- You are here:
- Home
- Knife Reviews
- Leatherman
Today Leatherman released a email to everyone announcing their 40th Anniversary. In that email was a link to a video on their YouTube channel, towards the tail end of the video we get a glimpse of the new Leatherman Arc. I'm hearing that there's going to be a 40th Anniversary tool to be released as well as the new Arc. No details yet on a release date for either item, we will keep you posted as we hear more. I've included a link to the video below.
Leatherman has been the dominant force in the multitool industry and never seems to stop innovating. Year after year they wow us with these shiny new creations, and we anticipate these releases. I do feel over the last serval years, we have seen a slowdown in new products and more of a rehash of what they already produce.
When the Curl was announced, I thought alright here we go, let's see what they've been working on. Instead of being wowed, I feel like Leatherman just took two models and put them together and called it a new creation. So, is it a new amazing tool? Or just a cash grab for the folks in Portland? Let's take a look.
In an ever changing world companies like Leatherman are forced to innovate and diversify in order to stay competitive. Leatherman CEO Ben Rivera took the company in a new direction back in 2015 and released the Leatherman Tread multitool. The Tread was a tool born out of necessity for Ben on a trip to a theme park and his current tool was not allowed in the park. The Tread has gotten a lot of press in the last couple years; some positive and some negative. One fact that remains is that it's still a hot seller for the historic tool company.
Most folks think of multitools as plier based tools that have an assortment of functions. In fact the company Leatherman has become synonymous with the word multitool; similar to how Kleenex is being used to define tissues. Leatherman had a big inspiration back in 2015 and released a multitool which was very different than the standard modeling. Current CEO Ben Rivera had a run in with the security at Disneyland and told him he couldn't bring in his Wave multitool. This got the gears turning and this helped develop a new type of multitool; wearable.
There's always a certain amount of excitement that comes when folks get wind that there may be a new Leatherman tool in development. What makes it difficult is when there's no official word from Leatherman themselves. There have been some leaks from websites that give us a possible glimpse into what they are cooking up.
Continuing the Leatherman theme this week with this well used Squirt S4. Like any reliable tool this one has been used hard but is still ready to do its job!
I've been having a lot of fun with my 3D Printer lately, trying out neat designs for EDC- for example this 3D printed sheath for the Leatherman Wave!
Leatherman's SideClip model is highly prized by minimalists and collectors and is easily identified by its four piece handles and pocket clip.
Leatherman packed a lot of features in the compact Juice frame with the XE6 model, and wrapped it in glorious Thunder Purple handles!
What kind of people would write collect and review multitools? Quite simple really- we are designers and do-ers, outdoors types and indoor types, mechanics, doctors, problem solvers and problem makers. As such, we have, as a world spanning community, put every type, size and version of multitool, multifunction knife, pocket knife and all related products to every test we could manage in as many places and environments as there are.