Coast Pocket Toolbox MT3900CP vs C3900CP

[ChopperCharles]

I finally acquired both of the Coast Pocket Toolbox multi tools. I don't have, nor do I particularly care to own, the smaller Micro Toolbox. (My keys don't need another MT).

These two multi tools are about the size of a SAK, and the all-silver one was "featured" in the Bourne Identity (It was in his safety deposit box). So how are these?  Well.. a mixed bag.

First off the MT3900CP.  It's all silver, and it has a small ring to attach a keychain or lanyard to. Inside is a combination blade that is surprisingly sharp, a double-cut nail file with nail pick, scissors, a flat half 3D phillips driver, a wood saw, two flat screwdrivers, and a combination can/bottle opener.

The good:

The blade is geat, the scissors cut well and are springless. The blades open with a small backspring click, and then the cover, when closed, serves as a very effective blade lock. The #2.5 flat driver and the large flat driver are formed well, though they do have ever so slightly rounded corners. The wood saw is about 4mm shorter than a Wenger swiss army knife saw, and it is fast and effective. The file will actually tackle mild steel without complaint.

The bad:

The flat phillips driver doesn't fit a single screw around my house. It appears to be badly formed. The nail pick on the end of the file is too blunt and large to fit under nails. It's nice that it works on steel, but I'd prefer a more useful tool in its space. The top opens too easily - just picking up the tool will cause the top to open instead of the tool to come off the table. Plus the little lanyard ring is always in the way. I bent the ring testing the file, and then just removed it and folded the tab in. The saw cuts well, but it doesn't create a very wide kerf, which means the blade will get stuck if you're cutting through something thick.  The can opener is completely unsharp. The initial punch through is difficult, and it doesn't go deep into the can because the flat driver stops it on the rim. It's basically punching a hole, not a slot, and you punch a bunch of holes all the way around the can to open it. It'll open a can in a true emergency, but it is honestly the slowest opener I've ever used, and leaves the most ragged, nasty edge. It does at least lock on to the rim well. But I'd consider this a bottle opener only, unless it's the only tool you have on you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now to the C3900CP. I must say, if I had to choose one or the other, I gravitate to the C3900CP. This tool has that super sharp combo blade, a pair of Wenger-style pliers, a real phillips screwdriver, a large flat head screwdriver with a file on the side, a small flat screwdriver, and a combination bottle/can opener.

The good:

The blade is receipt-paper sharp, the phillips driver is well formed and useful. It will occasionally cam out, but it is seriously the most useful tool on this. The large flat driver has a nail file cut on the side, and the end of the flat driver works great to get under my nails. It's a far more useful configuration than the nail file/pick in the MT3900CP. The drivers are not polished, and so there is no rounding to the edges at all.  The little lanyard loop is part of the hinge mechanism, and it doesn't get in the way of using the tool. The lid opens and closes with a nice amount of resistance, and never opens when I'm trying to just pick up the tool. The loop on the top makes extracting the tool from my jeans' 5th pocket a breeze, and it's convenient for clipping to a carabiner or tying a piece of paracord to. The combination opener actually works on cans! It has a shorter driver nose which keeps it from hitting the lip of the can, and it locks on even tighter than the silver tool. The initial punch through is still difficult, but it opens the can quickly and easily after that.

The bad:

The black powder coat on the cover makes the ruler markings pretty much invisible. The pliers are smaller than Wenger pliers, and have no spring assist. They're awkward to use at best, and provide VERY little force. The tips are offset to the side of each other and the wire cutter circle doesn't work at all. There's also not a nail nick to extract the tool. The little file is not aggressively cut at all. It's good for nails, and only barely so. It doesn't work on mild steel.  The tools don't snap open like they do on the silver model. The wire stripper notch on the combination opener tool is not sharpened.


So, depending on the person, one might be a better option than the other. I gravitate to the black tool because of the excellent phillips driver. But I'd really like to have scissors... so I think I'm going to hack these tools apart and build a frankencharlie tool by dumping the pliers and swapping in the scissors and saw.

Note in the last pic the openers are compared on the can 'o beans I'm having for lunch. The divots are from the silver tool, the wide swath of nicely opened can from the black tool.

Charles.

[ChopperCharles]

Well, that was easy. I made the tool I like. Decided to go with the black one. Even though it's harder to read the powder-coated numbers, I like the lanyard loop and I didn't want to grind out the door pivot rivets and put in a new rivet. It's a cheap tool, so I made a quick and dirty mod. 2.5mm brass rod was used. I could have ordered and waited for stainless, but I decided to just go ahead and use what I have. I'll probably put the donor tool up for sale eventually... unless I can find another tool with a similar locking mechanism, and transplant more parts.


In the pic, the tool I made for myself is on the bottom.

Charles.

[Exeter]

 

I like these little tools so much! Haven't got one though. I bought a black one last October on Amazon, asked my friend in the US to forward it to me, but to save space it was sent without the bubble wrap and the little smurf worked itself out of the envelope somewhere en route. I was so bitterly disappointed!  The black one was already a compromise as I liked the other model better, but that was the only one I could find.

Anyway, really nice, especially after the mod! 

