elf's Leatherman New Wave Multi-tool Review

The Leatherman New Wave multi-tool includes a leather and nylon belt-mounted holster with a snap enclosure and has the following tools:

• 420HC stainless steel needlenose pliers and regular pliers
• 420HC outside-accessible, one-hand opening via thumb-hole clip-point knife and serrated knife with frame lock
• Wire cutters and hard-wire cutters
• Saw
• Scissors
• Outside-accessible wood/metal file and diamond-coated file (can be used as a nail file)
• Large bit driver and small bit driver
• Large screwdriver
• Ruler (8 inches)
• Bottle/can opener
• Wire stripper
• Lanyard attachment (haven't found this)
• Two double-ended bits (Philips and Robertson but you can only carry one of the bits; unlike the Skeletool there is not storage area for the second bit)

It's known as the New Wave because the original Wave was re-designed in 2004 improving the capabilities of various tools.

My work needs for an every day carry (EDC) are quite modest: opening cardboard packages, cutting tape and plastic tie-wraps, tightening the odd Philips screw and prying something open. The tool also has to be lightweight if I am to carry it in my pocket. Weight is not an issue if I wear it on my belt.

Any additional features the multi-tool might have (Torx screwdriver, pliers and scissors have come in handy) are a bonus for home use as I don't have any tools and rely on my multi-tools.

I ordered the Leatherman New Wave Multitool with Leather/Nylon Combination Sheath on Thursday December 5 from Amazon.ca's Lightning Deal of the Day for CAD$ 73.44 ($76.57 - $11.58 discount + tax). I had been tracking the price and had seen it priced for $72.96 earlier in the year. I always use Free Super-Saver shipping (4-7 days) since I have infinite patience.

It shipped on Sunday Dec. 8 and arrived on Monday Dec. 9 via Canada Post, packaged in a medium-sized padded envelope.

This is the heaviest multi-tool I have used, weighing 322g (11.4 oz) including the pouch (320g, without). In the yellow and black Leatherman box was the multi-tool, the holster, a generic multi-fold-paper user guide and a Robertson double-ended bit in a tiny Ziploc baggie. The tool is wider at one end than the other. It opens at the narrower end.

I prefer the one-handed opening knives via thumb-hole because they can be operated with gloves. As with the Skeletool, the insides of the thumb-holes were very sharp, causing tiny surface cuts to my thumb when used. I rubbed the insides of thumb holes with a fine grit emery sandpaper to de-burr the sharp edges.

Pliers

I found the pliers very stiff when I opened them the first few times. I recall the Skeletool being smoother. There is also an additional stiffness at the final point of opening the pliers. I noticed a groove that was scratched on the face of the pliers after a few openings; it looks like something is rubbing against the face (referring to the photo on the right, notice the dark curved scratch on the bottom face where the plier mouth widens).

Philips Screwdriver

The multi-tool has to be opened to use the screwdriver as it is located on the inside of the frame. I noticed that when deploying the bit, the adjacent can/bottle opener also deploys and it has to be pushed back down. A minor annoyance. The tools opens naturally into an "L" pistol-shape with the screwdriver at the "barrel" end.

At work, I used the screwdriver to remove a plastic seat from a metal chair. The plastic backs on the aluminum tubing framed chairs in the computer labs tend to break when students lean on them. After the backs break, students continue to use the chairs without the backs. This is a safety issue so we unscrew the seats from the frames so the chairs can no longer be used.

After undoing 4 large screws, the black coating of the Philips bit had worn off and the silver of the bit was shining in two places. I have read complaints on Amazon.ca reviews that the extra set of bits "wore out" quickly. This experience seems to concur with those experiences.

Scissors

I also had the opportunity to use the scissors to trim my cuticle. The scissors were sharp and functional. The deployment of the scissors from the storage position is quite clever.

The belt holster is a combination of black leather on three sides and the top with a stretch nylon on the fourth side which I assume holds the cartridge with the extra bits. It has a a snap enclosure flap that secures the multi-tool. The leather is quite stiff and scratches the leather of the belt when it is first threaded through the belt-slot.

I insert the tool narrow side down because the knives are in the correct opsition for one handed opening when the tool is withdrwan from the holster. I recall that the pocket clip was in the "wrong" orientation on the Skeletool requiring you to flip the tool 180°, after withdrawing it, to access the knife.

The New Wave is a heavy-duty multi-tool that should be able to survive abuse. Due to its weight it is best carried in the belt-holster rather than in a pocket. The design of the tool is functional and useful. It would have been nice if the extra bit could have been stored in the tool itself or in the holster, which is cleverly designed.

I wasn't impressed with the scratches that began appearing on the surface of the pliers and with the wearing out of the black coating of the Philips bit after only a single use.

Victorinox still has the best quality of workmanship.

Recommendation

Final Score: 4.5 out of 5