Gerber Crucial SC review

[Higgins617]

So this is my first review so please comment and tell me what to work on so I can do better next time. Kampfer did a great photo comparison between the Crucial and the Skeletool which is certainly in the same weight-class, so I don't want to photo-saturate this. This isn't a tool that really drew me in, but I told someone to grab it for me as a gift as they didn't know what to get for me. I was prompted to write this review due to the fact that there are a few things that I was not expecting, and some that left me scratching my head. So without further Adieu, here's my thoughts.

Facts:
The Crucial Strapcutter is listed on Gerber's site as a tactical offering, and "offers an entire toolbox of full-sized components in one rugged stainless steel package".
The tool gives you the typical Gerber flat philips, a smaller mid-size flathead, a reverse-tanto half serrated blade, the strap cutter, and obviously needlenose pliers with anvil cutters. Also, it does have a pretty respectable pocket clip as well.




Length Closed:3.6"
Length Opened:5.5"
Weight:5 oz
MSRP:$50(DON'T PAY THAT)

The steel used for the blade isn't given, but if I had to guess I'm going to go with something around 3cr13mov but that's just my feeling on it.

Initial thoughts:

Why is this thing so wide!!!! You look at it in the package and think, oh, cool, a small and minimalist multitool. It's minimal in tool offerings, but I certainly wouldn't say so in size. It isn't exceptionally big, but for what it is I was honestly expecting it to be around half as wide as it is. You'll know it's there.


Fit and Finish on the tool is pretty much on par with other non-us made Gerbers. This means that it isn't all that spectacular. The first thing that jumped out at me in this regard is with the scales. I've only really fiddled with this tool and the scales on the pivot side rub so much that it has worn material away on both scales. You can see that it's shiny where it shouldn't be. It has the fit and finish of a sub-20 dollar tool, which it was.


Tool Assesment:
The tool really isn't for anything tactical, just Gerber painting something black and pretending that changes what it is. This is a light use tool through and through and should be viewed as such. The blade though, is a big meaty hunk of steel without the slightest hint of play and a good, solid liner lock. It came sharp, though with a wide grind, this blade certainly isn't an agile slicer. The Sidekick's cutting surface is just a tad longer, but honestly the Crucial's blade is almost twice as thick at the spine.



This is probably the most pleasant surprise for this tool, sadly the blade is on it's own. The drivers are adequate, though painfully stubby, they provide very minimal reach, but they do have individual liner locks. The flathead also seems to be some sort of in-between size which really doesn't work too well to be quite honest.

 
The pliers, which should be the focus of the tool, are just so thin! At the tips, they are the same width as the pliers on the Gerber Dime keychain tool, and they don't get much thicker going from there. To have the tool be this wide, yet the pliers be that thin, I don't see the thought process there. They're sloppy, unevenly ground tips, slight wiggle in the pivot, and a gritty feel as they open and close.


Finally, the strapcutter is formed from the same metal stock as the blade, meaning it is thick and formidable. It also has the larger, sturdier liner lock like the blade. It rips through nylon straps with ease, no complaints there. Also, the hole at the base of it looks as though it may be useful as an oxygen tank wrench? But I don't have access to one, so I really have no clue.

Ergonomics:
All in all, not too bad. But this is if, and only if, you hold the non-blade side to your palm. Decent curvature to the handles to minimize the tendency for your hands to feel like they want to move up or down the handles. The drivers aren't actually inline with the tool, which makes them a bit less enjoyable to use. The clip doesn't get in the way of using the tool at all. Another headscratcher comes from the handles though. They taper from the plier end to the other end. It's like they knew this tool is far too wide for what it is, but rather than slimming it down, they just cut the width at one end. One scale is literally just bent, is that supposed to make it better?


Conclusion:
Despite what message I have conveyed so far, I don't find this to be a bad tool, just one that missed the mark. As a 16 dollar tool, which it has been on sale at, this is a tool that I would have no problem tossing in my pocket on a day I don't plan on seeing tons of use. Were it not so wide, it wouldn't be a bad tool for someone who typically only carries a folder, as it offers an above average blade as well as added utility. Gerber needs to slow down a bit and think things through completely, rather than just pumping out tool after tool. All criticisms aside, every tool offered by the Crucial does it's job adequately, save for the flathead. Just don't plan on the pliers doing much more than moving food off a fire at camp and similar tasks. Not a bad tool to toss in a hiking pack and just forget about until you need it.

