Note: This review, as with all content I write on this site, is my opinion. It does not reflect the opinion of others, including the American Knife and Tool Institute (AKTI), the cutlery trade group that I advise on legal matters.

This batch of mini reviews involves multitools. Just to remind you, here is the multitool scoring system. It works for plier-based multitools (like a Leatherman Skeletool), a knife-based multitool (like a Victorinox Compact) or a one piece multitool (like the Gerber Shard). Note that these three tools are my favorites among each type of multitool.

Nextool Mini Sailor Lite

Here is the product page. Here is a review of the Nextool Mini Sailor Lite. Banish what you think about Chinese-made multitools from your mind. They aren’t the bargin-bin-on-Black-Friday fodder they once were. Sure you can still find the garbage out there, like stuff from Harbor Freight or that one design with a hammer on the pliers, but the stuff on Amazon, like most of the Nextool line, is pretty outstanding. The “Lite” version removes the knife blade to make the Mini Sailor TSA friendly. I don’t think anything is actually TSA approved because the decision is made by whoever is running the queue line at the airport, but I did take this with me when flying back to Ohio and it passed both going out and coming home. Most impressive is the incredible fit and finish here. Most multitools, even some from good brands, exhibit slop or racking when the pliers are fully extended. The Nextool shows none of that. The implements themselves are decent—the blade is good, the drivers are okay, and the scissors are meh (only Victorinox’s scissors are consistent good in the multitool world). I also appreciate the inclusion of GITD material in the knife slot. It made the tool easy to find at night when I need to tighten a screw on a box fan at my grandmother’s house (I slept on the porch due to lack of space and the oppressive Ohio heat—you forget the humidity, which makes being outside like being mugged by a wet, warm quilt in the summer). I’d like to see nicer scissors, but you can do much worse than this guy. Oh, and then there is the price—this is a bargain. It did make me miss my Leatherman PS4 Squirt, which has been taken out of production in favor of the terribily shitty Micra and the Wave, the Wave+, and the Wave++ (or whatever the new version with the Magnacut blade is called). If you are traveling and don’t want to risk having a kilobuck or even a centibuck knife or toll confiscated by TSA, this is probably your best option, especially because the Leatherman made for this purpose, the great Leatherman Style PS, was discontinued (this is a theme in this week’s post) and the SAK option isn’t all that versatile.

Score: 17 out of 20 (1 off for Fit and Finish for a bit of slop in the folding mechanism and 2 off for Tool Performance for truly meh scissors and only okay blade and pliers)

Roxon Mini Flex Companion

Here is the product page. Here is a review of the Roxon Mini Flex Companion. I can’t shake the feeling that Victorinox was right the entire time. Like moveable shelves on a book case, once you find the right tool complement, I can’t see changing what is on the Roxon ever. So I guess modularity isn’t a bad thing because even if you only swap out stuff once, you still end up with a tool you like, but I think I would prefer something like a customizer from Victorinox instead of this design. There are too many compromises in the build quality to make the modularity worthwhile. The tools tend to be a bit underwhelming in both size and performance compared to something like the implements on a Victorinox Compact, and the fit and finish makes the Mini Flex feel like a jalopy. There is so much up and down blade play because the lock needs to be able to clear out of the way to swap in new tools that I actually got a smidge nervous when using the Mini Flex for some higher pressure cuts (like through thick plastic or hard rubber). I also didn’t like the deployment of individual implements. The knife NEVER deployed individually unless I physically stopped the other tools from coming out. The scissors are almost impossible to get out without using another tool to do so, especially if you don’t have long fingernails. It is the worst “clumping” I have seen on deployment of any enthusiast grade multitool ever. Now that I have had one of these, I am pretty convinced this is not the way to go. Make the tool a solid, non-modular design but allow customers to pick which implements are included and I think you have a winner. Why Victorinox has not gone down this route is sort of stunning to me. We know they have the capacity (it is offered in some flagship in-person stores), but they have not chosen to do this on their website. All that means is that a Chinese competitor will and Victorinox will be behind the eight ball. Again.

Score: 16 out of 20 (1 off Design for a poor tool change design, 2 off Accessibility for hard to get to tools that come out in clumps, and 2 off Fit and Finish for a rickety build).

SOG Powerpint

Here is the product page. Here is a review of the Powerpint. The Powerpint is an evergreen product in the SOG line up and is an excellent design. It has a terrible name because all of my devices want to autocorrect it to Powerpoint (which is almost as annoying as autocorrect want to change “Heidegger” to “headgear”). This is a great sized tool, something between a keychain tool and full sized tool, much like the Leatherman Juice line that has been inexplicably abandoned in favor of more versions of the Wave :( The Powerpint has some drawbacks, of course. The blade, which is accessible when the tool is closed, is pretty terrible. In addition to being thin, it is made of 5Cr steel. And before you accuse me of being a steel snob (which is totally fair), let me say this: I used this knife around the house for a few days (days, not weeks, months, or years) and the 5Cr became too dull to cut a cellophane package. That should not happen. I stropped it and brought the edge back, but 5Cr is really atrocious. Not “I run a gear website and have dozens of knives in high end steels and this stinks by comparison” atrocious, but so bad that non knife folks will notice. 5Cr is Lamborghini-gas-mileage bad, but without the upside that gas mileage brings. I also found the thumb slots to be a little small. Compared to something like the Skeletool, deploying the knife blade on the Powerpint is pretty difficult. The other tools are also a little blah. A few of them seemed to be included just so there is a big number for marketing purposes. Compared to something like the Flash MT, the other mid-sized multitool in the SOG line up, deployment stinks. But the bit holder is absolutely sublime. I love, love, love the fact that this thing holds full-sized bits and in a centerline position. This is the best bit holder in the business. In the end, the truly superior pliers and the excellent bit holder make the Powerpint a great multitool, probably slightly better than the Skeletool. If the blade steel was upgraded from buttcheese to something respectable, the choice would be even more stark. As it is, the extra fine pliers tip makes me prefer the Powerpint over the Skeletool, depending on the task (knife heavy, I’d opt for the Skeletool, driver or pliers heavy, I’d opt for the Powerpint).

Score: 17 out of 20 (1 off for Deployment/Accessibility for some really tiny thumb slots; 2 off Tool Performance for truly atrocious blade steel)

Amazon Links

Leatherman Skeletool CX