Which Leatherman shall I get?

Thrill · **on:** July 25, 2012, 01:27:07 PM

I've had a Squirt PS4 on my keychain and love it. Now I want something bigger, I'm still waiting for the Leatherman Wingman to come but that does look a little bare. Where should I go from here? A blast? A wave? A Charge TTI? I'm so indecisive. It'll be in my toolkit mainly

AimlessWanderer · **Reply #1 on:** July 25, 2012, 01:59:12 PM

For me, the Wave is one of LM's best tools. A Charge is basically an upgraded version, but a Wave will serve you well at less cost. I would also suggest having a good look at other brands as well though. Leatherman do some good tools, but so do other companies. It also depends on what attributes/features you want in a tool

Lynn LeFey · **Reply #2 on:** July 25, 2012, 05:53:14 PM

I agree with 50ft-trad about the Wave. You can get them used for pretty reasonable amounts here on the boards, and sometimes find very good deals on-line.

However, I ALSO agree that you should not look at JUST Leatherman. I have a Victorinox Spirit X that I think is dead on-par with the Wave for my needs. Some folks LOVE the Multi-plier line from Gerber. Some folks love the SOG Powerlock, etc., etc..

I think it's most important to know what you use your MT for, and how much punishment you think the tool will have to hold up to. I've recommended the $10 Husky Multitool to folks who are just getting an MT for light work. I owned a Powerlock, and realized it was really more tool than I needed, or would ever reasonably carry.

I know it's not always easy to prioritize when looking at a Multitool. Everyone wants an MT that does everything, and weighs nothing. But you have to make some decisions as to what you really NEED and what you WANT.

If you explained how you intended to use it, I'm sure folks could help more accurately point you in the right direction.

Unless you're just collecting, in which case, what I'm saying here is pretty irrelevant.

Gareth · **Reply #3 on:** July 25, 2012, 08:44:58 PM

If it's LM you want then you really can't go wrong with the Wave. The Charge AL is very similar but with an upgraded blade steel and somewhat more comfortable handles IMO.

enki_ck · **Reply #4 on:** July 25, 2012, 09:10:04 PM

A Victorinox Swisstool Spirit, or a Wave if you prefer one hand opening blades. Spirit has a better fit and finish though. I never felt the Charge appeal.

Metropolicity · **Reply #5 on:** July 25, 2012, 09:51:13 PM

Quote from: Gareth on July 25, 2012, 08:44:58 PM

If it's LM you want then you really can't go wrong with the Wave. The Charge AL is very similar but with an upgraded blade steel and somewhat more comfortable handles IMO.

Except when you drop it, those soft aluminum scales won't last long. HAIII got nothing on pavement or a hard floor.

Zed · **Reply #6 on:** July 25, 2012, 10:04:34 PM

After 10 years of carry from the old wave to the new one i have to say wave as you cant go wrong, but as ive tried a lot of other MT's i do also like sog for the fact you can custom the tool load,

genevabuck · **Reply #7 on:** July 26, 2012, 05:10:11 AM

WAVE or REBAR

Randyc1974 · **Reply #8 on:** July 27, 2012, 01:27:09 AM

For tool bag carry I like the Supertool 300. For day to day carry on my belt I roll with the Vic Spirit.

Clark · **Reply #9 on:** July 27, 2012, 01:30:38 AM

Charge AL

Teofilo · **Reply #10 on:** July 27, 2012, 04:25:56 PM

Wave or Spirit

Heinz Doofenshmirtz · **Reply #11 on:** July 28, 2012, 12:52:09 AM

If it were me, I'd get a Rebar, although a Wave or a Charge would be nice too. Or a Spirit.

jimmiewalker · **Reply #12 on:** July 28, 2012, 01:26:55 AM

In the last two years i carried at work (master car mechanic) mu LM CHARGE AL, but i feels a quite weak.
Now i'm feelin good with an old SWISSTOOL standard 1998 serie.
So, the charge/wave is a good edc for me, 240g are good.
But i wanna try the Vic Spirit X, it can take away the throne of the charge!

