best travel friendly keychain multi tool 2017

#BEST TRAVEL FRIENDLY KEYCHAIN MULTI TOOL 2017 DRIVER#
#BEST TRAVEL FRIENDLY KEYCHAIN MULTI TOOL 2017 PS4#

Gerber DimeĪs I mentioned in the intro, I bought this along with the Gerber Dime. It will get a bottle opened, but takes some work and is a far cry from the bottle opener on the Alox Cadet.

#BEST TRAVEL FRIENDLY KEYCHAIN MULTI TOOL 2017 DRIVER#

The flat head driver is about a quarter of an inch wide and works well. The “Phillips” driver is not a true 3-D driver, but it can work in a pinch. Both sides are abrasive and work great for small jobs. One side is a single cut file, the other is double cut. It’s over an inch long and is double sided. The file is possibly my favorite tool on the Squirt. It’s a slip joint, but if you are smart with it you will be fine. It won’t win and edge retention competitions but in a pinch it will open a piece of mail or shave down a piece of wood. It is flat ground with a chisel edge, and comes sharp out of the box. The knife blade is small but serviceable. They can be great for when you need to trim something small or make a delicate cut, like trimming away heat shrink from a wire. That said they are sharp, spring loaded, and certainly cut.

They cut, and can work for delicate tasks, but I wouldn’t want to use them for a lot of cutting. I think that feature is right up there with spring loaded pliers. That may seem like a small detail in theory, but in practice being able to access the tools without opening up the pliers is huge. All but the wire cutter can be accessed from the outside without opening up the tool. This is a nice list of commonly used tools.

Phillips Driver (small flathead driver).

The Squirt comes with an assortment of 7 additional tools to the pliers. In fact, these pliers are great for getting into places that are too tight for my fat fingers. The jaws open to over an inch wide but are better for smaller tasks. They can certainly pluck hair, and could probably pull a splinter in a pinch, but they are strong enough to be used to pull staples and manipulate small bolts. The pliers come to a nice tip and are almost fine enough to be used as tweezers. It’s not a disposable object, and it feels like you actually get something for your money.Īt the center of the Squirt is a small set of stainless steel pliers. This is a quality tool that is satisfying to articulate. The handle scales are hard anodized aluminum. There are no stray tooling marks and everything goes where it should. The tools themselves are all nicely finished. The action of the springs are all high quality. Of course there is nothing wrong if you want to make this a daily carry object as well.Īnd on the subject of price, I still can’t believe how nicely made these small Leatherman tools are for the money. They may not be a true “EDC” piece for me, but for around $25 most can afford to have this be a dedicated tool for their car, as part of a little tool kit, survival kit etc. That is primarily how I like to use these small multi-tools. This is a small tool and can be easily stowed in a pocket, or strategically tucked away in a tool kit, vehicle, or tackle box.

#BEST TRAVEL FRIENDLY KEYCHAIN MULTI TOOL 2017 PS4#

The PS4 is advertised as a “keychain multi-tool”, and while technically you could carry this on your keychain, I’m not sure if you would want to. The Squirt is a little thicker, but the Micra is a little longer. This tool is similar in size to the Micra. The Squirt has an overall length of 2.25″ (closed), weighs 2.1 ounces, and is made in the USA. It seemed like a natural succession to my review of the Micra so I decided to pick one up along with a Gerber Dime to test out this segment of the multi-tool market. It’s roughly the same footprint as the Micra, but based around a small set of spring loaded pliers rather than scissors.

I think most people associate multi-tools with pliers-centric designs. While the Micra is a great tool, it is based around scissors. Knives will always be my first love (and main focal point of the website), but you can’t deny the practicality of a multi-tool.

Great points were made about how much utility is packed into some of Leatherman’s smallest offerings, and how it’s sometimes more acceptable to whip out a multi-tool than a pocket knife. My Leatherman Micra review sparked some pretty excellent responses in the comments section. We may get paid an affiliate commission if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of the links on this web page.

Best travel friendly keychain multi tool 2017