Customer Reviews

Leatherman 830160 Surge Pocket Multitool with Nylon/Leather Sheath

5 star:		(77)
4 star:		(28)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I'm a rancher. I carry a multitool every waking hour. I've exercised the warranty on a Wave three times in three years. I've broken the detente that prevents the knife blades from bending beyond straight. I've broken the tips of the pliers pulling cotter pins, and I've chewed up the hard wire cutter. The Surge seems to do all these things and more with greater ease than the Wave, and it seems to be taking the day-to-day punishment. If not the fourth Wave is waiting as a backup.

As for the size aspect: I wear gloves in large size. The Surge is not too big for my hands and I can't imagine it'd be too big for medium size hands. IMO, frequent and continued use of the pliers with small hands could be tiring.

I depend on these things everyday. A Leatherman has never let me down even when they've broken. If you use one this much then I'd highly recommend the nylon sheath. The leather case and snap are not as convenient.

BTW, it may not be the perfect tool for the job, but when its the one that 's handy it gets the job done.

I've had the Surge for 6 months now. For whatever reason I took the Wave the other day. Its too small! I won't go back to the Wave. The Surge is the right size. For what I do, the Surge the best tool out there.

I dont know whats the problem with the size of the surge...seeing the reviews on here I thought that when I saw this thing I would have said "omG ITS HUGE!!" ...but...uhmm...its the size a STRONG, STURDY and DEPENDABLE multi tool should be! I hate small multi tools because I dont want to feel as if Im going to break the thing while im using it (tighten some screws, etc) or when im using the saw or something. The design is great and personally I can say that the SURGE is the best multi tool out there!

I bought the Leatherman Surge as a replacement for a Wave multitool that was tragically confiscated by TSA some time ago. Having bought a Gerber FliK in the meantime and finding it woefully inadequate, I was left needing a reliable tool to carry during a 4-month term aboard a cargo ship. I needed something with a good and sizable blade, for ropework and other miscellaneous cutting purposes, a pair of pliers for loosening shackle pins, tightening wire, wingnuts and other fasteners, and screwdrivers for light prying and tightening screws without heading 12 stories down to the engine room for a phillips head driver. Reviewing Leatherman's product line, the Surge caught my attention due to several factors. I liked its larger size, as I always thought my Wave was a little on the small side. I liked the dedicated flathead for prying, as well as the bit adapter for other driver heads. I especially liked the outside opening scissors, being bigger and easier to access than my Wave's. And I was intrigued by the awl, which really at the time presented no specific purpose as much as many interesting possibilities.

My Surge arrived the day before I headed out to sea, so it's trial was by fire. To sum up the experience, it is no exaggeration to say that I used this tool literally every one of the 107 days I was aboard. The following sums up some of the good and bad points that I noticed:

-The pliers are big, beefy and strong. They grip pretty much anything, and hold on like a vice. However, the wire cutters pretty much suck.
-The blades are excellent, as are most Leatherman blades. they do require somewhat frequent sharpening, but I used and abused this tool, so that's not really shocking.
-The scissors are AWESOME. Super sharp, and large enough to cut pretty much anything with ease. Having them on the outside is a MAJOR improvement over the other tools in the line. I used the scissors as much if not more than the knife. Keeping them lubricated does help with the unusual, but very handy, locking mechanism.
-Strangely enough, I think my favorite tool on the Surge is in fact the awl. It serves those tasks that lie in the gray area: where you need something pointy but dont want to stab what youre working on (or you); where you need an edge to scrape, but not cut, something; where you want to put a hole, rather than a gash, in something. Ive used it for everything from spearing WD-40 cans to get the last little bit out (chief mate wasnt too happy about that), to rigging chafe guards on mooring lines, to scraping paint off of a hydraulic ram, to leaving the customary "mark" of my school in waterfront bars around the world. All in all, an awesome little addition to this multitool that I cant believe I went this long without.
-The screwdrivers get mixed reviews. The large flathead is great, no complaints there. the large bit driver is good as well, although the spring that holds the bits in does break. I rigged mine with a little cotter pin, but a better design is needed. Its functional though. Im mixed about the little screwdriver. On one hand, I really have found very few uses for it, and think that it would be better replaced with something else. On the other hand, its the PERFECT size for screws on sunglasses, electrical connections, etc, so maybe it belongs there.
-The exchangeable saw/file is a pretty neat idea, although it does eat up some of the usable space of the tool. I've never used the saw, seeing as it has pretty limited uses aboard the ship. The file is pretty good, however. One of the best features of the removable file is that it can be taken off and the diamond side used to sharpen the knife blade! Which is very handy. I haven't bought any other blades for it, although jigsaw blades do fit right into the exchanger.
-Its hard to screw up a can/bottle opener, and this one is no exception. For a combination, it works very well, and as I prefer my beer in bottles, it is a necessity. It does take a bit of prying finesse to pry off a cap without punching through it; the best way is to turn it so you pry along the edge of the cap. Good reason to carry the Surge on shore leave.
-Like most Leatherman products I have used, the body and blades of the knife are prone to a bit of rust. No big deal; it says "stainLESS", not stainPROOF. A little bit of oil and a rag cleans it right up, and it doesnt hurt to keep it well oiled anyway. Its a tool, treat it as you would any other.
-The leather/nylon sheath that it comes with is absolutely terrible. the snap is hard to open, the fit is loose, and I just generally hated the look of it. I used my old Wave nylon velcro sheath at sea, which didnt really fit, and ordered a Surge velcro sheath when I got back. I cant comment on the all leather one that is offered, but alot of people seem to like it. My original Wave sheath lasted about 4 years before it wore out, which I think earns it its $10 of utility.

