I have owned Leatherman tools for a long time. The last one I bought was a wingman and I have been pretty unhappy with it the screw driver in particular . Has broken twice when screwing a screw that wasn't tight....pretty ridiculous. So today I went to Lowe's to see what they had and they had a Gerber suspension nxt. Haven't used it yet but it seems pretty solid anyone have one and have any experience? To top off my reason to not buy another Leatherman was because I asked for a replacement part they said I had to send it in.... Ok fine..sent it in when I got it back the washer for the blade was missing making it hard to open and the blade was all resharpened and the bevel was messed up. Very fine bevel on one side and a large bevel on the other side. Sad I like where Leatherman started and how they came about but not a fan of their service.
Changed multi tool brands
- Thread starter ram_man
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Practice with your pocketbook will speak louder. Im interested in your findings of switching so keep us in the loop.
I quit using both Leatherman and Gerbers when both of my issued ones broke. Both companies shrugged at me and said "well, our warranty doesn't cover if used in a combat zone" or something along those lines. I'd have to find the emails.
I contacted a few companies at the time to see if they would ship to APOs as well as had a warranty that covered the situation I was in, surprisingly Victorinox replied and inquired about how I broke the two other brands. They asked if I could send the competitors brands I had to them to look at them (Leatherman pliers snapped, gerber had a few attachments break off iirc)
Anyway, long story short, they sent me a Swisstool X for free, I sent them the Leatherman and Gerber, and they told me at the end of my deployment to send it in for a new replacement (I guess to see what happens to their tools in these conditions)
I sent it in. Got a new one, a few months later I got my old swisstool back from Switzerland (surprisingly) with a thank you letter and the knives factory sharpened. Was told to keep both since I sent them two competitors for R&D. Still own and use both everyday. Ones always in the truck, ones always at work.
Makes me wonder if the Swisstool X I used was part of the improvements that became the Swisstool BS
Anyway, make sure to look over the warranty on the Gerber, in my experience the claims dept sucks.
I contacted a few companies at the time to see if they would ship to APOs as well as had a warranty that covered the situation I was in, surprisingly Victorinox replied and inquired about how I broke the two other brands. They asked if I could send the competitors brands I had to them to look at them (Leatherman pliers snapped, gerber had a few attachments break off iirc)
Anyway, long story short, they sent me a Swisstool X for free, I sent them the Leatherman and Gerber, and they told me at the end of my deployment to send it in for a new replacement (I guess to see what happens to their tools in these conditions)
I sent it in. Got a new one, a few months later I got my old swisstool back from Switzerland (surprisingly) with a thank you letter and the knives factory sharpened. Was told to keep both since I sent them two competitors for R&D. Still own and use both everyday. Ones always in the truck, ones always at work.
Makes me wonder if the Swisstool X I used was part of the improvements that became the Swisstool BS
Anyway, make sure to look over the warranty on the Gerber, in my experience the claims dept sucks.
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A Swiss tool is definitely in my future as I have heard they are a quality product. My birthday is in September and my fiance knows I want one so maybe in the near future. The Gerber seems decent for the money. But time will tell. That's an awesome story and should be on a testimonial page for them or something. You would think the other two brands would stand behind our men and women in uniform like that. Thank you for your service as well!
Originally Posted by GumbyJarvis
I quit using both Leatherman and Gerbers when both of my issued ones broke. Both companies shrugged at me and said "well, our warranty doesn't cover if used in a combat zone" or something along those lines. I'd have to find the emails. Anyway, make sure to look over the warranty on the Gerber, in my experience the claims dept sucks.
The TRICK is, wait until you are stateside again,
and don't mention anything about a combat zone - -
and Gerber will refurbish the tool completely.
I quit using both Leatherman and Gerbers when both of my issued ones broke. Both companies shrugged at me and said "well, our warranty doesn't cover if used in a combat zone" or something along those lines. I'd have to find the emails. Anyway, make sure to look over the warranty on the Gerber, in my experience the claims dept sucks.
