Schrade Tough Tool ST11

[David Bowen]

Schrade ST11

Back in the golden age of multitools; we'll say late 90s early 2000s there was a lot of manufacturers getting in on the game. Everyone from Buck to Kershaw was producing a multitool and some of the designs were very forward thinking.  Schrade cutlery was one of those companies and they produced what they called the Tough tools. Both the Tough Tool and the Tough Chip did well for the company and we're proudly made in the USA.

Schrade had some financial struggles and was purchased by Taylor Brands LLC back in 2004. Taylor kept a lot of the lines alive that Schrade had such as Old Timer and Uncle Henry. Manufacturing was moved overseas and we saw quality control take a dip. Schrade continued to manufacture the Tough Tools but they don't have the durability of the once famed brand.

In the first quarter of 2016 Schrade brought some new products to the market which included some multitools. One of those new tools was the Schrade ST11. The ST11 or Schrade Tough Tool Multitool; is an interesting new take on an old design.





The tool in the closed position has two tools that are accessible without opening the tool. There is a 2.84 inch blade that is opened via a cutout in the blade and is held in place with a back spring similar to a traditional pocket knife. The blade features a nice clip style blade and is made from 2Cr13 stainless steel. The blade is easy to sharpen and holds the edge pretty well.



Also available from the outside is a metal file. The file has a one directional pattern on one side and a cross hatch on the other. The file also incorporates a bottle opener on the underside. The file doesn't work real well due to its hatch being shallow and steel not being hardened well. I would have liked to have seen a carbon steel used with a deeper hatch to make it more usable. The bottle opener works decent for the placement on the tool, it's kind of hard to mess up a bottle opener but it happens.



Departing from the standard butterfly design, which features a pair of pliers as the focal point. The ST11 has two main tools that share the spotlight, a pair of pliers and a pair of scissors. The tool opens the butterfly style but in opposite directions. Open one way and you get pliers similar to what is on the Skeletool. The pliers are light duty and good for small things that may come up during your day. They have wire cutters as well which work good on copper wire and small steel wire. The casting seems decent and should handle some use without breakage.



Opening the tool in the other direction your greeted with a very large pair of scissors. The scissors are spring loaded as well as the pliers and make for some easy one hand action. There are a few multitools on the market that features scissors as the focus instead of pliers and its nice to see a combination of both. The scissors are extremely precise and I've used them to cut everything from paper to fabrics. I'm really impressed by these and wish more manufacturers would incorporate larger scissors into their tools.





The ST11 features both a phillips as well as as flat driver. Both drivers are not like a standard tool where they are folded into the tool but rather they are fixed to tools handles. They appear to be cast like the pliers are and are not very crisp in form. The phillips is more of a #1 style and could benefit from being a #1&2 hybrid, making for more heads it can turn. The flat is ok for most heads and the handles on both drivers flex a little when being used.  These drivers work well in a pinch but due to their cast nature along with position on the tool I don't see them handing a lot of torque.







Overall I love the new design of the ST11, it's not without its faults but I'm glad to see someone thinking outside the box. I like the fact the tool has a pocket clip attached, nice to have another method of carry besides my belt. The ST11 makes a good light duty tool and handle simple jobs with ease. I would like to see an updated verizon of this in the future that could fix some of my minor complaints. If your looking for a light duty tool that's definitely different than the competition check this tool out.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Interesting tool...

Looks awfully familiar....

Now where have I seen that concept before....? 

Def

[David Bowen]

Cute, don't talk about about their factory designed tool! lol Its a ground breaking design that just so happens to be used by someone else under another name. I do think it's an interesting design and I feel it could be better better and could benefit from an upgrade.

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[gregozedobe]

Thanks for the excellent review on an innovative designed MT      

Interesting tool...

Looks awfully familiar....

Now where have I seen that concept before....? 

I have some of these MTs  branded as Outu (good value for the U$ 11.00 each I paid) , but I've seen other brands (or no-brand) as well.

If you were into modding it looks like it might be possible to replace the Philips driver with a std 1/4 bit holder (with a bit of filing, drilling and thread cutting) to give you the capability for using any std 1/4 hex bit.

[ThePeacent]

nice review! Was waiting for someone here to get one and comment, thanks!
I might get one just for fun   

[Grant Lamontagne]

Cute, don't talk about about their factory designed tool! lol Its a ground breaking design that just so happens to be used by someone else under another name. I do think it's an interesting design and I feel it could be better better and could benefit from an upgrade.

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Perhaps I should have posted it like this:

Interesting tool...

Looks awfully familiar....

Now where have I seen that concept before....? 

Def

[/quote]

 

Def

[David Bowen]

They couldn't even keep the green Schrade logo on the side of the tool. It was painted on and wore off as I've used it. No stamping, engraving or anything that would stick. 

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Yes, I have one of their plastic handled new tools too.  No idea which one, as they are all crap....

But the one thing I liked about it was how well that green logo looked against the black handle.  Mine has never been used for anything and the logo is wearing off just coming out of the sheath once in a while.

I'd say I don't know how they stay in business, but I am sure it has a lot to do with the profit of selling something for $20 that didn't even cost a dollar to source.

Def

[David Bowen]

I miss Schrade back from the good old days, they were a fantastic company that produced product that a consumer could be proud of.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

I still get emails and phone calls from people looking to replace their old Tough Tool that was lost or broke after 20+ years of use, and they are always very disappointed to hear that their beloved tool doesn't really exist anymore, and that they need to either try to find one on eBay or pick a different model and manufacturer.

Def

[Gareth]

Interesting design I'd say, but like the rest of you I can't say I'm wowed by the looks of the manufacturing.

[Zed]

I had a old tough tool and was a lovely thing,sorry but this looks cheap   

[hugh_h]

If you were into modding it looks like it might be possible to replace the Philips driver with a std 1/4 bit holder (with a bit of filing, drilling and thread cutting) to give you the capability for using any std 1/4 hex bit.

There's a point where you may as well carry a 1/4 nut driver with an assortment of bits.

[rube]

I have one of the old Schrade/Vise Grip multi tools, and it is a solid tool.

Too bad to see what has become of the brand.

-rube

[ReamerPunch]

I have one of the old Schrade/Vise Grip multi tools, and it is a solid tool.

Too bad to see what has become of the brand.

-rube

The brand died. Taylor Brands took Schrade's good name and has been dragging it through the mud ever since.