What is a multitool anyway?

[Aloha]

What is this tool we carry on our belts, in bags, in pockets, or in our vehicles?  Lets look at the plier based too in particular.  The tool for me is about convenience.  You were mowing the lawn and suddenly your mower acted up?  No need to go back out to the garage if you got a MT on your hip.  Stopped by to check on an aging family member and they tell you this or that is not working properly?  If you have dedicated tools in your vehicle awesome if you have a MT on you pretty darn good.   

I work with a pressure washer sometimes and while I have dedicated tools on my vehicle I dont carry them as I'm working.  A MT is usually good enough should something need adjusting.  I work off ladders and every now and again something will need adjusting within arms reach so having a MT on my belt is terrific. 

I was installing a water line to my fridge and while I had a MT on my hip I knew using proper tools was the way to go in this instance.  There is a time a place when a MT is out matched by the task.  This particular situation is not something we generally discuss as what a we would use our MT for.  I think most know the limits to what their MT can accomplish.   

Inevitably someone always says to use real tools, I get it as do most around here.  Thing is, not every one works in a shop or setting where access to real tools is a few short steps away.  Not everyone works regularly with real tools.  I'd also say not everyone is carrying around a tool bog with real tools either.  There is no question that a basic set of real tools are superior to any MT. 

A MT as been described as a "compromise".  I don't think so.  The compromise is leaving a task undone while you go to get the real tools to complete the task.  Let me be clear in what I'm saying, if you have to fetch your tools and an hour or so passed before you can complete the task then I stand by what I said.  If the task can be completed with a turn of a MT driver or filing down a sharp edge then it surely isn't a compromise.     

Get a basic set of real tools and have them of those jobs that demand them.  Keep a MT on your hip or your pocket for those times when a simple fix is all thats needed. 

[Eyegor]

Very well put. It reminds of a slightly different analogy:
If I plan on cutting, making repairs, or otherwise needing specific tools, then I bring them. The MT is for when during my daily life the sudden need for tool use arises. Planned vs. Unplanned.

[Fortytwo]

You speak the truth. There's also something to say for a multitool even if you bring regular tools and that's when you end up needing two of the same, one to hold and one to twist. I have an unusually well stocked toolbag considering I'm a student and I live in a small apartment so the tools are never far off but still the multitools end up getting used.

[ducttapetech]

Well said Aloha. MT is great for trouble shooting also. You get a call, you go to where the problem is, check it out to see what is causing the problem and to access what you might need to fix the problem and half the time, that MT in your pocket or on your hip will will fix the problem right then and there.
Eyegor said it perfectly also. Planned verses unplanned. If I know I am walking into a big project or working in my shop, I rarely will use my Multi. But sometimes, the Multi is the right tool. Rather it's a SAK, or a SOG or whatever. I have limped tractors, combines and trucks back the shop to get fixed properly because of my Leatherman or SAK.

[Poncho65]

Great analogy and write up Aloha I may have a bag full of tools at work but never is there any screwdriver, pliers or the like on it That is where having a MT and a SAK really shine They bring with me tools that most bricklayers never have and have came in handy quite a few times

[Etherealicer]

I often think the MT is for the jobs you didn't expect.
I mean if plan on cutting your firewood with the saw of your MT, you are just silly. But when you are out on a hike and you need a stick, the saw is really handy.
If I have to put together half a dozen servers I take a PH1 screwdriver, but if I'm at a friends place and he ask me to look into his computer to see why its not working well the MT does the job well to open the case (after that it is always the same... clean the dust out ).
If I know I have to put together IKEA furniture, I bring my small power-drill. But if it is unexpected the MT works too.

[tosh]

I often think the MT is for the jobs you didn't expect.
I mean if plan on cutting your firewood with the saw of your MT, you are just silly. But when you are out on a hike and you need a stick, the saw is really handy.
If I have to put together half a dozen servers I take a PH1 screwdriver, but if I'm at a friends place and he ask me to look into his computer to see why its not working well the MT does the job well to open the case (after that it is always the same... clean the dust out ).
If I know I have to put together IKEA furniture, I bring my small power-drill. But if it is unexpected the MT works too.

I agree with you 100%
I remember when I bought my first MT, LM Wave. Really wanted to try it out so decided to use it in the loft to fit a pair of fluorescent strip lights, by the time I'd finished the first I decided to pop down into the garage and get proper tools....so much easier.
The Wave did the job of course, but it's no real substitute.

[Monrogue]

Well said by all.  I'm no handyman, and don't have much for "real" tools.  The MT is there for those minor things that may come up for me.  If a task comes up at home or wherever that requires real tools, then in most cases, I'm likely not the guy for the job anyway   As I said, I'm not a handyman, mechanic, plumber, etc.  I can assemble some things and whatnot, but I'm not a skilled tradesman by any means.

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