The TRICK is, wait until you are stateside again,
and don't mention anything about a combat zone - -
and Gerber will refurbish the tool completely.
AZjeff
$50 Site Donor 2023
One would hope that the Victorinox tool at over $100 would be better than the Gerber at $30 and the Leatherman at around $50 that the OP is talking about.
Originally Posted by AZjeff
One would hope that the Victorinox tool at over $100 would be better than the Gerber at $30 and the Leatherman at around $50 that the OP is talking about.
Wow, I did not realize the price had gone up that much for the Leatherman Wingman. Mine is several years old and cost around $30, now they are $60 on Amazon.
One would hope that the Victorinox tool at over $100 would be better than the Gerber at $30 and the Leatherman at around $50 that the OP is talking about.
Wow, I did not realize the price had gone up that much for the Leatherman Wingman. Mine is several years old and cost around $30, now they are $60 on Amazon.
If anyone is looking for a more budget friendly but still well made multi tool, check out this Nextool one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MX7M9L3
I got it for around $30 during Prime Day. I'd say the quality is pretty good, but I haven't had a chance to put it to any serious work yet. I love the scissors on it.
![[Linked Image]](https://i.imgur.com/ki35elF.jpg "[Linked Image]")
![[Linked Image]](https://i.imgur.com/RthjYWy.jpg "[Linked Image]")
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MX7M9L3
I got it for around $30 during Prime Day. I'd say the quality is pretty good, but I haven't had a chance to put it to any serious work yet. I love the scissors on it.
I have a Letherman Surge that has been back to the mothership three times for repairs. No charge. The first two times, it was replaced with a new one. The last time (about 4 months ago) it was returned to me, repaired (not sharpened though). What broke you might ask? 1. the mount for the saw blade (probably should have used a proper pruning saw on that limb.) 2. A plier jaw snapped... should have used a proper wrench, but I was desperate. 3. Snapped the big screw driver, shouldn't use it as a lever. The repairs took about two weeks as I recall. I have a 2nd Surge that I use as a backup. I carry it on my belt and use it everyday; I'm lost without it.
I always use an app on my phone for screws because everyone knows the right tool for the job is nonsense.
Originally Posted by Linctex
Originally Posted by GumbyJarvis
I quit using both Leatherman and Gerbers when both of my issued ones broke. Both companies shrugged at me and said "well, our warranty doesn't cover if used in a combat zone" or something along those lines. I'd have to find the emails. Anyway, make sure to look over the warranty on the Gerber, in my experience the claims dept sucks.
The TRICK is, wait until you are stateside again,
and don't mention anything about a combat zone - -
and Gerber will refurbish the tool completely.
Not when you need a tool now for inspections and nobody at the time shipped to apos
Originally Posted by GumbyJarvis
I quit using both Leatherman and Gerbers when both of my issued ones broke. Both companies shrugged at me and said "well, our warranty doesn't cover if used in a combat zone" or something along those lines. I'd have to find the emails. Anyway, make sure to look over the warranty on the Gerber, in my experience the claims dept sucks.
The TRICK is, wait until you are stateside again,
and don't mention anything about a combat zone - -
and Gerber will refurbish the tool completely.
Not when you need a tool now for inspections and nobody at the time shipped to apos
Thanks for this thread. I've lost most of my multitools and need new ones.
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
If anyone is looking for a more budget friendly but still well made multi tool, check out this Nextool one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MX7M9L3
I got it for around $30 during Prime Day. I'd say the quality is pretty good, but I haven't had a chance to put it to any serious work yet. I love the scissors on it.
Looks nice in the picture I'm going to give that a look when I get to out condo tonight. I'm driving to Destin for vacation.
If anyone is looking for a more budget friendly but still well made multi tool, check out this Nextool one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MX7M9L3
I got it for around $30 during Prime Day. I'd say the quality is pretty good, but I haven't had a chance to put it to any serious work yet. I love the scissors on it.
Looks nice in the picture I'm going to give that a look when I get to out condo tonight. I'm driving to Destin for vacation.
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