Loyalty to One Manufacturer

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

I know a lot of us have developed certain allegencies to one tool manufacturer or another, but why is that, and to what manufacturer . What is it that they do that keeps you coming back and parting with your hard earned cash time and again

It may suprise you to learn that I am infact a Swiss man , I just love the level of engineering that goes into them, the quality of manufacture, the top draw ergonomics and logical layout of the tool's, the fact that they have by far the most utility for a given size and weight, and there near total resistance to rust (I could go on )

Ok so let's keep this a nice civilized debate, and no knocking people's preference's

Over to you guy's

[Roadie]

I don't really have an allegiance to one brand, i'm just as happy using a Leatherman as i am using a SOG.

But i suppose i do have a particular love of Gerber you'll often find me defending and promoting them in various ways. To me they offer a bit more inspirational thinking than some of the other companies, yes some of their offerings are not particularly fantastic but they have some interesting design features in them non the less (like the Radius) They have a main stay of good solid tools (the MP series and the derivatives (diesel/freehand/flik)) which are excellent tools with a unique idea (sliding pliers)

So yeah GO GERBER!!

[I'm Still Bison]

I've got a split personality here...the first pocket knife I seriously lusted after was the Gerber Paul,and the folder I carried the longest was the Gerber LST,and the first full size "serious" multi-tool I bought was the Gerber Compact Sport.The first keyring multi I bought was the LM Micra.But I love Vic for the quality,and variety.

[Teofilo]

I collect Leatherman tools. I collect them because I love them: their quality, their styles amd because they are Leatherman! It's not just because of loyalty, its a sort of having a good feeling having many of them. I dunno, but maybe because LM MT is my first original multitool.

[NutSAK]

I've been an owner and user of Victorinox products for 25 years or so, and I've always been more than satisfied with the products.  The Swisstools are designed well and have the tool selection that I want, so I will continue to be loyal to them.

[Pacu]

I have no loyal following of any particular brand. Before i buy anything from multitools to my underwear i always do a bit of research to make sure i get the best one out their for my money. I don't mind paying a bit more for a brand if the quality is there.

However Leatherman is my current favourite brand. My Supertool....is well..Super after all.

[jock1]

I will always have a strong sense of loyalty to Victorinox as a vic was my first pocket knife I don't remember which model as it was a long time ago but ths forum has opened my eyes to the benefits of other peoples products particularly Gerber(Roadie is to thank for that)

[Roadie]

Roadie is to thank for that

I have my uses then

[David Bowen]

I am not really loyal to one brand or another, I kind of go with whatever works. Leatherman just seems to hit the spot more often then others. They are not the only brand I carry though, guess it depends on my mood.

David

[Anthony]

I feel comfortable carrying a Leatherman, a SOG, or a Vic; they each have their ups and downs.  Nothing from Gerber really strikes my fancy for an EDC.

[Benner]

I again don't really have a loyalty as such to a manufacturer, but as I like SAK's and the Swisstool I do tend to carry more Vic stuff than anything else.  That being said, I wouldn't rule out another manufacture simply because of their name.  If a company makes something I like the look of then I will try it.

[Dunc]

I'm very loyal to Victorinox but I dont always see this as a good thing , While I find their products virtually faultless it sometimes clouds my opinion of other brands . Just lately I've been trying to give other brands a chance . I know this sounds silly but I almost feel guilty 

Dunc

[scrappy]

I am probably not the only one here in this situation. I own more than a hundred multitools and close to a hundred swiss army knives. so my loyalty is spread across  a lot of manufacturers. my favorites are victorinox and leatherman. leatherman currently gets the most use. I also really like Bear MGC and SOG. Schrade is decent and I like the old school Gerber. the only brand that I have been disipointed with is gerber. still the folks there are great to work with.

[Leatherman123]

Well, from my UserName I think you can tell what my guess is. I like LM because they have great innovation. They have a tool for everybody. Plus, LM has the SURGE!!

[Poncho65]

I fancy myself to be a Leatherman man  but all the talk you guys do about the Swisstool. I am leaning toward one of those any suggestions?  Seems to me that the Swisstool has striking similarities to the PST, well considering size I guess it has similarities to original Supertool  maybe this is why I am drawn to it  So many choices so little time (and money )

[BIG-TARGET]

I fancy myself to be a Leatherman man  but all the talk you guys do about the Swisstool. I am leaning toward one of those any suggestions?  Seems to me that the Swisstool has striking similarities to the PST, well considering size I guess it has similarities to original Supertool  maybe this is why I am drawn to it  So many choices so little time (and money )

I've worked my way up from nothing into a state of extreme poverty

[NeitherExtreme]

I'm mostly an LM guy, but more in that those are what I actually buy rather than I think they're the be-all-end-all tools. My first tools just happened to be LMs, and I stuck with them, though I really like a lot of the tools out there by all of the reputable manufactuers. My biggest reason for buying LM only is that over the last few years I've been tight on $$ for one reason or another so I've had to streamline my buying. I just can't justify (right now) buying a Gerber, Vic, Wenger, SOG, Buck, CRKT, etc. etc. (Which of course is what I want to do.) I think each company has things they do better than the others, and places where they could improve, so that's why I like competition.

