I got a true KF4 beater; used but not completely abused. It is with me now and the shiny new one is kept for Sunday best 

[Mr. Whippy]

Like Dan,  I use a Wenger Business Tool every day.  Mostly stapler and scissors (which are great, btw), but the staple remover also.

I carried a Kershaw A100 regularly for ice climbing/mountaineering right up until I joined MT.O.  Once I found out it was NLA, I cleaned it, oiled it and put it on the shelf.  It's an excellent tool and I'd hate to have to find its replacement.  A catch-22 for sure, but that is one tool I wish were being made again.  I'd buy one and go back to using my old one.

Up until I received a Skeletool, I carried my PST (that was 2008 I think).  I has a better size/function ratio than the Old style Wave.

Think that's about it

[nuphoria]

KF4 carrier here - I think it's one of the best pocket sized tools ever made, and possible the most stupid one to have retired!

[Mr. Whippy]

KF4 carrier here - I think it's one of the best pocket sized tools ever made, and possible the most stupid one to have retired!

How could I have forgotten!  I have a Kf4 I EDC regularly (when the Charge ALX or Wenger MH Ranger seem a bit overkill).

Thanks for the reminder Nuph!

[nuphoria]

At your service Mr.W

[AimlessWanderer]

I think you forgot your timekeeper(s) too Mr Whippy 

My KF4 and Swiss Business Tool (No 60) and Timekeeper are still in their boxes awaiting their maiden voyage. The KF4 I got at UK retail prices (idiot  ) so I'm tied between trading it or using it. I have carried an XE6 instead and to be fair the extra weight doesn't hurt for me - but I can see the appeal of the KF4. The A100 looks a VERY nice tool - certainly the most appealing of the four(?) locking plier multi's that have been released IMHO.

I have got more oddballs I carry to offer up, but this thread is desperately low on pics already so I'll try to get some taken first 

[Mr. Whippy]

I think you forgot your timekeeper(s) too Mr Whippy 

I'm a bad MT.O'er...

Actually my EDC Cybertimer is in reality a modified CT-41.  (Stop reading here if you're faint of heart! )




...and then I pulled the scales off of a Timekeeper and put them on my CT-41 (after drilling a hole in the outiside liner and trimming a spot for the battery cover and stem respectively).


So not really a Timekeeper.  Really a CT-41 in sheep's clothing! 

[Mr. Whippy]

Yow!

I just checked Vic's site.  The CT-41 is now gone.  29, 34 and lite only.

So I guess, yes.  I'm  EDC'ing a NLA tool.

[chip]

I carry one of these in my tool belt every day at work, and it gets seriously hard used.
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,10237.0.html
I would be lost without it.

[Mr. Whippy]

I carry one of these in my tool belt every day at work, and it gets seriously hard used.
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,10237.0.html
I would be lost without it.

 

That's awesome!  How long have you had it?

[turnsouth]

Talk, talk, talk...

[enki_ck]

I've been carrying the Juice SC2 almost exclusively since I got it. It instantly become my favourite pocket tool.

[AimlessWanderer]

I carry one of these in my tool belt every day at work, and it gets seriously hard used.
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,10237.0.html
I would be lost without it.

 

That's awesome!  How long have you had it?

+1 

[chip]

I carry one of these in my tool belt every day at work, and it gets seriously hard used.
http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,10237.0.html
I would be lost without it.

 

That's awesome!  How long have you had it?

i am  not sure to tell you the truth, about a year or so.
A load came up on ebay for £10 each so i bought a couple, wish i bought more now.
Fantastic for pulling nails due to the shape of the head and the fact you can lock onto them before rolling them out.

The bit driver works great with standard 50mm bits.

[AimlessWanderer]

A TENNER!!    That's even more impressive

Nice one Chip 

[AimlessWanderer]

Talk, talk, talk...

(Image removed from quote.)

Yup ... here's the MP700 with the Yeoman it was carried alongside today







Both look grubbier in real life - I'm surprised how clean they look in the pics 

[Energie]

UDC, sometimes on my keychain:

[Gareth]

OK, so other than my Pulse, PST, PST II and Supertool 200, the only slightly 'unusual' MT I regularly carry is my Juice SC2.  It's the only one I think I'd have any issue getting a replacement for.

[AimlessWanderer]

I have a ZillaTool Jr in my work vest.  It's not a discontinued tool, but I don't think a lot of people EDC them.

Def

Yeah, this definitely counts in my book  I had one (briefly) and good to see someone carrying it. Didn't suit my needs but a very nice little tool which probably gets too often overlooked in favour of the more popular items.

Nice to see a company still producing fixed pliers too 
I think the Zillas and X-Tracts are the only other tools still doing that aren't they?

[Grant Lamontagne]

I suppose that depends on your definition- I don't consider the XTract to be "fixed" pliers because they slide out.  By the XTract definition, the pliers found on 91mm Victorinox models, 85mm Wenger models and on the Paul Chen MultiTasker could also be considered "fixed."  And, while they aren't pliers, the Guppie and L'il Guppie have fixed heads too.

