Leatherman micro rust

R

redhawk44357

Joined
Jun 1, 2002
Messages
33
I have given my wife two of these. They were kept in her purse and used them several times. Problem is after a time they both got rusty to the point that they could not be used anymore. I know that they are supposed to be stainless so why the rust? I carry one in my pocket with no problems. I have sent messages to Leatherman with no answer. What can be my next step?
 
redhawk44357 said:
I have given my wife two of these. They were kept in her purse and used them several times. Problem is after a time they both got rusty to the point that they could not be used anymore. I know that they are supposed to be stainless so why the rust? I carry one in my pocket with no problems. I have sent messages to Leatherman with no answer. What can be my next step?
Click to expand...

I've had mine 20+ years with no special care and no rust. Either something in your wife's purse is causing the metal to oxidize, or I don't know.
If Leatherman doesn't reply, you should send their warranty department the rusty Micra and get a replacement.
 
I'd guess that if your wife uses any sort of mineral makeup or keeps things in her purse that might be slightly corrosive, that could be causing the problem. Almost no steel is fully stainless, short of H1 and LC200n, many can be corroded by contaminants. Depending on where the rust is forming, a little silicone spray, or similar long lasting lube, maybe frog lube, might keep them good.
Also could be a result of an environmental factor where you wife's purse spends most of its time, depending on what she does for work.
If you could describe the rust pattern, that could also help track down whats going on.
 
The bottom of a woman's purse has things in it that cannot be identified by science. :D

Best bet would be to give them a call. Their warranty is second to none. I called about a rusted solid skeletool that I found in the bottom of my tool box. To see if I should bother sending it in. They said send it and sent me a brand new one.
 
Also the leather and/or the chemicals in the leather could cause the corrosion.
 
gadgetgeek said:
I'd guess that if your wife uses any sort of mineral makeup or keeps things in her purse that might be slightly corrosive, that could be causing the problem. Almost no steel is fully stainless, short of H1 and LC200n, many can be corroded by contaminants. Depending on where the rust is forming, a little silicone spray, or similar long lasting lube, maybe frog lube, might keep them good.
Also could be a result of an environmental factor where you wife's purse spends most of its time, depending on what she does for work.
If you could describe the rust pattern, that could also help track down whats going on.
Click to expand...
The rust seems to be mainly between the Sissor blades and in the hinges
 
Does she clean them with alco gel? That might be cleaning out any oil from the pivot. Otherwise, just a little more maintenance should be all that's needed. But also try on Leatherman's warranty if you want, they are pretty rock solid with even the most absurd of claims. I found a sideclip in the sand that they replaced with a wingman.
 
My oldest Juice (about 20 years old) started to develop a couple rust spots when I lived in MN (many years ago). At the time, I would often open my windows in the early spring and late fall, and sometimes on cooler nights. I don't know if that was the cause, but I assumed it was, as a couple other metal pieces I kept under the bed showed signs of rust. Additionally, when I keep garden equipment in the cabin of my car (parked outside) when temps are warm/hot in the day and low at night, they would show signs of rust. I don't notice it so much with things in the glove compartment.

I don't know if it is the consistency/inconsistency of the SS LM uses, or something else, but at the time, I had read other forums where LM blades would show signs of rust. In my case, I used PB Blaster and steel wool to remove the spots and I stopped letting it sit in areas that went through large temperature swings. I haven't had any rust pop back up on that LM since then, and haven't seen any on my newer LM.
 
Being enclosed within a bag 24/7 sounds like an environment which traps humidity, moisture and gasses.
I dunno if that lead to rusting of the tool.
But it would be helpful to care for such a tool on a weekly basis to curb any rust build up.
As always ... maintenance, maintenance, maintenance.
It might help to experiment zip locking the tool to see if it would cut out the reoccuring problem at hand.
 
Como entusiasta de la pesca tuve que dejar de usar leatherman. No pescaré mucho. Y siempre enjuague con agua fresca y aceite elaborado. Y aun así se oxidan. Cualquier sak, por simple que sea, es mejor que una Leatherman . un saludo
 
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