[ChopperCharles]

The pliers in the black one aren't completely useless. If you think of them as large tweezers or passable nose-hair-yankers, then you'll be aight. The usable phillips driver makes the black tool FAR more usable than the silver tool. Sure it has scissors, but they're not very good scissors. They'll cut paper or bandages or something like that, but won't cut paracord or anything even remotely beefy. Victorinox and Wenger make far better scissors. Essentially that great phillips driver is worth not having scissors or a saw for.

BUT if you can swing it, a modded one is the way to go. You don't even have to get fancy with the rivet, just a screw and a nut with a dab of locktite will do just as well.

Charles.

[gerleatherberman]

Thanks for posting about these, Charles!

The Coast line is quite interesting and not well covered(as far as I know). Your work on this is appreciated. 

Those Pocket Toolboxes are something a little different and look to be a good idea with lack-luster QC(like many tools of the time and/or genre).

[ChopperCharles]

Actually the QC on the pocket tool boxes is pretty decent. Rivets all permed well, tools all sharp, nothing bent or stuck, no flashing or poorly machined tools, no problems with the coatings or laser etchings. The pliers and scissors don’t live up to Wenger or Victorinox designs... but so what? Not many do. It’s a $6 tool, and it’s far FAR better than any of the made in China SAK copies. It’s a real tool. There are design issues due to building this to a price point. But the overall quality control seems rather on the good side to me.

Charles.

[gerleatherberman]

Cool. Thank you for the info! I think my opinion came from reading your "bad" sections(you were critical of the implements) and thinking those tools aren't really standouts. But, for $6, it WOULD be hard to fault the tool for a few quirks. 

[ReamerPunch]

Those look great! 
Hard to find, but worth it. Thanks for sharing! 

[ChopperCharles]

FYI the flat Phillips driver isn’t badly formed. It’s just for very large Phillips screws. It matches the profile of one of my regular screwdrivers and also matches a bit in my impact driver bit set... it just doesn’t work on any of the screws I typically find around my house.  It’s an awkward choice to put such an uncommonly large Phillips driver in such a small tool. Which I suppose is why Coast made changes and released the C3900CP, and included such a useful driver there.

Charles.

[ChopperCharles]

I really do consider the C3900CP a stand out, for what it is. And what it is, is a SAK-sized tool that doesn’t try to be a SAK. It’s lighter and all the blades lock. It’s dirt cheap on amazon right now, while supplies last. It has three really nice inline drivers, and fits in my coin pocket. It’s light. It’s cheap. The pliers aren’t the most useful tool in the world, because they’re so small and not spring loaded. But all that aside I really like this thing and I can see it being part of my ever-changing EDC. (Especially my modified version).

Charles.

[gerleatherberman]

Instead of going back and forth on the tool, I'll just order one. Then I'll know exactly what you are conveying. Cheap enough. 

Edit: amazon doesn't have any new ones left. But, I found them on eBay. The seller has over 30 of the black pliers versions left. <$10 after shipping. It is added to my purchase list for the weekend. 

[Exeter]

You just made me order one again. Unfortunately no C3900CP available at the moment, so just a MT3900CP. Hopefully this one will reach me, altought this will be a forwarding job again.

[Exeter]

Edit: amazon doesn't have any new ones left. But, I found them on eBay. The seller has over 30 of the black pliers versions left. <$10 after shipping. It is added to my purchase list for the weekend. 

I can't find them on ebay! 

[gerleatherberman]

Heu Exeter,

Here is the link I stumbled upon:
https://m.ebay.com/itm/Coast-Cutlery-C3900CP-12-Black-Pocket-Tool-Box-Multi-Tool-6-0-Overall-Length/400460437431?hash=item5d3d4d57b7%3Ag%3Ap-oAAOSwCCtbTfGl&_nkw=coast+C3900CP&_from=R40&rt=nc&_trksid=p2055413.m4084.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.Xcoast.TRS1

Hopefully that will work.

[Exeter]

Heu Exeter,

Here is the link I stumbled upon:
https://m.ebay.com/itm/Coast-Cutlery-C3900CP-12-Black-Pocket-Tool-Box-Multi-Tool-6-0-Overall-Length/400460437431?hash=item5d3d4d57b7%3Ag%3Ap-oAAOSwCCtbTfGl&_nkw=coast+C3900CP&_from=R40&rt=nc&_trksid=p2055413.m4084.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.Xcoast.TRS1

Hopefully that will work.

Thanks! Strange, I searched for it with every possible combination of coast, tool, box, pocket, the model name, and each on their own too, but it did not come up. Anyway, does not ship to Hungary.   

[ChopperCharles]

Note that the Amazon listing was for the MT3900CP, but the guy selling it was shipping the C3900CP. Which is why the reviews were so low. They appear to be sold out now, so only the eBay link will work. I'm debating snagging a few of these for xmas gifts while I can.

Charles.

[Exeter]

Note that the Amazon listing was for the MT3900CP, but the guy selling it was shipping the C3900CP. Which is why the reviews were so low. They appear to be sold out now, so only the eBay link will work. I'm debating snagging a few of these for xmas gifts while I can.

Charles.

Well, I already made an Amazon order and bought one from ebay. The first is for a MT3900CP and a C3900CP from the ebay seller. I hope I won't get the same tool twice!