I have owned this DL30 for several months, but hadn't really had the chance to try it out. Well today we are going to do some pretty extensive testing of this tool and compare it to the Leatherman Surge.
The Leatherman Surge only comes with sheath and Saw/File holder right? I don't think it comes with the Leatherman Bits either. About the cutters..the reason there are new cutters: They changed the molds for the Leatherman Wave Plus..it no longer fits the old cutters well. So when they changed it, the cutters needed an update...silly I know.
good your back I've missed you so bad and two videos in a day twice as nice and knots video with your girls was great we all need a break but you've got a budget multi tools everywhere so you only have about 1 million videos to get done I'll enjoy all of them gald your back
Been using the DL30 pretty hard for 6 mon as a daily carry. I have been very impressed with the quality that you get with a 37.00 dollar tool. I am surprised at how well the blade steel has held up and retained it's edge. Sharpens up easily and last a long time. Like I said I'm a hard user! I use it at work and on the farm many times a day and it has not let me down yet.
For those wondering about a god pocket clip option that isn’t adhesive based. The Donk - Titanium pocket clip for the leatherman wingman and sidekick fits very nicely onto the DL30. It’s not perfect but it’s the best option I’ve seen, and has served me very well for over a month now.
You can put a 6mm by 1mm disk magnet in the bottom of the dl30s bit driver to make it magnetic while still being able to use the double sided ball detent bits
90% as good, quarter of the price and not limited (by default) to the crappiest most expensive bits in existence. Not even a contest if you ask me. Works perfectly fine for all day to day tasks. Fixed a door mechanism, maintain the string trimmer, pull on suff, cut some wire, pry open parts, does it all, no problem. And when you need something really heavy duty, you go and get the right tool for the job.
The flat bits are inferior in their function and they are definitely more expensive, but the point is that the take up much less space and weigh less. If you’re already using a multitool then you should be familiar with that trade off. I keep a leatherman in my motorbike and you bet I have the bit extender and a set of full sized bits, but I would never carry that on my person. But a small sleeve that can hold twenty bits that will get me out of a bind, that makes sense for a lot of people. But you are right, the daicamping d30 looks like a great tool and an unbeatable value. I was considering it until I found this second hand surge at a great price
Blade steel on dl30 is 7cr17 so I think it’s better than 420hc on Leatherman. Will be interesting to see its long term use video. In Europe surge is about 180 eur vs 40 eur for dl30. And QC when compared to blade grind is better
Do you happen to have a Skeletool RX? Leatherman designs those with very deep serrations & they still don't "skip" across rope like that Dia DL30. They mention on the (Canadian) website specifically that they sharpen those serrations twice as deep as their typical serrated blades to make it more effective for these types of cuts in rope, seat belt, etc. I don't think the slightly deeper serrations on the DL30 are a problem, it's likely just dull as hell. Otherwise it wouldn't skip like that, it should be easily cutting through rope like the Surge here or the Skeletool RX regardless of its deep serrations.
I get the huge price difference matters. But there wouldn’t be a DL30 if there wasn’t a Surge. We should consider more than price when we buy things. I’d rather save a little, and buy from a company that has employed people here for decades and has possibly made more inventions and innovations in edc tools than any other company, maybe besides Victorinox… that should mean something. Lifetime warranty should mean something too. It’s too bad people would rather buy what’s cheapest and throw it in the trash when it breaks 😔
I didn't knew that there was M390 replacement blades available ! As a knifemaker I was thinking about making a new blade for my Surge made of N690Co, I really can't stand the 420HC...
The next tool im gonna get is a victorinox. In the past, when i have used cheap multitools, have been aggravating and throwing the tool away. When i use something quality, i feel satisfied and glad i spent the extra money. I just won't buy any more leathermans until they step up their quality control, or i catch it on clearance.
Leatherman bits aren't even proprietary anymore. nextool makes them now for about half the cost of what leatherman charges for them. Leatherman bits aren't worth the $ since they are heat treated way to soft for bits
I have those nextool bits, just as bad, maybe even worse than the leathermans, as they fall/pull out all the time compared to the leatherman bits, they also wear out as quickly as well, both suck
@pmn6404 they might be, but it's a lot cheaper to get new bits from nextool than it is leatherman. That's why I prefer having the 1/4 bit driver on the dl30( get a 6mm/1mm disk magnet and the retention problem is solved). 1/4 bits from wiha, wera and Klein are way better than the marshmallow leatherman/nextool bits
