The Wave, earning serious respect in home fix-r-up work

[Lynn LeFey]

I mentioned this the other day in the 'what did you use your multitool for today' thread, but I thought I'd give my Wave a serious shout-out for its exemplary showing this past week.

Today, it helped with the installation of cat doors. The can opener was used to mark pilot hole points for drilling 1/2" holes, later used to cut cat doors into two of the doors of the house. Flathead driver also used to remove one of the hinge pins of a door. Also used the small flathead flip bit to change the blade on my jigsaw.

Then, after having to kludge a solution for a cat door in a thin panel of an interior door, the pliers were used to shear off screws that stuck through the door, posing a slight poking hazard. The pliers snapped the wood screws off cleanly.

Yesterday, the wood file was used to make a slight groove in a shelf to let it fit into place.

It seems EVERYTHING we buy comes in bulletproof packaging. And every time, the OHO blades just flip out, take care of the task, and close easily.

I have now used every implement on the Wave in the last week. Every single one. Hah! Awesome.

It hasn't solved every problem, but it sure has saved me a LOT of running back to the tool box. I don't usually have a day-to-day need for a full size tool, but I am super impressed with it in these busy days of getting the house move-in ready.

[detron]

Very nice,  shows none of that tool is wasted.

I have a rule of thumb when moving, learned after moving constantly while in the Military.

the last thing you should pack up is the basic toolbox, and put it in the car with you.

it should be the first thing brought into the new house, since you will probably be needing it with setting up.

since most people here    seem to have a MT, this is not as crucial, but still a good rule.  it is VERY important for those who are     less prepared

[sawman]

The Wave indeed is an extremely capable tool. I've owned a Wave for many years and have myself used every single tool on it at one time or another. I must say though, that I'm liking some of the mods I'm seeing to Waves/Charges recently, such as replacing the scissors with an Awl which I think would better serve since I also carry a Style CS with me.

Keep us posted and best of luck getting set up in your new home

[AdmSlc]

Sounds like you had a busy weekend! Glad to hear the wave was always close.


-AdmSlc

[3rdpig]

At one time or another I've owned most of the multitools made, yet no matter what else I try I keep coming back to the Wave.  It just has more of what I need, less of what I don't and seems to annoy me less than the rest. 

I haven't gotten an OHT yet, sooner or later I probably will, but the short tools on it turn me off.  Short tools annoy me, they're frustrating enough in use that it forces me to go get a longer tool for a job that a tool with full length blades could have easily gotten done with little or no annoyance.

Can you tell, the "annoyance factor" is a big thing with me.  I used to write a blog called "Things that annoyed me today, a work in progress".  Now I just try to avoid being annoyed.

[Lynn LeFey]

I thought I'd give this another bump and a little update.

We've started cleaning our previous house to get it ready for sale, and the Wave is kicking butt!

We've had this light switch in our cellar that wasn't connected to a wall. It was connected to a loose board. Paired with a hammer, the Wave took care of it. Removed faceplate. Removed switch from box, helped pull reluctant wire from switch, screwed in screws onto the new location, removed outer wire insulation, cut ground wire, stripped other two wires, trimmed wires to correct length, screwed in screws to attach box to new location, reassembled switch and faceplate.

And I'd reported earlier that I had used every tool on the Wave since starting this move. I hadn't, actually. I hadn't used the wire stripper. Now I have. It works pretty well, although not great left handed. Much better right handed.

I think with just this move, the Wave would have been worth what I paid for it.

I thought I'd also give a particular note about the blades. I usually have no need for a serrated blade, but with all the boxes from new stuff, it's come in pretty handy. The plain edge is definitely getting the majority of the work, but it's nice to have the serrated too.

I find that using the drivers can get a bit rough on the hands for extended tasks, and there have been a number of places where I had to use a dedicated driver, due to awkward position or needing more reach, but generally, it's done great.

At the end of a long day last night, I tried popping a bottlecap off of a beer, and found the Wave particularly frustrating. It wasn't catching the lip of the cap. To date, this is the worst function fail of the Wave. It DID finally get the job done, though.

I have the pocket clip on mine, and I have to say, there's no forgetting it's there. It's not exactly a boat anchor, but not invisible in the weight department either.  I'm certain I wouldn't want to pocket carry it all the time.

[sawman]

With all the tasks you've performed, have you considered: would a Rebar have sufficed?

It's much lighter-weight and has all the same tools.

[Lynn LeFey]

The Rebar has no scissors (which i've needed a fair amount) and no mini driver (which I've needed twice). Also, it has no pocket clip. 

Otherwise, it's a good choice. I own one, and think it's a great tool.

[sawman]

The Rebar has no scissors (which i've needed a fair amount) and no mini driver (which I've needed twice). Also, it has no pocket clip. 

Otherwise, it's a good choice. I own one, and think it's a great tool.

What have you used the mini-driver for?

[Zed]

The Rebar has no scissors (which i've needed a fair amount) and no mini driver (which I've needed twice). Also, it has no pocket clip. 

Otherwise, it's a good choice. I own one, and think it's a great tool.

No diamond file as well  but i guess that is a price issue,both good mt's although i still prefere the og wave as slimmer and more compact, sounds like your getting on with stuff lynn 

[Lynn LeFey]

sawman: about the mini-driver, On the first day moving in, there were two 'screwless' door knob sets, that require something to be poked into a hole to release a catch that allows to door knob to come off. That was one use. The second was as a tiny pry tool to pull a reluctant hanging tab on a painting out far enough to catch a nail. It's weird the uses you come up with for any given tool.

Zed: Yep. LOVING it. I had a Wave and a Vic Spirit X, and traded the Wave away and kept the Spirit X. Had it for months, and started feeling like maybe I'd made the wrong decision about which to keep. The OHO blades on the Wave have been a MAJOR convenience in this. I'm sure the Spirit X would have been super handy in my situation as well, but I have no complaints. The Wave has really, REALLY impressed me.

[Zed]

The wave is the one mt i judge others by 

[Breezy12]

sawman: about the mini-driver, On the first day moving in, there were two 'screwless' door knob sets, that require something to be poked into a hole to release a catch that allows to door knob to come off. That was one use. The second was as a tiny pry tool to pull a reluctant hanging tab on a painting out far enough to catch a nail. It's weird the uses you come up with for any given tool.

well said, Lynn. really glad to hear your Wave is serving you well after you decided to give it another chance.

I have to agree with you about the can opener though... it's horrible for opening bottles. I've found it helps to use the tip of the can opener to lift the edge of the cap just a bit, then go after it with the opener -- it gets a better bite that way. (if this even makes sense...)

on a related note, this is why I tracked down a 91mm Vic combo tool to replace the can opener on one of my mods. of course, I haven't even gotten around to disassembling the SAK yet, much less trying to install it in the LM...

[Delta10]

Zed: Yep. LOVING it. I had a Wave and a Vic Spirit X, and traded the Wave away and kept the Spirit X. Had it for months, and started feeling like maybe I'd made the wrong decision about which to keep. The OHO blades on the Wave have been a MAJOR convenience in this. I'm sure the Spirit X would have been super handy in my situation as well, but I have no complaints. The Wave has really, REALLY impressed me.

I know what you mean. The original Wave was my first multitool back in the day. I have just become far too attached to outside opening blades. I've tried others, like the Rebar and even the Sideclip, but I just cant get comfortable with them. The Wave as always been my favorite tool, and I don't see that ever changing.

 

Also, I agree with Breezy on the can opener. If you're going to do a combo can/bottle opener, always lean towards the bottle opener side...