You wanna guess what I got?

[Freudian Frog]

Dibs on #6! So no one can say I didn't call it... I'm covered!

[Poncho65]

Dibs on #6! So no one can say I didn't call it... I'm covered!

 

Yeah but Dave may have pet names for all of his LM and "6" may be a Micra still a nice tool have you but no riveted PST

So which 1 is mine again

[Freudian Frog]

Dibs on #6! So no one can say I didn't call it... I'm covered!

 

Yeah but Dave may have pet names for all of his LM and "6" may be a Micra still a nice tool have you but no riveted PST

So which 1 is mine again

I do believe I was refering to Dave's handy dandy old PST list where the sixth entry mirrors the first!

EDIT: Atleast, I hope I was anyway. It's not like I'd know what I was doing. =(

[MultiMat]

Fu#k me Dave , I can not believe you got 5 Riveted PST's ( sorry I am a Aussie & we are prone to expletives ) . Wow mate what a fab envelope to get . Welcome to "Club Riveted" it is a cool place to be 
Congrats again mate the quest for the holy grail has ended 
5....5.....5.....
BTW that is not some photo shop devilry  , 5 , that has to be a record 

[Benner]

Man what a haul

I would say that it might go like this without actually holding and looking at them

Number 2 maybe the oldest followed by possibly 3 then 1 and six with 4 a 5 finishing out the list

that is just speculative of course

so your list is ordered like this 2,3,1,6,4,5 of course I really have no actual idea where 4 falls in so it may be the oldest

Actually I was thinking 4 was the oldest.

[DaveK]

Actually there only four riveted tools there - two have the knurled screws!

Of the four, three are different in some way, (i.e. two are the same).

Ben - I think you're right - #4 would be the oldest, purely based on the fact that there's no lanyard attachment - however, the lack of any branding on the handles means I can't be sure it isn't some kind of hybrid. It's definitely a Leatherman, and the tools are the same as the riveted models, but why it doesn't say "Leatherman" on the handles - I have no clue. 

As for the spare, I will almost certainly be selling it. It is as the one listed as #1. Guys, I would have done a giveaway, but my current financial predicament won't allow me - sorry. I need the cash

I really need to think about how much I would sell it for - feel free to make offers by PM - sorry if it looks like I'm being greedy

[Benner]

I really need to think about how much I would sell it for - feel free to make offers by PM - sorry if it looks like I'm being greedy

Certainly not buddy.  You are making something difficult to find accessable to the other members. 

[MultiMat]

  4 is a amazing haul mate. I lost count as I scrolled pic across  or  maybe just partially blinded by all that Riveted beauty in the one pic 

[Poncho65]

Man what a haul

I would say that it might go like this without actually holding and looking at them

Number 2 maybe the oldest followed by possibly 3 then 1 and six with 4 a 5 finishing out the list

that is just speculative of course

so your list is ordered like this 2,3,1,6,4,5 of course I really have no actual idea where 4 falls in so it may be the oldest

Actually I was thinking 4 was the oldest.

Yeah once I did the list I did 2 that's why I put that at the end of my post about not knowing about 4 and now I remember that the first ones were knurled screws forgot about that so put 4 at the front and then back with my list on the rest

[J-sews]

A bunch of real gems you've got there Dave! Amazing that they all came from the same source. Congrats!

[kwakster]

Dave, did you know all these riveted PST's were made by a Japanese company called Mitsuboshi ?

[DaveK]

Dave, did you know all these riveted PST's were made by a Japanese company called Mitsuboshi ?

No I didn't!

We were told (by Tim Leatherman himself no less), that some of the PSTs were subcontracted to "Japan", but I don't think we were told the name of the company that was used.

Here's the lowdown from the man himself:

"From day one, in 1983, we have had our factory here in Portland, Oregon, from which we produced more than 10 million PSTs.  From late 1985 until early 1989, in an attempt to fill exponential demand, we also had about 300,000 PSTs produced in Japan.  The easiest way to identify the Japan PSTs is that they used rivets, with smooth heads, instead of pins and screws, with knurled heads to connect the blades and jaws to the handles.
 
The blogger is correct that in the early years we were making changes too numerous to go back and catalog.  The slight variations in the PSTs were caused by subtle changes in design, changes in manufacturing methods, and changes in parts due to changes of suppliers.   
 
The approximate date of production for PSTs after November, 1992 is fairly easy to ascertain.  Starting in November, 1992, there is a date stamp, month and year, in the bottom of the inside of the handles.  The 4 digit date stamp, for example 1192, shows the month and year we blanked the handles in the punch presses in our factory.  The blanked handles went into finished tools within a month or so, after completing all the other operations that were done on the handles, and all the other parts that go into a PST, and after assembly of the tool.  After that the tools would have been in inventory at our factory, perhaps for only a few days or perhaps longer, depending on demand and season, and then shipped to our customers, and subsequently sold to consumers.
 
Another complication of identifying the age of tools is that a tool that came back for warranty could have a hodgepodge of parts.  For the most part we replaced damaged parts with new parts, but on the other hand we sometimes replaced damaged parts with older parts, still good, cannibalized from older tools."

Discussed on this thread here

One of the interesting (confusing) aspects of the riveted models, is that there are three variations of those alone. Two use solid rivets front and back with blade tang marked Japan, one has solid rivets front and back, blade tang marked simply "Leatherman", one has hollow rivets at the back, with blade tang marked simply "Leatherman".

I think we'll never come up with a definitive pattern, particularly given Tim's "hodgepodge" comment above, but we can certainly catalogue the major changes and variations - so keep the input coming guys!

[DaveK]

Hey look:

here's a picture of a PST and a Mini tool on mitsuboshicutlery.jp

 

Good call Kwakster 

[DaveK]

The plot thickens:

Oct 1986      Established “Leatherman Tool Japan Co.,Ltd.” under a joint investment with Leatherman Tool Inc., USA

[J-sews]

Heeeeyyy! That's pretty interesting stuff! Thanks for the lead kwakster!



Ooh, and the PST they have pictured looks to have the typical Japanese drop point knife blade, and the left-hand can opener.

[Sea Monster]

I suspect you'll be getting a visit from some very polite yet sinister gentlemen in bowler hats if you continue your "investigations" eh?

[J-sews]

I suspect you'll be getting a visit from some very polite yet sinister gentlemen in bowler hats if you continue your "investigations" eh?

Urm....now that you mention it I did notice these chaps out in front of my house earlier today.