Ok here's my review of the LM ST200
Initial Thought'sOk well this isn't my tool, it's Grant's so this will be a visual impression review backed by my experiences with the earlier LM Supertool, as the BO finish is too good to spoil
Build QualityPretty good, certainly better than some of there new tool's I've handled, there's precious little corossion despite it's age, which I'm sure the BO finish has gone someway to helping
, there's still the niggle of clumping but that was a common feature of most earlier generation MT's so it's not really a fault per se
The lock's initial I was dead against, as they felt really awkward in use, but once I developed the technique of rolling the locks, rather than tying to pull them, I quickly warmed to them
, and they are a truly MASSIVE improvement on the frankly stupid locking system found on the original Supertool
PliersNow these promise to be every bit as strong as the ones found on my old Supertool (hardly surprising as there probably the same
) like wise the reach is great too
, as is comfort, the rounded in edge's make it even more comfortable than my Core's, I think this is the only LM of this generation that did not to suffer from the infamous ''bites the hand that feed's it syndrome''
Individual Tool'sKnivesThe main, plain edged blade is probably familiar to most of you, but this one oddly enough hasn't got truly parallel grind's which although odd, doesn't interfere with using the blade at all
. Now the serrated Sheepsfoot is a marked improvement on the one found on the original Supertool, which was frankly a pretty poor design for a serrated blade, whereas the one found on the ST200 can safely be imployed as a rescue style blade, with little risk to the victim
Saw BladeThis, just like the one found on the Supertool, is a little on the weedy side, yes it'll get the job done, but given it's pull cut only, and the narrow, shallow teeth it takes some time to cut through most wood's and probably will clog just as quickly as it's predecesor
Metal File/SawI always did like this file, fairly fine teeth on the one side and pretty course on the other
, and if I remember rightly the old one I had, had little trouble cutting through a padlock I'd lost the key for
Can/Bottle OpenerThis is the
minimum size that this style of can openner needs to be in order to work properly (other manufactures please take note) it definetely would seem to work better than the useless effort on the current Charges (again my opinion so don't burn the heretic
).
Screwdriver'sAs with most tool's of this generation, you'll never be short a flat screwdriver
3 of them to be precise, and to there credit they do have good reach, as does the phillips so it's quite a nice balance of tool's for your average MT user
AwlI'm not the biggest fan of LM awl's to be honest, and this on is no exception, it's blunt, which while easily remedied, why should it be up to the owner to do it?, and why such a dull, blunt tip, I didn't like them when I had it on my Supertool, and age hasn't softened my view
ConclusionsOf all the old style, pre Swisstool tools that I've handled, this is by far the most capable, in fact in terms of sheer utility it doesn't give away much to it's more modern counter part's, infact I actually prefere it to the Core as although it obviously gives some strength, it is a much smaller, more wearable package
So if you looking for a hard use tool built to 'old school' principles look no further
, get yourself a nice clean one, and it should serve you well for years to come
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