Pros
-Cheap and decently good looking
-All tools lock up, and solidly
-Blade will likely survive a nuclear apocalypse

Cons
-Poor fit and finish
-Pliers that weren't fed enough meat and potatoes
-IT'S FATTTTTT

Thanks for reading, let me know what you think

[dks]

Nice.

Maybe, for future work, you could add a sideways picture of the blade and some comparison pictures with another, well known, tool.     

[Higgins617]

Nice.

Maybe, for future work, you could add a sideways picture of the blade and some comparison pictures with another, well known, tool.     

I'll take care of that in a moment actually, I have the sideways shot, guess I forgot to post it! Thank you!

[Yadda]

The pliers are the most disappointing and distressing part of this tool. 

[Higgins617]

The pliers are the most disappointing and distressing part of this tool.

Without a doubt, they don't inspire any sort of confidence. In the shootout I did, they did manage to get the job done though. But due to the fact that they can be had at 10 bucks now, if you break it you won't be too concerned

[Gareth]

Nice review mate.

[Higgins617]

Nice review mate.

Thanks buddy

[AimlessWanderer]

Nice one Higgins 

I think you've highlighted the failings of this tool quite well, and congratulations of finding a few plus points too I only have a Ltd Ed Crucial with corkscrew and bottle opener (instead of the strap cutter) which is a bit different, but it still suffers everything you mentioned with the unnecessary bulk and puny pliers. It's hard for this to fall into a mimimalist tool catergory when it's as bulky as other tools which carry more capability. Unlike you, I really don't like the ergonomics either, but then I tend to feel this way about everything that has assymetrical handles.

[Higgins617]

Nice one Higgins 

I think you've highlighted the failings of this tool quite well, and congratulations of finding a few plus points too I only have a Ltd Ed Crucial with corkscrew and bottle opener (instead of the strap cutter) which is a bit different, but it still suffers everything you mentioned with the unnecessary bulk and puny pliers. It's hard for this to fall into a mimimalist tool catergory when it's as bulky as other tools which carry more capability. Unlike you, I really don't like the ergonomics either, but then I tend to feel this way about everything that has assymetrical handles.

Don't mistake that for liking, I was trying hard to be unbiased and said it wasn't too bad if you hold it the right way . That right there is a problem in itself, you shouldn't have to think twice about how you hold the thing.

It's an okay tool with no market. Too big to be minimalist, too minimal to compete with full sized, too half-smurfed to really draw any attention. One that will likely just drift into the pages of MT history as some footnote somewhere

Thank you for the response too, I like writing reviews if it'll get people talking

[Demel]

Nice review. I have a crucial fast (red) on the way and hope to give a similar review. How is the tool's weight?

[AimlessWanderer]

It's an okay tool with no market. Too big to be minimalist, too minimal to compete with full sized, too half-smurfed to really draw any attention. One that will likely just drift into the pages of MT history as some footnote somewhere

That is a damn fine summary for the Crucial 

[Higgins617]

It says 5 oz, but if you're anything like me that's merely just a number. It's light, but not impressively so. You won't really forget that it's there, but it is the same weight as the skeletool, which I can assume was the intended competition.

[Higgins617]

It's an okay tool with no market. Too big to be minimalist, too minimal to compete with full sized, too half-smurfed to really draw any attention. One that will likely just drift into the pages of MT history as some footnote somewhere

That is a damn fine summary for the Crucial 

I crack myself up

[babola]

Nice review of a tool that leaves you wanting for more, unfortunately.

So it's really a $30 strap cutter, although a decent one? 

Keep it up, looking forward to more of your reviews 

[Higgins617]

Nice review of a tool that leaves you wanting for more, unfortunately.

So it's really a $30 strap cutter, although a decent one? 

Keep it up, looking forward to more of your reviews 

Ahhh but wait! If you act right now I hear it can be all yours for a mere 10 bucks!!! For around that price it's not the worst thing you could pick up. But for 30? You'd use that money better if you tossed it out the window.

I appreciate the complement. I've been trying to only do tools that no everyone has, because what's the point of me reviewing the Sidekick when umpteen people already have and just about everyone has their minds made up about it.