I am a multitool nerd, and my daily carry is a Leatherman Surge. When I had to send that in for a warranty repair, I wanted a cheap tool to fill in the gap while it was gone, and I landed on this one.
THE GOOD:
Budget price.
Nice size and weight.
Pliers are spring loaded
Nylon belt loop case is included
THE BAD:
Not tightly engineered. The entire tool has a bit of play, especially the smaller ones.
17-in-1 is a stretch, and several of the functions are barely functions at all.
Let's go over the "17" functions.
The pliers count as 3 of the 17 functions, being needle nose (1), regular pliers (2), and wire cutters (3). The pliers have a tiny bit of play but work as well as you'd expect from a multi-tool. I'd confidently use these for light-duty tasks like loosening car battery terminals or bending thin sheet metal.
The wire cutters worked fine for me, cutting a bunch of 14 gauge wire for a project. They are replaceable, but finding the exact ones that fit may be tough.
The knife (4) is a good size, and it's not serrated, which is a massive plus to me (especially on the cheaper multi-tools). It's 440a steel, so it won't blow your mind but sharpens quickly. It's hard to complain about it at this price point.
The sawblade (5) works great, but unfortunately, it's not replaceable. If you use this with any regularity, the blade will become dull and entirely useless.
The scissors (6) are great in a pinch and on par with any multitool scissors I've used. I like that they have the blunted tip to make these helpful in cutting bandages or clothing close to the skin.
The file (7) seems fine. I haven't used it for anything other than filing my fingernails but it does an excellent job at that. A ruler (8) printed on the backside of the file has yet to be useful for me, but in its defense, it is stamped into the metal instead of being painted on. Finally, the file's tip is a flathead screwdriver (9) that I have used to pry open paint cans with no problems.
The Phillips screwdriver (10) is smaller than I'd like but will work for most light-duty use cases.
The "threading needle", or awl, (11) is disappointing. On most multitools, the awl is tapered at the end to allow you to use a drilling motion to get through heavier material more efficiently.
The bottle opener (12) Opens bottles! I have yet to use the flathead screwdriver (13) on the end of it.
The can opener (14) works, but you'll wish you had a P-38 instead after using it. There is a small flathead screwdriver (15) on the end of this that I've used for tasks like taking off outlet covers.
The rope cutter (16) works, but it's situational. I'd consider it more of a twine/fishing line cutter. You may be able to cut some very light rope like 550 paracord, but you will be pulling pretty hard.
Function number 17 is a mystery to me.
This tool will save you a trip to your toolbox for many tasks and for that reason I am satisfied with my purchase.
This would be an excellent starter tool to see if carrying multitools daily is for you, or as a backup tossed in a glove box. Eventually you will want to upgrade but this one will serve you well as long as you don't try to use it on medium duty tasks and up.
