Voted Off My Keychain
Written: Oct 13 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Tool selection,size.
Cons: Scissors not stellar,prone to rust.
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| dynaryder's Full Review: Leatherman Tool Leatherman Micra Multitool |
Well,after only two months,my Leatherman Micra has been voted off my 'keychain' (a splitring w/a Victorinox Classic,a Sebertech M4,a white Photon II,and one door key). It just couldn't make the cut.
When I first bought it I was impressed. Taking it out of the package,it had a definite snap when opened and closed,a trait unique among the Leatherman family. It also had a decent-sized and very sharp knife. Unfortunately,my high hopes started to dissolve after my first test. Since the main function of the tool is the scissors,I decided to acid test them by cutting up the packaging the tool came in. It cut through the cardboard insert with no probs,but had some difficulty chomping through the two layers of plastic blister pack. In fact,when cutting through the blister part,the tool actually flexed quite a bit at the pivot point. Just for comparison's sake,I pulled out the tiny scissors on my Swiss Army Classic knife. They went through both the cardboard and the plastic just as well as the Micra,despite being about half the size. Cutting through the plastic blister required a little more effort,but there was no flex. For further comparison,I pulled out my Victorinox Swiss Champ. The scissors on this knife are about the same size as the Micra's. The Swiss Champ went through the cardboard with ease,and went through the plastic with less effort. Since the Micra's primary use is as scissors,this was rather disappointing.
Next I carried the tool on my 'keychain'(see above) for the next two months,and compared it to the Classic knife and M4 tool. The Micra is almost twice the size of the Classic and about the same size as the M4. The M4 is shorter,but the Micra is thinner. None of the Micra's blades lock,like the M4's,but on a tool this small you're really not going to try any big jobs anyway. Having the knife blade lock would be nice,though. It would also be nice if the tools could be accessed with the handles closed, like the M4.
The fingernail file is sort of a combination of the Classic's and M4's. It has the rough surface of the Classic,with the undernail-cleaning hook of the M4. The rough surface design actually works better on nails than the M4's grooved file. The tweezers are equal to the M4's,but not as good as the Classic's. The SAK's (swiss army knife) tweezers are removable for ease of use and have an easier time grasping really tiny objects. Past experience has shown me that nothing tops SAK tweezers for removing splinters. The flat and Phillips screwdriver blades work just as good as the M4's,despite the fact that the Phillips is flat. The drivers don't lock like the M4's,but I found a trick to get around this. Simply unfold the driver,close the handles,then fold the blade back down as far as it will go. This effectively locks it at an angle similar to the 'Snoopy wrenches' we had on the flightline. By placing your thumb on top of the blade,you can put a surprising amount of oomph behind it without the blade slipping. The Micra's bottle opener is slightly better than the M4's do to it's greater thickness,but not as good as the one's on other pocket models of SAK's(like the Rambler and Minichamp). The measuring scales are typical Leatherman,which is to say not very good. They run down the back spine of the handles,so you can't lay the tool flat to measure something or use it as a straightedge. There's also a sizable gap in the middle of the ruler due to the pivot point,and the numbers are somewhat jumbled together due to both scales sharing the same surface. C'mon Tim,put your name on the spine and run the ruler down the sides of your tools. Finally,although the knife is of decent size and very sharp,it can sometimes get fouled by the placement of the lanyard ring.
A final note to durability. Although I haven't carried the Micra for very long,I have two friends who have had them on their keychains for long periods of time. Both have complained about rusting. My Swiss Army Classic has been on my keychain for 8 _years_ without a speck of rust. The only oil it's ever seen was from the factory,it's never known WD-40,and the only maintenance I've ever done is run a Qtip through the troughs to clean out pocket lint. In fact,I've seen a couple Leathermans with rust,but neither mine or any of my Father's Swiss Army knives have ever had a speck. Something else for Tim Leatherman to look into.
In conclusion,the Micra just didn't make the cut to stay on the keyring. For less money,you can get a Swiss Army knife that will do everything the Micra does,and is smaller and lighter to boot. For the same price and weight,the Sebertech M4 does the job,only it has pliers instead of scissors. In the end it wasn't a voting alliance between the other tools that sent the Micra to the gadget drawer,it was the cost and functionality equation.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
dynaryder
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Member: Gil Nissley
Location: Washington DC
Reviews written: 14
Trusted by: 2 members
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