Lookin for wave vs Wave plus opinions

A

austin37

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Jul 7, 2019
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Lookin to finally get a leatherman wave or wave plus, have carried and used a PST, Orginal supertool (great tool layout and overall, bit too heavy for belt carry), and more recently a Rebar. Is the Wave + worth the extra weight with the upgrades over the Wave? Was there several variations of the original wave tool layout?
 
hsherzfeld said:
The only difference between the Wave and the Wave Plus is the replaceable wire cutters on the Plus.
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Doesn't the + also have upgraded blade steel on the plain edge blade? Maybe CPM154? or S30V?

To methe replacable wire cuttersis worth getting the + model for.
More economcal in the long run than buying a replacement WAVE (or other MT) every time the cutter is wore out.
Replacement cutter blades (with screws) costs a hole lot less than a new MT.
 
afishhunter said:
Doesn't the + also have upgraded blade steel on the plain edge blade? Maybe CPM154? or S30V?

To methe replacable wire cuttersis worth getting the + model for.
More economcal in the long run than buying a replacement WAVE (or other MT) every time the cutter is wore out.
Replacement cutter blades (with screws) costs a hole lot less than a new MT.
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The Wave Plus has regular 420HC blades. You need to get a Charge to get the upgraded blade steel.
 
You can't go wrong with either.
I have the older wave not plus about 20 years old still going strong.
I do prefer my P4 but the wave is better value for your dollar.
Good luck
 
My favorite version of the Wave is the original (pre-2004) version, with no locking inner tools, no bit driver, no eyeglasses bit driver, just lots of flatheads, an actual Philips driver, and scissors that are larger, stronger, and better made than the current Wave/Wave Plus scissors. The original Wave is smaller and lighter as well.
 
I think the only difference is the replaceable cutters. Had both the wave and the wave plus both are solid tools. Too heavy for pocket carry for my taste at least, but great to throw in a glovebox or saddlebag. Sold both when I got a surge, prefer the larger tools and more robust pliers.
 
I have a later model Wave and a current Wave+. I keep the Wave (in it's lovely leather case) in the glove box of my Land Cruiser and the Wave+ in the kitchen junk drawer. I have little occasion to use either but I like having them just in case. The replaceable cutters seem to be a little controversial as to how well they work but I don't recall using that particular function on either tool.
 
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CSG said:
The replaceable cutters seem to be a little controversial as to how well they work but I don't recall using that particular function on wither tool.
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They work really well. I've been very impressed with the performance of the replaceable cutters on my Rebar. The problem is that some time during 2022 the replaceable cutters were updated to an inferior design. There's been some controversy over that recently because everyone started noticing the difference when the Arc was released.

There was a quality control issue with some of the batches that caused the cutters to break, and on top of that there is a small gap in the new cutters at the base of the pliers in the hard wire section which makes the cutters not work properly unless you take the time to position the wire right above the gap. The soft wire section is unaffected, however some people have noted that they have had to remove the cutters and put something underneath them as a shim or spacer in order to get proper performance.

So yeah, the replaceable cutters situation is a little fubar right now and it's not really clear if they are going to revert back to the old design. Meanwhile there is a lot of stock out there of Leatherman models that have the redesigned cutters, so if you buy a new Leatherman right now then you'll probably get the bad cutters and you might even get one of the bad batches that break easily.
 
Guy McVer said:
They work really well. I've been very impressed with the performance of the replaceable cutters on my Rebar. The problem is that some time during 2022 the replaceable cutters were updated to an inferior design. There's been some controversy over that recently because everyone started noticing the difference when the Arc was released.

There was a quality control issue with some of the batches that caused the cutters to break, and on top of that there is a small gap in the new cutters at the base of the pliers in the hard wire section which makes the cutters not work properly unless you take the time to position the wire right above the gap. The soft wire section is unaffected, however some people have noted that they have had to remove the cutters and put something underneath them as a shim or spacer in order to get proper performance.

So yeah, the replaceable cutters situation is a little fubar right now and it's not really clear if they are going to revert back to the old design. Meanwhile there is a lot of stock out there of Leatherman models that have the redesigned cutters, so if you buy a new Leatherman right now then you'll probably get the bad cutters and you might even get one of the bad batches that break easily.
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Which won't really matter to me for the reason I stated above - I don't use them anyway.
 
CSG said:
Which won't really matter to me for the reason I stated above - I don't use them anyway.
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Beyond your own narrow personal self interest is a larger world of people who aren't you. I care about them having helpful information even if you don't. Lots of people beside yourself read these forums.
 
Dude, you're a boor. Other people have pointed that out to you and now I have as well. Buh-bye.
 
Murphy Slaw said:
I wonder about those magnets.

If you're around a lot of drilling, grinding and filing will they collect debris? And then how hard is it to clean the debris out.
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To date I haven't had any trouble claiming it. I'm not around a lot of metal shaving, Steely_Gunz Steely_Gunz has his free around metal filings and had no real problems
 
mitch13 said:
I wear automatic watches not mechanical and have had no problems.
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You mean quartz? Most of the mechanical watches I own are auto (self-winding) and they can suffer from becoming magnetized.
 
CSG said:
You mean quartz? Most of the mechanical watches I own are auto (self-winding) and they can suffer from becoming magnetized.
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I wear automatic. There is a slight difference between auto & mechanical.
automatic watch uses a self-winding mechanism that is powered by the movement of the wearer, which means that you don't need to manually wind the watch. Mechanical watches use a mechanical movement to track the time, and require hand winding.
 
mitch13 said:
I wear automatic. There is a slight difference between auto & mechanical.
automatic watch uses a self-winding mechanism that is powered by the movement of the wearer, which means that you don't need to manually wind the watch. Mechanical watches use a mechanical movement to track the time, and require hand winding.
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I know what they are as just having posted that I own both types and explained auto winders are subject to becoming magnetized as they are also mechanical watches. Manual winding is simply that.
 
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