[Biru]

I've been a Bear fancier since I bought one as my first truly well-built tool. However, when I got into Leatherman, I found that while Bear had their points, Leatherman seemed-to me at least-more consistent in quality and offered that little bit of the indefinable that swayed me to them instead. When I got my Swisstool, the sheer quality and thoughtfulness in design nearly swayed me wholly to their brand. Only the Leatherman's relative simplicity of design keeps me there. Still, the aesthetics of Victorinox tools have of late drawn me back to them.

[ducktapehero]

I'm now a loyal fan of Victorinox. There are other good knife and tool makers out there but for the price I can't find anything that matches its quality AND consistency. Everything they make is quality, every time. I've owned good knives and tools from other companies but with most of these companies I've also owned something that wasn't so good. Not so with Victorinox. I have owned dozens of their products and I've never had 1 that even had a flaw, much less poor quality. And on top of all that, they're also priced about the same as the others. I don't have to spend double the price to get twice the quality.

[Anthony]

I think a big selling point for Leatherman is the one hand opening blades...aside from a few odd Gerber models, Leatherman is the only one who has one handed blades.

Now if the Swisstool had a big one handed plain Trekker blade on one handle, and a plain edged one handed Trekker blade on the other....

[Spoonrobot]

I just love multi-tools. To pick a favorite manufacturer would be too hard. Do I go with Leatherman for sheer variety? Victorinox for finish? Gerber for novelty? SOG for strength? CRKT for innovation?

I just like them all.

 

[Smitty44]

I've been a LM owner for 25 yrs now,the PST II and the Super Tool are still my favorite,and knowing they that thy will be fixed with no question gives me the warm fuzzies,I also like the versatility of the SOG's,and after reading most of the comments of other members,the Vic's sound really good,just as long as I don't have to work with a made in China tool,I'm pretty happy!!!

[BIG-TARGET]

I like them all, just depends n the situation I'm in

[bobofish]

I am not brand loyal in one sense, and I am fiercely brand loyal in another.
What I mean is that I never consider myself a "camel man" or a "marlboro man" (I hand roll anyway, that's just an example) because those kinds of companies don't care one bit about me, only about my money. I don't identify myself by the products I buy, or the brands they represent.

On the other hand when a company really goes out of their way to design something that works really well for me, and then goes out of their way to treat me well with warranty work, new designs, good customer service, etc. then they have me for life, until they screw that up somehow. When they make a serious effort to treat their employees well and keep their jobs in Western countries, I will buy that product and heavily recommend it as long as I am able.

So for example, I've been very happy with all the Leathermans I've had, and Leatherman would have to screw up royally to get me to change brands. Surefire, Benchmade and Channellock are other examples of companies whose products I will buy unless they screw up. Even when I might see a slightly better product somewhere else on the shelf or for a little less money, I will be loyal to those companies because they have consistently treated me well, and I have every expectation that they will continue to do so.

[powerring]

I own and use multitools from several manufacturers including Victorinox, Leatherman, Gerber and Buck.  All of them have their strong points. 

My dad carried Buck knives when I was a kid and I guess I still have a soft spot in my heart for them.  I've always found their knives to be of excellent quality and I carry a Buck X-tract almost daily (everything is usable one handed which is a priority for me).  Probably not the most popular multitool but a darn useful one.

I own a lot of Victorinox stuff, including a SwissTool Spirit, several Trekkers, Classics, and various Alox models.  Again, wonderful craftsmanship and quality all around.  To pick up a SwissTool Spirit is to love it (I wouldn't describe a lot of tools as beautiful but that one is).  I guess my very first knife was probably a LL Bean SAK made by Wenger (now part of Victorinox).

The Leatherman's are great too.  I like my Kick for just the basics and the Micra is surely one of the seven tiny wonders of the multitool world.  Nothing is more useful at its size and cost.  One of these days I need to get a Charge Ti. 

Gerber's like the Suspension line have a lot of neat ideas to offer, often at a very low cost.  I like a lot of the design elements in their tools and I've had good luck with many of their pocket knives.

[duckman1975]

I think a big selling point for Leatherman is the one hand opening blades...aside from a few odd Gerber models, Leatherman is the only one who has one handed blades.

Now if the Swisstool had a big one handed plain Trekker blade on one handle, and a plain edged one handed Trekker blade on the other....

I agree with you corrugated, I do hope vic would read your suggestion, a one handed opening plain Trekker blade on a swisstool would be cool and I would definetly buy one.
As long as a manufacturer makes a product with good quality and value for the money will stick to their products.