Brand · Knives & Tools
Leatherman makes pliers-based multi-tools: folding pliers with a knife, saw, screwdrivers and other tools tucked into the handles. The Leatherman multi-tool lineup runs from the keychain Micra up to the heavy-duty Surge, with full-size tools like the Wave, Rebar and Charge in the middle and open-frame Skeletool models for the pocket. Here's the thing: inside one brand, size decides most of it. Pick the size you'll actually carry, then the tools. (My grandson asked which one has the most tools. I asked him which tools he'd use. Long silence. Good silence.)
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On this site, Leatherman covers multi-tools first, with a few knives and a sheath alongside. Inside the multi-tools, the lineup sorts the way Leatherman's own beginner guide sorts it:
The grid filters by type and changes as listings come and go. So I'll write about the groups and what separates them, not about how many colors of Rebar are listed this week.
Most specs in the grid come from Amazon listings, and the grid marks those values. Where I quote weights and blade lengths below, they're from Leatherman's own product pages.
The Wave Plus is the one Leatherman's guide picks as its full-size example. Per Leatherman's page: 18 tools, 8.5 oz, 4 in closed, a 2.92-in 420HC primary blade, and outside-accessible tools you can open without unfolding the pliers. Every feature except the plier head locks. The wire cutter and hard-wire cutter are replaceable.
Outside-accessible matters with gloves on. You can open the blade or the saw with the handles still closed. On a cold stand, that's one less thing to fumble.
The Rebar is the box-style full-size tool. Per Leatherman's page: 17 tools, 6.65 oz, 4 in closed, a 2.9-in 420HC drop-point blade, a saw, and replaceable wire and hard-wire cutters. Leatherman says its design takes cues from the original 1983 tool. The Rebar doesn't come with a sheath; Leatherman sells one separately.
The Knifeless Rebar is the same idea without a blade, per its listing: pliers, saw, scissors, wire cutters. It's for places where a blade isn't allowed. Check before you carry it there, not after.
The Charge Plus TTi is the premium full-size. Per Leatherman's page: titanium handles, an S30V primary blade plus a 420HC serrated blade, 4 in closed, large and small bit drivers, and replaceable wire and hard-wire cutters. 420HC is the stainless steel most of the rest of the lineup lists.
Three more full-size tools, per their listings:
The Sidekick and Wingman listings both call themselves affordable full-featured tools. The tool counts in the grid show the spread between the three.
The Signal is the outdoors-minded one. Per Leatherman's page: 19 tools, 7.5 oz, 4.5 in closed, a 2.73-in combo-edge blade, a built-in ferro rod (a sparking rod for starting fires), a safety whistle, a diamond-coated sharpener and a hammer surface for setting stakes. For a camp kit, it's the only one in the grid that brings fire and a whistle along.
The MUT comes with a black MOLLE sheath, per its listing, which also names replaceable wire cutters. The Bolster is the mid-size option, listed with pliers, a knife, a saw and screwdrivers.
The Surge is the big one. Per Leatherman's page: 21 tools, 12.5 oz, 4.5 in closed, a 3.1-in 420HC primary blade, four outside-opening tools, a large bit driver, and replaceable wire and hard-wire cutters. Leatherman's guide calls it the most popular heavy-duty model.
12.5 oz is close to a can of soup. On a belt, you'll feel it by lunch. In a truck door pocket or a camp toolbox, you won't. Plan where it lives before you buy it.
The Skeletool is an open-frame tool: fewer tools, less weight. Per Leatherman's page, the Skeletool has 7 tools, weighs 5 oz, is 4 in closed, with a 2.6-in 420HC combo-edge blade that locks, a carabiner that doubles as a bottle opener, a pocket clip and a large bit driver. The variants, per Leatherman's page:
Two compact pliers tools, per their listings and pages. The Rev lists pliers, a knife, wire cutters, screwdrivers and a package opener. The Bond, per Leatherman's page, has 14 tools, weighs 5.8 oz, is 4 in closed, with a 2.8-in 420HC blade. The Bond's blade doesn't lock; its page says so plainly. Some people want a lock and some want none, and knife carry rules vary by state. Know which you need.
The Micra is the keychain tool, per its listing: 10 tools, built around spring-action scissors, with a nail file, tweezers and a small blade. Leatherman's guide says all its scissors are spring-action, so they work one-handed. Mine would be for splinters and tag string, not for anything bigger.
Leatherman's beginner guide puts it in one line: the best multi-tool is the one you have with you. A Surge left in the truck does less than a Micra in your pocket. Rule of thumb: decide where it'll ride (belt, pocket, pack, toolbox) and buy the size that fits there.
My one opinion on this page: buy a multi-tool for its pliers and its blade, not for its tool count. The count includes everything. Leatherman's Wave Plus list includes a ruler, a can opener and a bottle opener among its 18. The Skeletool KBX lists as 2 tools: a blade and a bottle opener. Neither count tells you how good the pliers are. Check:
If you'll cut fence wire or snare wire, look for hard-wire cutters. Several full-size tools list replaceable ones, so a nicked cutter is a part, not a new tool. A bit driver takes standard bits; the Skeletool and Surge pages list a large bit driver.
