PowerPint Overview Mighty Little MT

[Sam Lim]

Here you go! I would say ditch that scissor and put in something else. Mine came from a crappy guidesman multitool. The scissors cuts very well though. Shouldnt be too difficult to find something that fits. But I am afraid a Vic SD will not work as theres not enough material around the pivot tag. Its was polished like a Vic's but I gave it a quick acid bath to match the finish. Not entirely a drop in, just some filing here and there.  Theres another thing that needs work on though. The handles are floppy as smurf, making the pocket clip absolutely useless as the handles will open in the pocket.. Gotta find a way to keep them closed..






Donor MT

[roamingcat]

[/quote
Hi! The pic of the wave scissors are just a few post up. Works but not the best solution.. Yesterday night after reading this post, I have again made some, I would say proper improvement. Let me get back home later to post up my solutions. 
[/quote]

Thanks Sam. This sounds promising. Looking forward to your 'scissors solution'. Sorry for missing your earlier pics on the Wave scissors .... its reasuring to see the PowePint has good modding potential ! I really like the PP but I need it to have a pair of scissors that last for more than a week !

(sorry - cross post I think we posted simultaneously ... thanks for the update Sam !)

[Sam Lim]

[/quote
Hi! The pic of the wave scissors are just a few post up. Works but not the best solution.. Yesterday night after reading this post, I have again made some, I would say proper improvement. Let me get back home later to post up my solutions. 

Thanks Sam. This sounds promising. Looking forward to your 'scissors solution'. Sorry for missing your earlier pics on the Wave scissors .... its reasuring to see the PowePint has good modding potential ! I really like the PP but I need it to have a pair of scissors that last for more than a week !

(sorry - cross post I think we posted simultaneously ... thanks for the update Sam !)
[/quote]

  modding potential I can't say much.. The pivot size is not quite a regular one.. I dun have a caliper to measure that. But at least its held together by screws and not rivets!

[roamingcat]

Nice work Sam. Thanks for posting !

[chrono]

Got my hand on a PowerPint in a lot deal. I have not used it yet, just played with it. My first impression is, this tool has a lot of potential, and can be a homerun for SOG. Immediately, the LM Juice series came to my mind as its competitor. Improvements can be done to this little gem IMO:
- Move the pocket clip to the pliers's pivot end
- Redesign the handles' cutouts for true one-hand opening
- The implements are quite crude. They need to be more polished
- Fix the file profile and the scissors' tension

I like the fact that I can adjust the tightness at the pivots. And there is no painted aluminum scale to worry about.

[gerleatherberman]

Congrats on getting your Pint, Chrono!

SOG has some almost-fantastic tools right now But, for some unbeknownst reason, chooses to stay the course with the way they are already.

You have good points listed there, Chrono. 

[roamingcat]

Got my hand on a PowerPint in a lot deal. I have not used it yet, just played with it. My first impression is, this tool has a lot of potential, and can be a homerun for SOG. Immediately, the LM Juice series came to my mind as its competitor. Improvements can be done to this little gem IMO:
- Move the pocket clip to the pliers's pivot end
- Redesign the handles' cutouts for true one-hand opening
- The implements are quite crude. They need to be more polished
- Fix the file profile and the scissors' tension

I like the fact that I can adjust the tightness at the pivots. And there is no painted aluminum scale to worry about.

Just got mine too.  entirely. Imo the PP is a great design   but flawed badly in its implementation  . The materials used and construction feels flimsy compared to the Leatherman Juice which I think is its closest substitute. The scissors and filer in particular needs improvement, badly. I think I will limit the PP scissors to cutting excess garment threads only to avoid breaking it.

I really hope SOG will release a PP version 2 with the same basic design but improve upon the points mentioned above ... just look at how Leatherman / Vic do their scissors and filer, and upgrade the material to proper stainless steel (instead of the not-too-sure cheap alloy used currently?)

I attach a comparison shot of the similarity (size-wise) between PP and Juice S2 (currently being modded slightly pending my new pivots to arrive).

[gerleatherberman]

I agree with your points, except the steel being inferior. I do agree that PP looks like the steel is "cheap", but fortunately, that is a perception side effect from the stonewash finish. The steel is actually the same mid-grade stainless found in their other tool's frames. The steel is similar to most other companies frame/handle steel. The poor machining of the file is a strong disappointment for sure. The scissors are not well designed, but would be drastically better with just a softer wire spring like Gerber uses. That piece of metal that acts as a spring is prone to breaking under use, because it was probably never intended to be tempered into spring steel(one of the reasons it takes a few pounds of pressure to move it).

