I got a Leatherman for Christmas this year (this one ) and am just getting around to seriously wanting to use rather than just play with it. My problem is that I can’t get the screwdriver attachments out without having another screwdriver to pry them out with. I read the manual thing that came with it, and it didn’t say anything about needing to oil it or anything, but something isn’t right.
What do I do to get this thing more usable and what if any maintenance does it need? I want this sucker to last me a while.
A drop or two of a light machine oil (3in1 oil) will free them up. I’d be careful about it if the blades don’t lock though. You don’t want them closing up on you when in use. Especially the knife blades.
I think my old leatherman saved my life years ago…
My boss at the time told me to take down a light which was on 480v, and when I asked him if the power was Off he said it was. Well I was just a young kid around 21 years old, and the next thing I know I am on this ladder leaning on a fire water sprinkler pipe because of the way I had to situate the ladder. See, there was this like tank of diluted suplheric acid/water mixture that was part of the company’s process to anodize aluminum. Anyways, I digress…
See I had to cut into the wires and with one hand on the fire sprinkler pipe and my other hand on my leatherman I used the wire cutter part to start biting into the wire’s insulation. As soon as the tool cut into the copper I got a hefty jolt that caused me to make this awful retching noise from about the middle of my chest on up out of my mouth, and because my leatherman didn’t have any springs or anything like that I think it indirectly saved my life. The leatherman replies on direct pressure from a person’s hand to continue the cut and by design as soon as pressure is released it stops ‘cutting’. I guess any old pair of cutters would do the same, so maybe it wasn’t my leatherman that ‘saved my life’ but I will always remember my trusty leatherman as saving my life.
I have a Leatherman wave, and the screwdrivers are a faff to deploy, relying on the availability of a strong fingernail. I am assuming this is because they have no locking mechanism and rely on stiffness to prevent them folding at an awkward moment. The blades lock, though.
Contacting Leatherman with your complaint may lead to satisfaction, though the oil tip will likely work.
Their service is astounding- I sent them a tool purchased when they first went into business,asking about repair costs.The sex bolts were shot.The knife’s tip had snapped off,too,entirely my fault,which I stated in my request.They sent a new tool,or perhaps my old one,unrecognisable,no fee and no comment.
This thread inspired me to call Leatherman customer service in the UK. Over the years, I have broken the tip off one bit of the pliers, and twisted the end of the small screwdriver on my Wave.
I explained that I didn’t have a receipt (I got it at Target for $70 in 1998) and that I was responsible for the damage. “No love,” said the lady, “that’s under warranty. Just send it in and we’ll fix it for free.”
Damn, that’s good service. My customer loyalty has just gone through the roof.
I own just about every Juice model ever made, and they all have very stiff screwdrivers. In fact, everything that pivots at that end of the tool is stiff. Use will break it in bit, as will a little oil. But you don’t want those tools loose by any means.