So yes, the Zilla series is pretty well the only one, and I believe is suffering for that as many folks find them too bulky.  That having been said though, I have given several full sized Zillas as gifts to non-multitool people, and they like them better than any folding plier tool.  In fact, the day after I gave a Zilla to my boss, he was asking me how much they went for as several people he'd encountered wanted one too.

I think folks here have written the Zilla (both sizes) off too soon.  It's a really good tool in it's own right and I would like to see some more varieties of it out there.  It would be fairly easy to put a second slot (and spacer) in it and include a lengthy saw, and the handle scales could be removed and replaced with different materials to make a nice premium or custom tool.  I've often thought about a nice hardwood or micarta handled Zilla... 

Def

[Mr. Whippy]

The Zilla Jr will only ever be a back up for me for a couple reasons:

1.  Strange bit size, so VERY hard to replace
2.  The knife tip opens ever so slightly in pocket carry, and I've been bitten a couple times with it.

HOWEVER:  I love the spring loaded pliers and the knife it self is a very nice OHO blade.

[Grant Lamontagne]

The bit size was an accident.

The first time I met Launce and Tom (the guys who designed it), they told me that it was scaled down by whatever percentage, and they had forgotten to point out that the screwdriver slots and bits should stay the same size.  By the time they realized the mistake, it was too late.

 

Def

[enki_ck]

....

So yes, the Zilla series is pretty well the only one, and I believe is suffering for that as many folks find them too bulky.  ...

Def

What about the SwissGrip and Pocketgrip (aka Minigrip)? They too have fixed pliers.

[Mr. Whippy]

The bit size was an accident.

The first time I met Launce and Tom (the guys who designed it), they told me that it was scaled down by whatever percentage, and they had forgotten to point out that the screwdriver slots and bits should stay the same size.  By the time they realized the mistake, it was too late.

 

Def

I had heard this before, but was hoping you'd state it again.  I'm hoping CRKT one day updates the Zilla Jr to correct this and thereby make it a viable EDC for me. 

[Gareth]

....

So yes, the Zilla series is pretty well the only one, and I believe is suffering for that as many folks find them too bulky.  ...

Def

What about the SwissGrip and Pocketgrip (aka Minigrip)? They too have fixed pliers.

Ah, but not still in production.  The only other one I can think of, in production, is the SOG Micro Toolclip.

[Grant Lamontagne]

....

So yes, the Zilla series is pretty well the only one, and I believe is suffering for that as many folks find them too bulky.  ...

Def

What about the SwissGrip and Pocketgrip (aka Minigrip)? They too have fixed pliers.

Ah, but not still in production.  The only other one I can think of, in production, is the SOG Micro Toolclip.

I knew there was another one, but I was damned if I could think of it!

Of course it is now the Tool LogicMicro Toolclip.... but that's getting a bit picky, isn't it? 

Def

[AimlessWanderer]

Talking of Swissgrip  ... mine's a USER!!! 



Here's the main part of the boat kit. The boatyard is where the really unforgiving jobs appear so I use my chunkiest and most brutal tools there  Biggest scissors, blades (serrated and plain), pliers, drivers (dedicated and hex bit), wood saw, awl, pokey things, metal saw ... everything needs to be hardy and abusable

OK, the Gerber "Destroyer" (modified MP600 DET) is a cheat as regards this thread, and not sure how uncommon the Core is these days, but I don't think there's many regular Swissgrip users around now



The Wenger has lifted floor panels and seating panels, fitted temporary lighting, cropped heavy electrical cable, opened bags of coal and logs and processed kindling amongst other jobs like generator maintenance etc. It's a BRUTE! I wish I'd had more chance to get to the boat this year to give the other two more of a pounding too 

[AimlessWanderer]

... And, while they aren't pliers, the Guppie and L'il Guppie have fixed heads too.

I've been waiting on a Li'l Guppie for weeks now (Heinnies have said the problem is the factory is being slow in stocking their agent  ) but I hope to be able to add that one to this list. It LOOKS like it should work for me, and I'm really hoping it does (I'm running out of options in the field I'm trying to fill)

I think folks here have written the Zilla (both sizes) off too soon.  It's a really good tool in it's own right and I would like to see some more varieties of it out there.  It would be fairly easy to put a second slot (and spacer) in it and include a lengthy saw, and the handle scales could be removed and replaced with different materials to make a nice premium or custom tool.  I've often thought about a nice hardwood or micarta handled Zilla... 

I tried the Jnr, and to be honest it has made me want to try it's larger sibling. The little one didn't fill a role for me (or no better than anything else I have), but the larger one might be easier to place ... plus I'd also prefer knowing that if I lose a bit it's easy to replace.

The Zilla Jr will only ever be a back up for me for a couple reasons:

1.  Strange bit size, so VERY hard to replace
2.  The knife tip opens ever so slightly in pocket carry, and I've been bitten a couple times with it.

HOWEVER:  I love the spring loaded pliers and the knife it self is a very nice OHO blade.

The Jnr was a difficult one to let go of. I was almost on the verge of trying to conjure up some role that only it could fill as justification for hanging onto it, but it's gone now and so has the dillemma  It never made it to daily pocket carry so I didn't experience the blade opening prematurely  Maybe some sort of detent on closure would not only fix that but aid deployment too, letting you build up some pressure on the flipper before it releases and needing less of a flick to lock the blade out