When I hear "multi-tool" I automatically think of my Leatherman. In actuality, however, a multi-tool is just about any multi-function tool. Like a Swiss-Army knife. Or a spork.
The other day, David shows me the day's deal at Tanga (http://tanga.com/). Tanga is kind of like Woot with its one-day-one-deal business model, except that it has fewer electronics and more weird stuff. On this particular day was the mother of all mult-tools.
I saw this and immediately had to own it. From the photo on Tanga all we could tell was that it had pliers, a hammer, an ax, and some swiss-army type knives. With all that, it must have been huge. Google quickly told us that similar tools were about 10 inches long. When it finally came in, we were surprised at its size.
I don't have huge hands and this thing was definitely not huge. It's a little too big to carry in one's pocket like my Leatherman, but it would fit nicely in a backpack, or a purse, or a glove box. It also came with a cheap nylon pouch that would fit on your belt if you went hiking or something. And the wooden handle inlay adds a touch of class and ruggedness to your hiking.
The most striking feature is obviously the axe-hammer on top. It's not a huge ax, but could definitely take out a small tree. The hammer would be good to hammer a tent-pole, or hang a picture, or break a window if your car is sinking in a flash flood. What might not be apparent at first glance is the pliers.
It's a pretty decent pair of lineman's pliers, complete with wire cutters. What really makes it stand out, to me, is the spring loaded handle. It's basically just a piece of metal that pushes the handle out, but it does its job well. And, it's got a really solid latch that holds it closed, so there's no worry of it coming open and pinching your balls off if you've got it in your pocket. It one-ups my leatherman in the pliers department. Of course, it doesn't JUST have an ax, a hammer, and some pliers. Like any good multi-tool, it's a got a slue other fold out tools.
I'll start at the top: A plain old straight blade. Nothing fancy, but required. Bottle Opener. Hex wrench (note the stepping... so it fits multiple sizes). Some kind of chisel, pry bar, screw driver thing. Phillips screw-driver. Saw. Serrated knife. Nail file. Flat-head screwdriver.
None of the blades lock, but it's a relatively small sacrifice, considering the the rest of the package. My favorite part is still the axe, though. There are many tools that have axes, such as survival type hatches and military entrenching tools, but how many people can say they've got an axe on their pocket knife? This is definitely the most unique knife in my collection.
I would highly recommend this tool to anybody. Even my mother was amazed by its functions. She said she uses her swiss-army knife all the time, but wishes it had a hammer. Which this sucker has. The only problem is that we got this one off of Tanga. It's kind of hard to find elsewhere. I've seen similar tools all over the internet, but nothing quite like it. Some have the axe and hammer, but not the pliers. Some have the pliers and hammer, but no axe. Others are just too expensive (we got this one at $25). So, if you can find a good deal on something like this, I'd nab it. It's just too cool.
Until next time,
~~Ben
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