All in all, the Leatherman Surge is the best multitool I have ever owned. For my purposes, it is the closest to the ideal combination of any manufacturer out there, and I cant see using any other multitool with the same effectiveness. I recommend to everyone I know that is going out to sea for the first time, and you can bet that it will be on my belt for my second sea term. No matter what your application, if you need a heavy duty, well-appointed multitool that can take more beatings than you can throw at it, the Surge is for you.

I bought one from one of Amazon's partners and the tool arrived in it's sealed clamshell package in used condition. The tool was scratched, dirty and the scissors were loose as well as the knife looked used. I returned it to the company I bought it from and they sent me a refund. I sent an email to Leatherman about my experience and they sent a reply stating that this was a unique experience and that they would check with their quality control dept to see if there is a problem.

I purchased another Surge from Amazon directly and the tool arrived in the clamshell sealed in its packaging. I opened it up to find that the tool was in acceptable condition except for the fingerprints and what looked like cleaning compound still on the blades and handles (just like the one I bought and returned earlier). The scissors were a bit loose also, but not as much as the first (Sounds like Leatherman has some quality issues).

I have had the tool for about a month and I have no other real issues to talk about, it performs well and handles most jobs it was designed for. The tool is solid, well engineered and dependable. The tool feels great in the hand and is easy to open with one hand if needed. The tool is big and on the heavy side (If you are going to wear this tool on your belt, you will always know it's there). A little quirk in the tool is a rattle when it is closed, this does not happen every time it's in the closed position, just sometimes.

Except for the cosmetic issues I mentioned earlier, this is a good product. I plan to keep this with me for quite a while and I do not doubt that it will perform as it should without fail. I keep it with me in the shop, studio, backyard, garage, and when hiking. Great tool, did I mention it was heavy?

I recently gave my daughter my Leatherman "Supertool" when she moved away to start a new job, telling her that it had most tools she would need. Then I saw a gift set display with the "SURGE" with a very nice Leatherman knife that has two screwdrivers and a set of bits to use in the interchangeable screwdriver... I couldn't resist, and have been very pleased with the whole set... with the small exception that the leather case rides too high on the belt, I switched to a nylon case I had which works fine but doesn't hold the extra bits. That being said I like the "huge size" of this tool,it really is big, (compared to other multi-tools) but I need to use tools all day every day, so it might be a lot to carry if that was not the case. I still carry the blunt nose Gerber always as it can turn a bolt when needed, and is easier to use one handed than any Leatherman tool, but this tool the SURGE, can do more things well than any of the other multi tools out there.

I have had two previous products made by Leatherman, both of which gave me good service. I am pleased with the variety of tools that are on this model and really like the replaceable blade/file idea. I broke the file off from my last model.

