Is what it is...I'm moving on to try and support new ideas in the multitool space

How u like it so far?

@@maxlvledc I love it. I’ve only had it a few days but the more I play around with it the more I appreciate the simplicity of it. It has useful tools without extras you don’t need. Plus I love the crimson red and yellow color scheme. It reminds me of a fire truck haha

My Bond was stiff just like that when I got it. I sat on the couch watching TV with some gloves on and just reefed it open and closed a bunch of times to try and sand it down inside a little. It worked enough to use it, but then after a month of work it loosened up like normal. Wish I had known this at the time... realistically it was probably reefing and twisting on stuff at work just like you did on that branch that did the trick.

Ooo, this is a much more professional method...I like

I tried this with 1 micron diamond paste and WD-40, and It worked well. I used to have to loosen the pliers by twisting against the pivot a bit, but they would always seize up again after heavy gripping or wire cutting. I mixed 1 micron diamond paste with some WD-40 to create a thin slurry, and applied it to the pier joints. I worked the pliers for an hour or 2 while watching KZfaq, wiping off the black gunk coming out occasionally and applying more paste. Then I cleaned all the paste and metal gunk out with a bunch of WD-40 and wiped it down. Now the plers stay loose even after heavy gripping. p.s. I have a stainless Wave+

@@Jake_S_ Glad that worked for you. Wish they would do this at the factory instead of making the purchaser go through with it. I don't like the idea of twisting against a pivot because of the risk of permanently damaging the tool. They cost so much money as is...

Yes it's working, just 15 minutes with your solution and my free p2 flying now) Just in my case I have pressed polish paste brick dialux(white) with wd40 and stiffness is gone, thank you very much)

Yes he did explain

@@davadoff he explained the likely dustiness and maybe one other trivial reason, yet never went on to explain the actual reason(s) he says to, “NEVER” put oil in plier heads.

@@C4RL1NN he said don’t put oil in when fixing the stiff plier problem because you need to rub to get looser.

Excellent!

To be fair I've never had this issue with pliers without replacement cutters. I just think too many ppl would never buy another leatherman if this is how they were received

QC doesn't help when you make your pliers out of shined up pot metal that breaks when you try to use them

@@marshallferron well..as far as I know only Multitasker has forged plier heads...I keep saying if they would get their head out of their ass and make a edc tool it would be incredible..

Would you rather have a tool with a break in period or a tool that just breaks?

never tried it myself, seems a bit risky.

this is good advice ^

This idea works very well to fix it, but I found it's best to clamp onto something much thinner...like a 1/4 to 3/8" copper rod...then twist as I showed

I have the exact same problem as this guy. I can torque the handles to loosen up the pliers, but after a good squeeze, the pliers are tight again. Then I have to apply torque to the handles again to make them drop shut again. It’s a never ending cycle. Looking for a more permanent fix… I tried the torquing on the branch trick from this video, but weirdly, that only made the plier head tighter again (I’ve got a Wave+ btw). Maybe I’ll try the diamond paste wd40 trick the one guy mentioned. Or should I just send it back to Leatherman? No guarantee they’ll fix the problem, right?

in general the larger plier heads seem to be mostly ok. I didn’t take very long at all to fix the ST300M, the rebar/signal plier head seems to have this issue the worst.

hmm, hard to say. I hestitate to reccomend a little re-peening..but thats what may be necessary...just be careful. a little side to side wont affect its function.

@@maxlvledc Yeah, it doesn't really affect the function as of right now, but if it gets any worse, I might send it in for warranty. I just got this Surge three days ago, so this is not really confidence inducing. Anyway, have you encountered any similar issue after using the method in your video?

let me know if it worked!

Will do! 😄

Folding and unfolding the pliers per se, as well as pressing on the jaws of the plier head on opposite directions for 2 nights while watching a movie didn't produce a remarkable difference. The branch/rack techique of yours only took a few minutes, however. Really works! Smooth as butter now 😄

@@ilahasairsoft6787 awesome!

🤣🤣🤣

sounds like bad QC...a pair of screw pliers for things like the ST300.

What size screw?

@@maxlvledc No clue, it was a pretty small one like a standard size screw (maybe 1/8?), but I think it was a crazy hard one that I had no business cutting. The surge cut it with no damage to the cutters, but the joint got messed up, so it started sticking when you squeezed the pliers together, and made them annoying to use. There's some other stuff I've done with the surge that made me question the integrity of the joint that normal pliers would have no issues doing. right now my favorite edc type pliers are the knipex 08 21 145, and the crunch.