Scott86 · **Reply #13 on:** July 28, 2012, 04:43:31 AM

Full size tool = Wave or Blast/rebar(I'm not sold on the rebar yet. Other topic made it seem like there are a lot of QC issues on the first batch). Need a OHO blade? Get the wave. Dont? Than honestly, i think the blast is better. The exposed spines of the blades on the wave really bug me.

Smaller tool = Juice S2 or Skeletool. The larges juice models just confuse me(seriously, who uses a cork screw? I would hope you would be in a nicely equipped kitchen if you're breaking out the bubbly.) and the freestyle seems like a great idea until you need a driver.(The carabiner/bottle opener seem unnecessary as tools on the skeletool, but i guess they had to cover the exposed driver one way or another so might as well fit as many tools in that section)

jimmiewalker · **Reply #14 on:** July 29, 2012, 01:08:43 AM

honestly, i think the bottleopener is not necessary on a plier-based multitool.
i looooove to remove bottlecaps wit the pliers :-)

David · **Reply #15 on:** July 29, 2012, 03:54:00 AM

SuperTool 300!

Flying Dutchman · **Reply #16 on:** August 04, 2012, 06:34:36 PM

I've had a Wave and loved it, I currently have a Blast, Charge ALX and TTi. The TTi is my favorite and is on my belt daily. The ALX remains in my tool bag in my car and the Blast is in the console of my wife's Suburban. I'm looking at another Skeletool CX for light duty carry, I sold my first for a Juice S2 but decided the Skeletool was more for me.

Breezy12 · **Reply #17 on:** August 05, 2012, 08:30:09 AM

I have EDC'd a few different Leatherman MTs over the years. The first one I used as EDC was my Charge Ti starting in 2004. (before that, my EDC was a Vic Tinker, and I had a PST that sometimes made an appearance on my belt.) in 2008, I got a Skeletool CX straight from the factory and started using that as my EDC. that remained as my EDC until I recently modded my own ReCharge (http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,39153.0.html) and started using that as my EDC.

to be honest, the Skeletool CX was a perfect EDC for me -- it had everything I need, and nothing that I didn't. Everything on the tool got used on a regular basis, and it's very lightweight (5.0 oz.) as an added bonus. Unless you are regularly in an environment that requires heavy tools (i.e., ST300 or Surge), I think the Skeletool CX is an excellent choice for EDC.

then again, if you're not planning on using this for EDC, you can disregard my arguments completely.

Zed · **Reply #18 on:** August 05, 2012, 10:51:30 AM

I think this can get confusing to new MT users

ive pretty much tried most MT's and have got to the point of prefering sogs due to being able to customize my tool load, MT's are a very personal item so hard to come up with what you might need on a day to day basis, for example will you use scissors a lot

a wood saw,a file , it goes on and on, here in the uk we have crap blade laws so my edc sog ppp i dont have a blade on it but my sog powerlock i use for work i do and it has pretty much everything i need on it, i also carry a scissor based item on my keychain like a vic classic or leatherman micra so no need for scissors on my edc main MT, i pocket carry a opinel or tinker so no need for a blade on it as well, but if laws was not a issue i would carry a LM wave daily in a pouch, so you can see MT's are very personal so think what you use daily or need, TBH you cant go wrong with a wave or charger TTi tools wise,the st300 is also a great tool but heavy same as the powerlock, for me my ultimate edc is the size of a leatherman PST but with different tools plus a clip,so my ppp is work in progress to create this type of MT

Sylook · **Reply #19 on:** August 05, 2012, 06:36:13 PM

I will have to vote for the Wave.

kirk13 · **Reply #20 on:** August 05, 2012, 11:18:20 PM

Wave,or its little brother,the Juice KF4.Also having fun with my modded 400 seris Gerber

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Which Leatherman shall I get?

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