I had the new tool for two days when I used it to twist some fencing wire. One side of the pliers snapped off almost immediately. I sent the unit back using the warranty process and it arrived back fixed within two weeks. Apparently the pliers don't handle a sideways torque too well so I will be more careful in the future. It has held up well when cutting wire since then; I don't think I'll try twisting it again any time soon.

as soon as i got this in the mail i knew i was dealing with a serious tool its pretty heavy but its not too noticeable when u wear it on your belt. i wear it sideways cause the vertical strap is a little big and it tends to move around, also if u have it sideways u can easily slide it out with a forward motion. it has all the tools u need for just about any small job. i use it at work alot. i used the pliers to straighten a hinge that was bent pretty bad and mangled up. the phillips head isnt a cheap one that most smaller cheap multitools hav AND u can exchange it with flat heads squarehead hexs and more. taking the need to cary lots of different drivers in ur car u can just carry this and the 40+ other bits that u can buy for about $15, the only damage ive been able to do to it was minor. when i was cutting up boxes with the serrated blade i accidently hit the tip on the metal table it bent the tip alittle and i was bummed out cause i had damaged it, then i remembered it had a removeable diamond file. so i removed it and did alittle touch up work on the tip and it was razor sharp in seconds. i dont use the saw so i just keep it in the plastic slip that goes in the sheath along with a spare jigsaw blade just in case i do hafta use a saw. granted the jigsaw blade is thinner and wiggles around when u attach it to the tool but its not gonna fall out. ive heard complaints that the surge is too heavy and to go with the wave or charge tti. then again ive also heard that the charge isnt as heavy duty and that ppl hav broken the blade and or other parts of it, im not one to judge cause i dont hav either. and the surge actually is pretty hefty but not so much that its gonna pull ur pants down. i tried walking around with it in my pocket and i just couldnt get used to the weight tho so i stuck to using the sheath. you know u hav the tool on u cause u can feel the weight i barely notice it unless im thinking about it. o another great tool is one that neither the wave or charge hav... an awl, i never thought id hafto use it but just this morning i did. my belt was alittle looser than usualy and i needed to make an extra hole for the loop. so i just used the awl, it stabbed through and bored a hole in the leather belt with little effort. o one more important feature that the surge like the wave and charge hav is the external blades. each one is can be opend with one hand which is awesome cause sometimes my left and is holding something and my leatherman is sheathed, i can just whip it out and open the blade like its just a folding knife in a sheath. o and each and evryblade and or tool locks into place. so theres no chance that the blades will accident close on u. evrything about this tool is great and i think evryone should buy a leatherman tool. doesnt matter which cause theyr all good. even if u dont hav a use for a multitool anywhere just buy one to put in ur vehicle u never know when ur gonna need a tool and u just dont hav it

This Leatherman tool is admittedly a hefty item. But let's be honest, that means it's a tool that isn't going to let you down. Can you get this many different functions in such a small package? Probably not. This is nothing like what similar Coleman camping products offer. I got the 42-bit accessory set as well as this multitool. After a few days, you don't really feel it when your actually working. Tons of different implements that cut: wire stripper, serrated and clip point knife blades, two wire cutting spots on it, screwdrivers (flat and phillips) and of course the needlenose. The blades came razor sharp from the factory. I also like the strong spring on the scissors. It snaps the blades back out instantly after release.

The interchangeable file and saw blade combination was an interesting touch to add even more versatility, but this seemed a bit lost on me. I don't think I'm going to file any tool with the insert I got (NOTE: I have the file, but I think it came from the 42-bit ACCESSORY KIT). The interchanging ability is more of a hassle than it's worth. Also, the file/saw felt wobbly and weak in the setup.

I like to be prepared at work and I find everything down to the eyeglass repair screwdriver useful in one way or another. Rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. However, I am able to state the former for the uses outnumbering the drawbacks of weight, which seems to be the main complaint of people who have this.

My leatherman arrived pristine with a leather case that had stretchy cloth material for the sides. A bit of a letdown the sheath was not leather all around. Well worth the money for functionality though.

I fear that I am addicted to the Leatherman line of tools. Each time a new model comes out, I seem to pick one up. This being my latest addition. I wanted an improvement to my original "Super" tool and I got just that with the "Surge". I have large hands so this tool feels great in my hand and along with the extension pack of driver bits, it gives me great versitility for any emergency repair, excluding micro repairs. It is large, but it gets the job done, I am rarely on a job without some form of leatherman tool with me. I own and have used three other manufacture's knock-off copies of leatherman-like tools and have found them lacking in usefulness. At the moment I have my eye on a new model "wave" to replace my old style "wave" that I carry in my suits, but then that is another review.

My parents bought this for my birthday off my wish list. How awesome!

If you've compared specs with this Leatherman to other Leathermans, you'll notice that it's much bigger, yet oddly enough, features LESS tools. For me, this is excellent.

I don't need a Hex bit driver, a cutting hook, or a needlessly fancy lanyard ring... I need scissors that actually work. I need pliers that actually work. I need knives that actually works... It is in THIS respect that the Leatherman surge performs wonders; It doesn't have a frillion tools, but the tools it does have are robust.