Some may remember the days of yore when the closest thing to a multi-tool was a “multi-function knife,” like the venerable Swiss Army Knife. That changed when Tim Leatherman and Steve Berliner brought the Pocket Survival Tool to market in 1983. A flood of imitators followed, including some truly wretched junk, however, the really good ones made a name for themselves on the market. Most of the vintage multi-tools I own have been around a while and have proven themselves, so these are the ones that will be talked about today. (Just to be upfront, there are affiliate links below, from which we might get a tiny commission)
Table of Contents
Leatherman Supertool
Mine is the original design, produced from 1994 until 2001. I bought mine at Mall of America back in 1996 as a young teenager. It has lived in my range bag, truck glove box, and now spends its days on my hip fixing mundane issues like a loose screw on my desk. It is a large tool, but it fits my giant mitts nicely. I like how the blades lock solidly into place, but to unlock them, another blade or tool must be partially opened. The new Supertool 300 has an external lock release, and in colder weather, that would give me some peace of mind. Sometimes, I’m afraid that my numb fingers will slip while unlocking a blade in the winter which will result in needing stitches. Barring that concern, I have found the Original Super Tool to be robust, trim, and useful. The knife blade is still sharp after nearly 30 years (though to be fair, I also carry a jackknife that handles most cutting chores), and the saw makes quick work of saplings around my deer stands. My Supertool is probably my favorite EDC item and the last vintage multi-tool (or knife in general) that I would part with.
Leatherman Micra
A 1996 vintage multi-tool design, the Micra is very handy. The keychain-sized tool swaps the pliers for spring-loaded scissors and includes excellent tweezers, a nail file, a small blade, and screwdrivers. I acquired one as a teenager and used its sharp-edged tweezers throughout my decade-long career as a machinist to pull umpteen steel slivers from my fingers. It currently rides in a small tool pouch with other odds and ends in my army pack and handles my small snipping chores.
G.I. Gerber Multipliers (MP-600)
Issued with the Otis cleaning kits and known simply as a Gerber, the black multi-tool with the slide-out pliers is a staple piece of kit for anyone who came through the military in the GWOT years. The main blade is not as long as a comparable Leatherman, but the tools are easy to deploy and also include a serrated blade, file, and multiple screwdrivers. The locking mechanism lacks the crisp solidness of my Supertool, but it has proven itself reliable over the last 9 years of use. The sheath is set up to attach to MOLLE webbing, which is nice in the field, but for garrison environments, a different pouch is required. I managed to get one with an Otis clip that works more like a traditional belt loop, and I love it.
Leatherman Kick
A bit newer than the other Leatherman tools in my collection, the Kick debuted in 2004, and I got mine on a holiday sale sometime around then. It spent a lot of time in my glove box until my wife mailed it to me when I got to Advanced Individual Training (AIT) after Basic. The Kick saw a lot of use in fixing janky barracks furniture and was a frequent problem-solver while on field exercises. I carried the Kick for the first five years of my military career until I received a Gerber. I like the Kick because it has full-sized handles, and the tools are easy to access. There are only six tools in the handle: a blade, two flat screwdrivers, a Philips driver, a can opener, and a lanyard ring, with ample space between them to get a fingernail in to open the tool. The tools do not lock; however, they do snap smartly into place like an old Uncle Henry folding knife would. The Kick is also the lightest of my full-sized multi-tools.
Bucktool
Buck entered the multi-tool market in 1996 (apparently a big year for multi-tools) with the innovative Bucktool. My Dad had one in his truck for the longest time, and it was heavily used for utility work, including giving the coup-de-grace to a wounded whitetail buck. The tool had a partially serrated drop-point main blade and a fully serrated sheepsfoot blade, along with the standard stable of screwdrivers and a can opener. What distinguishes the Bucktool from its competitors in the early multi-tool market is the very comfortable grip, push button lock release for the tools, and the odd choice to have the handles pivot perpendicular to the plier hinge instead of parallel like everyone else. This choice made the tool extremely fast to open one-handed by holding it against your leg and moving your hand in a circle. The downside was that the handles would pivot away from each other under any serious load or when trying to drive a screw. The Bucktool was well made (my Dad’s suffered quite a bit of hard use with little ill effect), but it was ultimately dropped from the market after a few years because it failed to keep selling well.
Leatherman Rebar
I hesitated to include this one because I don’t have much experience with it. The 2012 vintage Rebar is well-made and well-designed by Leatherman. It has all the same tools as my old Supertool, but the push-button locking mechanism is external and much safer to use. Size-wise, it is pretty close to my Kick for handle length but bulkier widthwise, and the angle between the handles (when folded open) is larger than my other tools. It doesn’t work ergonomically for me, so I stashed it with the emergency kit in my wife’s car.
Wrap Up
In the last two decades, the multi-tool has gone from a curiosity to a required piece of kit for the average individual. A plethora of new models exist to choose from, but for those on a budget or who like a more vintage aesthetic, the older multi-tools are abundant and able to meet your needs.