@@iamfuckingyourwaifuandther2743 replace those cutters on the surge. Imo, everytime I've seen anyone use a leatherman as they would a normal pliers or normal knife, they end up breaking it or something along the lines of what you just did. I'd recommend not using any multi tool that is a leatherman or similar as a "real tool" or at least as a tool a person who abuses their tools uses. I used an x cut knipex to try to cut a hardened nail, and it chipped a cutting edge. Right tool for the right job, unfortunately, as good as leatherman can be, for me it's a backup and I treat is a such

​@@urjnlegend The cutters are perfectly fine, not a scratch, or dent on them. The amount of force needed to cut through the screw started causing the joint of the pliers to split, and it must have damaged/bent something, so it sticks whenever you close it. Still usable, just annoying. Not sure why you wouldn't use leatherman as a real tool. You can still send it in for warranty if it becomes unusable. Also what do you use back up pliers for? If they are just sitting in your pocket all day, you might as well have the knipex pliers in your pocket instead. You can buy specific pliers that are much better than the leatherman ones for specialty tasks you might do once and a while. Depending on which ones you use they can range from 2oz-4oz and you can use them as full sized pliers, whereas a leatherman tool is going to range from 5-11oz, won't sit flat in your pocket, and you can't use them like full sized pliers unless you are using the crunch. If you are wanting the extra tools with them I think both leatherman and victorinox make pocket knives that range between 2.3-3.2oz that have a lot of tools on them, and assuming your main pliers have a cutter you can pair it with one of the knipex pliers below, and still end up under 6oz which is better than all of the leatherman tools besides the pst(out of production) and the skeletool, but you get better pliers, and a bigger toolset. You also get one hand access to everything. The knipex pliers I'm referencing are: 87 00 100 86 03 125 08 21 145 87 01 125

Same.

I'd like to know more about this method, if you can make a video let me know!

@@maxlvledc sent you a quick video response at your instagram account. As you’ll see it will reset the tool but not fix it.

The best way to fix the plier head is to create as much friction inside the pivot as possible to remove the build up of black oxide or metal that has been over peened. By not having the lubricant it makes this happen much faster.

@@maxlvledc got you, you're shaving the inside to make it 'looser" only thing the lube would do is protect it, but make it harder in this case to loosen, thanks dude

Understandable

It's new !, they take time to break - in. The black grease will wear off too. There's a video of a US marine demonstrating it in the bush to great effect, and he has no problems.

@@paulfogarty7724yeah, for real. It’s just like new motocross boots. They’re so stiff, you can’t move your feet or ankles. A few months later and they’re great. Just lube them up and use it. I absolutely LOVE my signal. Favorite tool of all time

I can get that the happen...the issue is after you squeeze them hard...thata when they bind

the increased friction will help wear some space into the pivot area.

@@maxlvledc thank you

Respect that!

Btw can you recomend a particular detergent for degreasing the plier head?

Just look up best de-greaser for whatever brand u used.

They fired a ton of their QC stuff after the Free series didn't do well...they only QC 1 in 100 now.

if you put lube on the tool while working it, the metal wont wear smooth as fast (will take many many more cycles). and that is what makes it run better over time. What you are basically doing is forcing wear inside the plier.

ahh i see im gonna throw some sharpening dust on the pivot and work it in there and see if it makes a difference @@maxlvledc

I'm fairly sure ut also works

Hmm, this might be better than my method...need to try it on an HD tool

I think the perfect thing actually would be a 1/4 inch copper rod rather than a wooden branch..its both soft enough and thin enough for this to work really well.

its fine to lube it, as long as it doesn’t get tight after squeezing the handles hard

If it was an issue that happened very rarely then it would be OK. But it happens all too often. Let them send you a new one.

Can u elaborate??

😅 now I feel like an ass lol

More like wingman/sidekick/rev which makes more sense

I love my wingman! Great tool. Got it for $29.99 during Black Friday. Has one of the best scissors. I’d take It anyday over the curl or bond

@@appleztooranges ummmm, best scissors? Out of curiosity...how many multitool scissors have u tried? Also what do you usually use the scissors for? (This would really help me understand)

@@maxlvledc I own over 20 multitools. Leatherman surge, 2 Leatherman waves, wingman, ps4, micra, rebar, skeletol, few gerbers, 1 sog multitool,my crunch, etc...My favorite hand down is the Leatherman wave + crunch!

@@maxlvledc I use my scissors for cutting wrapping paper, string etc!