Leatherman Bond

[KingShapton]

Does anyone here have first hand experience with this?

I had the Leatherman PST over 20 years ago and recently discovered the Leatherman Bond - it looks like a slightly improved version of the PST.

I'm considering buying the Bond for sentimental reasons, but I would be interested to know if the knife blade is solid when you unfold it and the handles are closed again. I know that it is not locked by a mechanism. Based on reviews online, this seems to be a problem.

Does anyone here have this multitool and can say something about it?

 

[KingShapton]

I've already found the answer myself..or. a weakness of the tool that I cannot tolerate!

There is a thread in the blade forum where the weak point of the bond becomes visible in post #20.... and it is fatal!

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/leatherman-advice-sought.1874564/

 

[Naftoor]

Oooof yeah a blade that pops out that quickly on a multitool is unfortunate.

I’ve had a Wave for 5 or 6 years now, keep it mostly around the house as a multitool, and take it with me when I go camping. It does the job well, everything has good retention, good selection of tools. The price was good at the time, and nowadays I believe I see them pop up on the used market for 50ish, which is still a great deal in my opinion.

Only things I dislike about are:

The scissors are basically Swiss Army knife scissors. Not much size or oomph. My understanding is that there are some other leather man models with beefier shears that address that issue.

The screw driver sucks. That being said, you can change the bits.

The whole shebang has pretty crap corrosion resistance. Multiple tools are speckled with rust just from sitting in a kitchen drawer for a few years. I have no idea how to disassemble it to oil it, which makes it an irritating issue. Apparently the older leathermans were made of a grade of steel that was more corrosion resistant since it seems to be more widely reported on newer units.

 

[boomchakabowwow]

I found a Supertool 300 underwater at a boat launch. it looked decent, but when I reached down to grab it I realized it was done for. grit packed it in, and it was fairly rusted. as a joke I sent it to Leatherman to see if they wanted it for some display or something. (the Portland store has a bunch of abused tools in case IIRC). they without me asking sent me back a new one. I called and offered them cash..and they laughed at me.

it is now in a dry bag that goes in my kayak. that thing is a beast! even clench in a fist, and punching someone......it has weight.

Leatherman warranty is over the top. I have the original version in a drawer. I take the Fuse version with me on my international travels. I won't cry if I lose it or donate it to a local fisherman. the FUSE is a great one. not USA made however.

 

[Naftoor]

Leathermans warranty is pretty bombproof, I’ve heard multiple stories similar to that of a multitool that really should’ve been trashed getting replaced.

I should say, even with the rust issue I would 100% buy a leatherman again thanks to how they stand behind their products. It’s really just a matter of finding one that has the right combination of tools for your use case

 

[Michi]

I have a Leatherman Charge Ti. Bought it about 25 years ago or so. It goes with me whenever I travel. And I don't think there has been a single trip where I didn't pull it out for one reason or another.

I even managed to get it all the way from San Francisco to Brisbane, via Los Angeles and Sydney. It was in my backpack because I forgot to put it back into the suitcase before departure. Three consecutive security checks at three different airports all missed it. Just goes to show how well all that security rigmarole works…

 

[KingShapton]

I have a Leatherman Charge Ti. Bought it about 25 years ago or so. It goes with me whenever I travel. And I don't think there has been a single trip where I didn't pull it out for one reason or another.

I even managed to get it all the way from San Francisco to Brisbane, via Los Angeles and Sydney. It was in my backpack because I forgot to put it back into the suitcase before departure. Three consecutive security checks at three different airports all missed it. Just goes to show how well all that security rigmarole works…

Clear statement for a reliable tool that you use more often than you think. But also for the efficiency of security checks in air traffic...