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Leatherman Blast Review
Submitted by An Outdoor Idiots Team Member.
The Leatherman Blast: Wood/Metal File
The file is described as a "wood/metal file", and it has two sides. One side is cross-cut:
The other side is diagonal-cut:
It may be that one side is designed for metal and the other side is designed for wood, but the instructions do not make that clear. If there is an earth-shattering difference between the application of each side, then we haven't noticed it. Both sides work well on either wood or metal. In general, the cross-cut side is nicer to work with, as it tends to follow the line you drag it in; the diagonal side seems to pull you off course more regularly, as is perhaps to be expected.
In addition to the two sides, the bottom edge can also be used as a very thin file:
This very thin file is useful for cutting through metal, in cases where the hard-wire cutter of the Blast cannot be used.
We found three genuine and practical applications for the file, all related to outdoor hobbies, and so we put it through its paces.
The first application was to tidy up a rather annoying bit of stray metal on sight for a bow (as in a bow that fires arrows). Here is the shoddiness in pictures:
Just look at that! Totally unacceptable. Here is the wrongness in more detail:
Fear not, Leatherman Blast to the rescue. About 30 seconds later:
Phew! You will no longer be the laughing stock of your fellow archers.
Another use was to file down the battery spring in a torch. It had a horribly sharp finish which dug nasty grooves into the batteries. After a few seconds of filing the problem was solved:
You can't really tell anything useful from that picture, so you'll just have to take our word for it.
The final, and perhaps the most moving application, was to try to make our Ray leave his home for more than ten minutes. Normally he only leaves the confines of his home in order to procure fast food. We therefore lulled him into a false sense of burger by phoning him up and telling him there was an offer on at his local fast food parlour. He was out of his house within the hour, and we were lying in wait. As soon as he had locked his door, we sprung ourselves upon him, subdued him, and stole his house key. Neighbours threatened to call the police, but we were able to convince them it was all for his own good.
We then ran away from him, to a distance of about twenty metres. From experience, it takes Ray about five minutes to cover that sort of distance, so it gave us plenty of time to enact the next phase of our plan with his house key, which was this:
Yes, we used the thin edge of the Blast's file in order to cut his door key in half. We timed it, and it took exactly 31 seconds, which we were absolutely delighted with. Ray did not share our enthusiasm.
Anyway, we then tried to persuade him that, since he would now be unable to re-enter his house, we should all probably go on an adventure in the great outdoors. This part of the plan fell through - instead of taking us up on the offer, he simply phoned an emergency 24-hour locksmith and asked them to break into his house. However, that process did take well over an hour, so at least he got some fresh air while he was waiting. Every little helps.
In summary, then: The file is effective, but only as part of a well thought-out plan.
Page 5 of 18 Previous Next [Top of Page]
Page 1: Introduction
Page 2: Overview: Vital Statistics; The Metal; The Plastic; Quality of Construction
Page 3: Overview: Usage
Page 4: Rulers
Page 5: Wood/Metal File
Page 6: Small Bit Driver
Page 7: Screwdrivers
Page 8: Bottle Opener
Page 9: Wire Stripper
Page 10: Can Opener
Page 11: Needlenose Pliers
Page 12: Regular Pliers
Page 13: Wire Cutters
Page 14: Hard-Wire Cutters
Page 15: Saw
Page 16: Scissors
Page 17: Knife
Page 18: Conclusion
Page 2: Overview: Vital Statistics; The Metal; The Plastic; Quality of Construction
Page 3: Overview: Usage
Page 4: Rulers
Page 5: Wood/Metal File
Page 6: Small Bit Driver
Page 7: Screwdrivers
Page 8: Bottle Opener
Page 9: Wire Stripper
Page 10: Can Opener
Page 11: Needlenose Pliers
Page 12: Regular Pliers
Page 13: Wire Cutters
Page 14: Hard-Wire Cutters
Page 15: Saw
Page 16: Scissors
Page 17: Knife
Page 18: Conclusion
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