Hey Matthew. I've heard a lot of good things about the SOG tools, from their folding knives to their multitools they seem to be a company making very high quality gear. My history with multitools is probably not as long as yours, but I've had a lot of them in the past. My first multi tool was the original Leatherman Supertool, boy that was a great tool. Sure hurt your hand when you really needed to put some torque on the pliers, but all steel construction and once you got it broken in it was like an old friend. That first tool was a gift from a family friend, and they engraved it with my name. I carried it on my belt in the included leather holster for years and the most it suffered was a bent small screwdriver, a case of soft steel not holding up to my abuse. Sadly that tool was stolen from me, but not before it had repaired everything from lawnmowers to computers, and been through airline security in several different US states. Those were the days, I'd hate to think what would happen if I tried to take a multi-tool on a plane today. Of course, I even got hassled in New York City recently for the knife I carry, a Kershaw Black Blur by Ken Onion, great tool. The officer didn't think my knife, or my friend's similar knife, passed as a tool... meanwhile my other friend's leatherman didn't seem to require him putting the fear of god into him. I didn't appreciate being threatened with arrest for not breaking the law, but I sure as hell wasn't going to argue with an officer with a chip on his shoulder. Sometimes New York City seems like another country, but I guess they have their problems and feel like they are dealing with them. Anyway, after my super tool was stolen I got into the Gerber tools. I don't know if they still are but at that time you could order a totally custom tool from Gerber online, with the flick out pliers, in custom colors, with whatever tool compliment you wanted. That was a great tool, it came in a nylon holster which wasn't as good as the leather that the Leatherman came with, but nice to be able to carry it on your belt. The tools in the Gerber held up well, although the support on the flick out pliers wasn't nearly as good so they'd start to give out early if you tried to put any torque on them. As a handy tool it was pretty good but they sure hardened the steel on it, so the small screwdriver shattered after a year or so, I don't know if that's worse than the small screwdriver on the Leatherman tool bending, either way a good way to have a whole array of tools "broken" by a failure in one of them. Long story short I finally got rid of that tool for reasons I can't remember and bought another Gerber tool, the name of which I can't remember. It folds open like the Leatherman, so the pliers are a lot better, and it has a removable carbide insert for the wire cutter which is also very handy. Still have that tool, it lives in my glovebox, and also has a shattered small screwdriver. I have since given up on multi-tools. I carry a knife because it is handy the vast majority of the time, and that is what I was mostly using those multi-tools for. When I need a screwdriver I need the right screwdriver, and when I am in a situation where I might need a screwdriver I simply make sure I have a set available. Much better to get the right driver than strip out a screw or break some small wireless pack or something trying to adjust the gain. The tools on the multi-tool are never the right size, and while it is handy to have pliers and a knife the rest of it seems like money wasted that could have been invested in good tools. That latest Gerber tool has been in my glovebox for three years now, through two cars, and I can't remember the last time I opened up the holster and used that tool. I use my knife almost every day, though, and it's a lot easier to keep an edge on it than worry about a whole shitload of maybe-useful tools attached to some pliers.
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Topic: I Love My SOG Multi Tool (Read 5551 times)