Seeking small, light multi tool with pliers and blade

Darell

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I'm looking for a small, light multi tool with pliers and a blade.

And yes, I have an embarrassing number of multi tools that each have pliers and a blade. What I'm looking for is something crazy small and light to carry in my bicycle tool kit. The ONLY items it needs is pliers and a blade - the reason is that I carry other tools that have everything else I need - but lack the pliers and blade that I've needed a couple of times now on recent rides.

This is the right idea:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001P81GH2/?tag=cpf0b6-20

But still too big and heavy (yeah, I know. The term is "weight weenie"). Take one blade out and shrink it by 1/4 and this would be ideal.

The tool doesn't need to be ultra durable. It DOES need to be of reasonably high quality though. It won't see a lot of use. But it needs to be useful when I need it!

If anybody has a brilliant idea for me, I'd love to hear it!
thanks!
 

Darell

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Hey Nighshade! Sorry to tell you, man. That IS brilliant! The only way I'd make it better is to lose half of the stuff offered, but man - this is REALLY close to my ideal. Ya done good! It appears to have TWO blades? Did they run out of creativity? :) Seriously, the weight and size are looking really good.

The gauntlet has been thrown down. Can anybody beat this?!
 

nightshade

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Oh..don't forget the LM Mini. http://www.leatherman.com/product/Mini_Tool
Now discontinued, but can sometimes be found on Ebay for a somewhat decent price.

The IDL tool is carried by a few lads at work, so is the LM Mini, usually as a supplement to a Victorinox or Wenger Swiss Army knife.
Or in my case, a Spyderench.
The second blade like tool on the IDL is actually a metal file. It can be sharpened or ground to a awl if desired.
Good luck on your search, let us know what you settle on.
 

Darell

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Yes, the Leatherman Mini is great. I have two of them. Too big and too heavy for what I'm looking for - but awesome to have with you at camp! I'm probably the first guy in history to be looking for the most incomplete "multi tool" available. :)
 

Darell

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Hey! I've got a Squirt around here somewhere! I always thought they were scissors only. Looks like they've improved them a bit. Thanks for the tip!
 

Mike 208

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Would a LM Freestyle be too big? Just pliers and a blade. One YouTube video has a LM employee discussing the Freestyle, and he says he carries the tool when mountain biking to augment his dedicated bike tools.
 

Norm

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I carry a blue Leatherman Squirt PS4 and my wife carries the same in red.
Norm
 
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Darell

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Would a LM Freestyle be too big? Just pliers and a blade. One YouTube video has a LM employee discussing the Freestyle, and he says he carries the tool when mountain biking to augment his dedicated bike tools.
Well, I love it... but twice the size and weight that I'm looking for. I carry one of my "full size" Leathermans on my mtn bike. My road bike kit is way smaller and lighter.

Neat that they make something that is just the two tools that I need. Now if they would just make the same two tools in a MINI tool, the search would be over!
 

Imon

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Does anybody have any experience with these little Gerbers?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003LY43GE/?tag=cpf0b6-20

Bleh, I have a negative experience with a Mini-Gerber Multi-tool (The Vise to be specific). The nail nicks on the tools for the Vise were very hard to use to pull the tools out (because they were too shallow and smooth) so I decided to try and loosen them up by slightly unscrewing the Torx screws. *snap* The Torx screw snapped right out of the handle.
On the other hand I've been using a Leatherman Squirt P4 (discontinued unfortunately) for many years with good results. I know a lot of people complain about Leathermans being more expensive than Gerbers but they are for good reason. I've owned many Gerbers and Leatherman tools throughout the years and small things, like the nail nicks I mentioned earlier, add up together and make a huge difference in quality between the two brands. Also small things like the small flathead bit being machined on both sides on the Leatherman but only on one side on the Gerber shows you the difference in attention to detail that both companies have for their products.

Anyways, with that said, I recommend the Squirt PS4 as the Squirt P4 is unfortunately unavailable. Funny story on how I came across a new Squirt PS4 though... I bought a used Squirt P4 to be a backup to my backup P4 on ebay for about $10 and it came in the mail broken so I sent it into Leatherman for warranty work. They sent me a new PS4 instead since the P4 was discontinued. I basically got a new PS4 for $10! :naughty:
 

kaichu dento

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I carry a blue Leatherman Squirt PS4 and my wife carries the same in red.
Norm
This is the exact one I thought of when I saw the OP's requirements.
If a normal Leatherman is too big, the Squirt series are a great option.

Another one I have sitting here right now that will cover needle nose work is the Squirt E4 wire
stripper model, which has needle nose grips on the end, decent quality, minimal size/weight,
a usable pen knife blade and a file.
 

Darell

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This is the exact one I thought of when I saw the OP's requirements.
If a normal Leatherman is too big, the Squirt series are a great option.
Well, yes. But you may have missed the part where even the Squirt is still bigger than my ideal. Full-size tools have never been a consideration. I already own about 15 of them for starters!

Another one I have sitting here right now that will cover needle nose work is the Squirt E4 wire
stripper model, which has needle nose grips on the end, decent quality, minimal size/weight,
a usable pen knife blade and a file.
I've owned one of those since they first came out. It would work, certainly. I'm just always looking for the "perfect" though. Quality pliers (needle would be best) and a blade. Small. Light. End of story. I'm willing to accept ONE more tool just to put something in the other handle. An awl would be handy.
 

Darell

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Why do you carry pliers on your road bike?

I could come up with about 20 reasons if you really want to suffer. I'll leave you with just one:

greg_nail.jpg


This thing went through the tire, then both "legs" splayed out like a brass brad. I had to bend the legs back together just to remove it from the tire. No amount of pulling with my teeth would get it done. I finally reshaped it by clamping it between my chain tool and a rock. It wasn't pretty.

19 more reasons if you want them. But I don't have pretty pictures for all the rest. Next up will be the quick release cone spring episode if you're willing.
 

neal71

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That is gnarly, I always take a tire and a tube with me. I figure since you only lose a few seconds on a very steep climb for every pound of weight it is worth it. That way I do not have to repair anything on the road. If I would have picked that go in my tire with any kind of speed, use would have almost certainly messed up a lot more than my tire though.

And I love reading about cycling horror stories, prepares me for what could happen.
Neal
 
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