Leatherman Signal First Impressions

[admin]

After stating publicly on EDCF that I wouldn’t get a Leatherman Signal, I was given one for Christmas. Other than owning a crazy number of Leatherman multitools I have no affiliation with the company. This is my impression of it after just a few days of light-duty urban/suburban carry, with no bushcrafting or desperate struggles for survival since I got it.

I’ll be comparing the Signal in places to the Wave, which is perhaps the most logical Leatherman to compare it to in terms of size, capabilities, and cost, and to the MUT, as the Signal seems to be the MUT’s little brother in design.

The Signal is directed at the outdoorsy crowd, with a focus on survival capabilities. It has the following tools on it:

• Pliers (needlenose, regular, wire cutters, hard wire cutters)
• Bottle & can opener with wire stripper notch
• 420HC partially-serrated knife
• Saw
• Hammer
• Awl with thread loop
• 1/4″ hex bit driver / 1/4″ box wrench
• 3/16″ box wrench
• Leatherman bit driver, with their standard 3/6″ flat blade and #1-2 Phillips
• Carabiner/bottle opener
• Removable safety whistle/ferro rod
• Removable diamond-coated sharpener

My initial impressions were very positive. The tool is made well, with everything opening and closing as it should, pliers aligned correctly and none of the pivots too tight or too loose. The specs say it’s one ounce lighter than a Wave but it feels lighter still, taking up next to no room in a pocket and almost unnoticeable compared to my beloved Wave. At a New Years Eve party I was using the carabiner/cap lifter to open all the beers and it did that quite well.

One feature I haven’t seen mentioned elsewhere is the very clever catch that holds the handles closed. The MUT has a comparatively large lever that requires some movement to fold out of the way when not in use; the catch on the Signal is quicker to engage and disengage and solidly clicks into place, holding the handles closed tightly. I like it a lot.

Another thing to praise the Signal for is the removable pocket clip. The pocket clip comes installed on the tool and isn’t removable without a pair of T10 screwdrivers. Unlike the pocket clip on the Wave it doesn’t wiggle back and forth when attached, and it provides a sturdier grip on the pocket. Unlike the pocket clip on the MUT, it doesn’t add significant bulk (I really don’t like the pocket clip on the MUT, I took it off on day one and kept it off). The Signal works better for pocket carry than any other full-sized Leatherman multi, in my opinion.

The pliers are the ST300’s but thinner and shorter, I suspect the same exact part as on the Rebar (my Rebar is in the mail). The pliers are the biggest reason I carry a Leatherman rather than something else when I’m camping and hiking, these do not disappoint.

The can/bottle opener with wire stripper notch, saw, awl and bit driver are essentially the same as on other Leatherman tools, which is to say that they work well for me. They lock solidly in place and unlock easily, as on a Wave. Unlike the MUT (but like the Wave) there is no onboard storage of bits other than the one that is in the driver itself.

The carabiner has a reasonably strong spring gate on it, retains the tool well and does a great job opening beers, better than the can/bottle opener blade.

The 1/4″ bit driver has no bit retention, and sticks out at a right angle from the rest of the tool, rendering it very challenging to use in good conditions. Forget about using it where access to the fastener is tight or in any situation where you don’t want the bit to get loose.

The knife blade came from the factory well-ground and razor sharp. For utility use it’s more than adequate, but to serve as a backup to my folder or fixed blade in the field I would be a lot happier with a blade that isn’t partially serrated, and with a steel that stays sharp longer. I recently modded my Wave with an S30V blade, and took the original Wave 420HC blade and found that it was almost the same form-factor as the Signal’s blade — other than the tang/pivot being significantly thicker. Today I installed another S30V upgrade blade for the Wave on the Signal with a bronze phosphor washer on the pivot outboard of the knife blade — matching the one inboard of the blade that came with the Signal. Happily this worked perfectly, and the new blade locks up solid.

The ferrocerium striker is short. I used it to start a couple of fires today and it was easy to use — but I was warm and dry and my fingers were working right. As a backup to a larger ferro rod it’s good. The back of the saw blade is square and makes a great striker.

The whistle on the ferro rod works, but it isn’t super-loud. I would prefer a Fox 40 Micro or something similarly loud. As a backup to a better whistle it’s adequate. This component is easy to remove but secure when in place; Leatherman did some clever packaging here.

I tested the sharpener with a couple of passes on the S30V blade. With some patience and care, it can be made to work and is definitely better than nothing. A dedicated pocket sharpener would be a lot easier to use and give better results; in other words, it’s an adequate backup. The unlocking lever for the inside bits also keeps the sharpener secure.

I haven’t used the hammer but it looks and feels like it would work fine for driving tent stakes.

Would I recommend you buy one? Well, let’s compare it to the Wave. The Wave is $10 cheaper and has a file, scissors, separate straight and serrated blades, a dedicated flat-blade screwdriver, and a micro-screwdriver bit over the Signal. The Signal has better wirecutters and decent backups for a dedicated whistle, ferro rod and sharpener. If I could have only one it would be the Wave. I’ll carry the Signal when I’m hiking, camping, or planning to open a lot of beer bottles.

[Author]

Posts