[roamingcat]

Thanks for clarifying and reassuring the steel material used. I wonder if anyone has figured out how to replace the springs for the scissors as it has been reported it has broken by a few posters before? I really want to use the scissors more than just cutting off excess garment threads. 

[gerleatherberman]

Thanks for clarifying and reassuring the steel material used. I wonder if anyone has figured out how to replace the springs for the scissors as it has been reported it has broken by a few posters before? I really want to use the scissors more than just cutting off excess garment threads. 

As you know, Sam Lim has swapped in a pair of cheapie scissors, but that is a good question. I have not seen any posts about changing the scissor spring. I may be taking one of my Pints apart at some point and will try and remember to look at spring alternatives. 

[Sam Lim]

As you know, Sam Lim has swapped in a pair of cheapie scissors, but that is a good question. I have not seen any posts about changing the scissor spring. I may be taking one of my Pints apart at some point and will try and remember to look at spring alternatives. 

Yes. Cheapie it is.  this is a left hand scissors. Unless u are left handed and dun mind that terrible design, I suggest ditching that and just put in something else. Many people will think that a scissors this tiny, there is no difference left or right orientated.  I would disagree. Right handers using a left hand scissors, ie a Spirit, dime, powerpint etc, seriously, draw a line on a piece of paper and try to cut it straight. U will know what I mean. U can't even see where u are cutting.

[gerleatherberman]

I just turn the medium I am cutting at an angle to see what I'm doing. Whether it be left-hand scissors used with my right hand or right-hand scissors used with my left hand(doesn't matter to me). The scissors don't have to be perpendicular to your line of sight.  

[Sam Lim]

I just turn the medium I am cutting at an angle to see what I'm doing. Whether it be left-hand scissors used with my right hand or right-hand scissors used with my left hand(doesn't matter to me). The scissors don't have to be perpendicular to your line of sight.  

Wrong.. That's just so wrong... Awkwardly wrong..

[gerleatherberman]

(I had to borrow this from ThePeacent.)

I was born wrong. 

[ThePeacent]

I had to borrow this from ThePeacent
I was born wrong. 

your line of sight.  

U can't even see where u are cutting.

[Sam Lim]

Seriously...... Take a piece of paper, draw a line, cut with those mentioned left hand mini scissors, tell me is easy. 

[gerleatherberman]

Admittedly, I am at a bit of an advantage. When I had all of those surgeries on my right arm, I had to learn to do everything with my left arm(even writing). The cool part is that I now have two equally capable arms/hands. 

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[sergemaster]

Amici,
I've been using the PP on and off for the past few weeks in between using the Juice, to see which is more useful and comfortable as a user.  Here it is along with my Ernie mini 7, D25C-TI, and a 1930's repro zippo.

Cheers,
Serge 

[gerleatherberman]

Fantastic combo, Serge! Looking forward to reading your thoughts on the Pint and Juice.

[roamingcat]

2 essential mods for the PP for me. Idea borrowed from Sam  .

1. converted that useless "nibble" to a flat head screw driver
2. filed down the back of the awl so it won't cut my finger accidentally

Scissors will be next, but I haven't found a suitable donor yet. More importantly, I don't feel my skills are ready for this yet 

[ReamerPunch]

wow, that bottle-opener looks great, as if the tool came with it like that. Fantastic job.

[gerleatherberman]

roamingcat,

Good job and thank you for inspiring me to do some work on my Pint.

Made two different size flat drivers with the can opener and bottle opener. Used a fine wheel stone to get the sharp hollow-grind to make them bite. Did a similar mod to the awl that roamingcat did, where I lower the tip angle to avoid it catching my pocket/hand. Then used a hand diamond-file to file the back of the scissor spring where the spring tang touches the frame when engaged. Ground the semi-circle spring tip down to lessen the distance needed to squeeze. All in all the scissors are notably more functional(being easier to squeeze) and will be less likely to break(the spring doesn't exert as much force).

Used a sharpie to show how far I wanted to go.


After the grinding work on openers and awl.


Four good drivers now. 


See how I moved the leaf spring out and up to work on it.
This is when I used the diamond-file to gently remove some tang-stop material.