Leatherman's warranty doesn't cover sheaths and accessories, and some tools ship without one (the Rebar page says sold separately). If you carry on a pack or vest with MOLLE webbing, the MOLLE nylon sheath in the grid fits that. Try the sheath on the belt you hunt in, over the coat you wear in November.
The multi-tool page lays out the type across brands, and the everyday carry knife page covers the pocket side.
Leatherman's maintenance page keeps it simple:
Sharpening angles from the same page: plain edges at 32 degrees total, 16 per side; serrated edges at 20 degrees, on the edged side only.
Don't take it apart. Leatherman says its tools are meant to be disassembled by factory-trained technicians only, and doing it yourself may void the warranty. I'm a shop teacher. I know the urge. Resist it.
Safety, plain: cut away from your body, keep fingers out of a folding blade's closing path, and don't use a blade as a pry bar or screwdriver. That's from AKTI's knife-safety guidance, and it applies to the blade in a multi-tool as much as to any knife. Knife carry rules vary by state, so check your state's rules.
Both make multi-tools and knives, and both say they build in Portland, Oregon. On this site the difference is in the mix:
Gerber's about page says it started in 1939 and is part of Fiskars Group. It sorts its multi-tools by one-hand opening, butterfly opening and keychain. The Gerber brand page has its lineup.
Same family, different weight class, per Leatherman's pages. The Surge: 21 tools, 12.5 oz, 4.5 in closed, 3.1-in blade, large bit driver. The Wave Plus: 18 tools, 8.5 oz, 4 in closed, 2.92-in blade. Both list 420HC blades, replaceable wire cutters and tools you can reach with the handles closed. The difference is about 4 oz and half an inch. Decide where it'll ride.
Different starting points. Leatherman's tools start from folding pliers. Victorinox's history page says it was founded in 1884 by Karl Elsener in Ibach, Switzerland, and that its Swiss Army Knife was patented in 1897. On this site, the Victorinox grid is mostly Swiss Army knives: blades and small tools without full pliers. If you need pliers, start with Leatherman's side. If you don't, the Victorinox brand page has its lineup.
Per Leatherman's pages, both are 4 in closed with about 2.9 in of 420HC blade and replaceable wire and hard-wire cutters. The Wave Plus: 18 tools, 8.5 oz, tools reachable with the handles closed. The Rebar: 17 tools, 6.65 oz, and its page doesn't list outside-accessible tools. The Rebar ships without a sheath.
Per Leatherman's pages, both are 4 in closed with a primary blade of about 2.9 in and replaceable wire and hard-wire cutters. The Wave Plus has stainless handles and a 420HC blade. The Charge Plus TTi has titanium handles, an S30V primary blade, a 420HC serrated blade and both large and small bit drivers. The choice comes down to blade steel and handle material.
Here's what I could verify on Leatherman's own pages:
Oil the pivots, wipe the blade, put it back in the sheath. A multi-tool on the hook by the door gets used. One in a drawer gets bought again.
There's no single one; it depends on carry and jobs. Leatherman's own guide sorts its tools into heavy-duty (the Surge), full size (the Wave Plus), pocket size (the Skeletool CX), keychain (the Micra) and knives. A heavier tool brings more and bigger tools; a smaller one gets carried more often. Pick the size you'll carry, then compare the blade, pliers and bit driver.
What the maker states is checkable: Leatherman says every tool comes from its factory in Portland, Oregon, lists 420HC stainless blades on most models, replaceable wire cutters on several full-size tools, and a 25-year limited warranty. Whether one suits you depends on how you'll carry it and which tools you need. The product grid on this page lists tool counts and features per model.
Leatherman's US warranty page lists a 25-year limited warranty from the date the user receives the tool, for the original owner, covering defects in materials or manufacturing. It excludes rust and corrosion, color finishes, sheaths and accessories, abuse, normal wear, and routine sharpening. Leatherman also warns that taking a tool apart yourself may void the warranty.
Leatherman's product pages say every Leatherman comes from its factory in Portland, Oregon, USA. Its story page says the company has built its tools there since 1983. The Bond's page adds a note that it's made with USA and global parts, so check the product page of the exact model if that matters to you.
On most models, yes. Leatherman's guide says almost all its knife blades lock in place. The Wave Plus page says every feature except the plier head locks. The Bond is an exception: its page lists the blade lock as no. Check the blade lock line on the maker's page before you buy, especially if you'll use the blade hard.
The product grid on this page links to Leatherman listings on Amazon US, filtered by type. The same model often appears in several colors as separate listings. Knives and multi-tools may not ship to every address; Amazon shows that at checkout. Knife carry rules vary by state, so check your state's rules.
