Kick - ArniesAirsoft - Review Archive

Author

Darthwhite

Registered: January 2005
Location: London
Posts: 1,693

Review Date: 3/2/06

Would you recommend the product? Yes | Price you paid?: �35.00 | Rating: 10

Positive aspects of the product (pros):	Light, comfortable, 25 year garintee, well made, portable, does everything
Cons:	Hard to think of any realy, a pair of scisors would be nice i guess...

Long ago, a young man named Tim Leatherman was driving through the darker areas of Europe, when his car broke down. Being a skilled mechanic, he set to work fixing it with his boy scout knife. When he got home to the states, an idea was firmly set in his mind; �A boy scout knife� with pliers�

The Leatherman was born.

The design is very, very simple; a small lightweight tool kit, built on a single frame, which collapses in such a way as to protect all the tools inside. Like the AK47, the Leatherman design has passed from �just a bit good� to a household name, being used by everyone from the military to construction workers, firemen to boy scouts.
As well as being an excellent design [I�ve yet find one which failed a task I�ve put it to], each tool is manufactured to the highest standards, being made almost entirely of stainless steel [apart from the latest top of the range titanium versions], and featuring a no-questions asked 25 year guarantee. A bit good when they sell over 3 million tools a day!

When I started my current job [live events], I bought a Jack pike multi-tool from Wolf Armouries [and a P90, but that�s another story]. I wore it down to pieces over the space of a month or so, and bought another one. Which I lost when the pouch broke. Then I got another, which I�ve just replaced. So over six months I spent �45 on tools, which, when you think about it, is going to start adding up pretty quickly if you are replacing your tools ever two months. I needed to get one tool, and stick with it� which is when I got thinking about a Leatherman.

The model I will be reviewing is the �Kick�, a basic but effective tool, perfect for those who want quality on a budget [or without fuss]. For those who want more bells and whistles, the range is huge, going from the �juice� [think Swiss army knife on steroids] all the way to the Charge XTi [titanium handles, and everything up to the kitchen sink].

The Kick has only the essential features:
� pliers,
� wire cutters,
� knife,
� bottle opener
� Philips screwdriver
� Flat headed screwdriver [small and large]
� Crude ruler
� Plastic grips [which are great when not using gloves]
� Lanyard loop

� which cuts the weight down to just 5 ounces, so you don�t even notice you are carrying one�until it�s needed! In comparison, the Jack Pike tool Wolf Armouries sells is about twice the weight, and has a lot of surplus features [files, second knife, micro saw blade]. All the blades snap into place nicely, and fold away perfectly [i.e. don�t get stuck], unlike the Jack Pike tools.

Airsoft wise, this thing is great. I was at electro a few days ago, when situpking�s P90 suffered a gearbox jam. Seeing as I was out of the game anyway [both guns breaking in one day. Nice] I offered to fix it for him. So I took it to the bar, sat down with a coke, popped it open and got to work. Ten minutes later the gun was firing perfectly.

To conclude then, the Leatherman Kick is perfect because of it�s low weight, low cost, high quality, 25 year guarantee, and ability to tackle every thing you throw at it.
The only downside I can think of is the lack of scissors [the next model up has them though], and it�s addictive quality. As in, you end up putting it on and forgetting about it, so when you get searched at a club you forget your carrying a bladed item� woops!