Photo showing the new spring profile and position.

[Sam Lim]

  amazing how they can pack so many implement in such a small package.

[roamingcat]

gerleatherberman,

This is amazing , and thank you for sharing your excellent ideas and improvements it make to the PP (in particular the scissors)! Also, those excellent and clear photos certainly help me a lot to go ahead with mine.

With these mods in place, imo the PP is well placed to become the best single EDC available today (at least for me), As I said b4, the PP has all the great design features I always wanted for an EDC. If we can collectively improve upon the few shortcomings in its execution by way of mods then we are all set !

[gerleatherberman]

gerleatherberman,

This is amazing , and thank you for sharing your excellent ideas and improvements it make to the PP (in particular the scissors)! Also, those excellent and clear photos certainly help me a lot to go ahead with mine.

With these mods in place, imo the PP is well placed to become the best single EDC available today (at least for me), As I said b4, the PP has all the great design features I always wanted for an EDC. If we can collectively improve upon the few shortcomings in its execution by way of mods then we are all set !

You're quite welcome, and thank you again for posting your mod. 

Indeed, I think we can suss out some practical fixes for our Pints. The scissor work was primarily brought on by seeing several member's spring breaks. The fix is a bit of a pain-in-the-butt, but will be worth it if it works out in the long run. Right now I am involved in the Center-Drive challenge and may be participating in the Surge challenge next month, so won't be able to actually EDC the Pint for a while. However, I will try to brainstorm some ideas, in the rare event I have a complex thought. 

[ReamerPunch]

Show content

roamingcat,

Good job and thank you for inspiring me to do some work on my Pint.

Made two different size flat drivers with the can opener and bottle opener. Used a fine wheel stone to get the sharp hollow-grind to make them bite. Did a similar mod to the awl that roamingcat did, where I lower the tip angle to avoid it catching my pocket/hand. Then used a hand diamond-file to file the back of the scissor spring where the spring tang touches the frame when engaged. Ground the semi-circle spring tip down to lessen the distance needed to squeeze. All in all the scissors are notably more functional(being easier to squeeze) and will be less likely to break(the spring doesn't exert as much force).

Used a sharpie to show how far I wanted to go.


After the grinding work on openers and awl.


Four good drivers now. 


See how I moved the leaf spring out and up to work on it.
This is when I used the diamond-file to gently remove some tang-stop material.


Photo showing the new spring profile and position.

Great work. 
Why did the openers not come like that!

[gerleatherberman]

Great work. 
Why did the openers not come like that!

Thank you, RP!

What is really crazy is that I only spent a couple of minutes grinding and smoothing the tools. A trained factory worker could have done the same thing in a few seconds(and a computerized machine could probably have ground hundreds at a time for a few seconds). 
The tools have room for nail nicks as well. 

[roamingcat]

My mods so far (from left to right):-
1. Bottle opener "nipple" converted to "large" flat head screwdriver/pryer
2. Can opener "nipple" converted to "medium" flat head screw driver
3. Hook cutter back sharpened for use as a scraper
4. Back of awl filed down to minimize risk of cutting my finger when using main blade
5. Filer tip converted to scraper
I want to thank all the posters in this thread for sharing their ideas. Very tempted to do the scissors mod too but want to practice more on my dremel skills first!

Very interested to see what mods other posters have done so far to their Pints too!

(Together, lets make it a Perfect Pint  )

[Sam Lim]

My mods so far (from left to right):-
1. Bottle opener "nipple" converted to "large" flat head screwdriver/pryer
2. Can opener "nipple" converted to "medium" flat head screw driver
3. Hook cutter back sharpened for use as a scraper
4. Back of awl filed down to minimize risk of cutting my finger when using main blade
5. Filer tip converted to scraper
I want to thank all the posters in this thread for sharing their ideas. Very tempted to do the scissors mod too but want to practice more on my dremel skills first!

Very interested to see what mods other posters have done so far to their Pints too!

(Together, lets make it a Perfect Pint  )

That's alot of improvements from the original design RC!  I would really like to incorporate some kind of swing lock for the handles.. The pocket clip is on the wrong end and the handles keeps opening up in my pocket..

[gerleatherberman]

Sam,
Can you tighten the pliers mount screws anymore than they are(I know some SOG models have pins that are bottomed out)? That is how I got mine to stop opening in my pocket.