SOG Powerlock Review

C

cowboyup0669

Joined
Aug 14, 2008
Messages
25
A couple months back I picked up a SOG powerlock. Prior to that I have had a Gerber Diesal that I've been very pleased with. In my day to day, I use a multi too every day. I'm a farmhand, horse wrangler, carpenter, and somehow the "official guy" of about half a dozen households. A good multi tool is a must have in my world!
I origanaly bought Leathermans Surge, used it for a week or so and replaced it with the Diesal. I used the Diesal daily for a couple of years and it always perfomed. The only issue I had is substantial tip breakage on the blade trying to use it as a prybar to extract a badly jammed 5.56mm round from a friends rifle. ( I warned him it wouldn't work!) Under the misuse of the blade he subjected it to, this was not unexpected.
As happy as I've always been with my Diesal, I always wanted a SOG. I finaly got around to picking one up and have been very pleased with it!
The Compound leverage SOG advertises is no joke! These things grip strong and cut well! The open one handed beutifully and easily. If you can open a balisong, you can open these. The tool selection is good and I have had occasion to use most of them (the socket adapter is the exception) The V cutter is a beast, ripping through aything you can get into the notch! I used the saw to cut inch and a half skin on rattaan and it ripped through it.
The whole package fits well in the hand and just feels sturdy with no lateral wiggle. The locks are adequate for there purpose and I like the ninety degree locking feature on the phillips bit. The can opener...well, we can't have everything, can we? It works, but not easily or smoothly.
The leather sheath that came with the tool is very nice with a sturdy snap to close. I prefer the leather with a snap to nylon with velcro fo day to day carry on my belt.
While I feel a little disloyal to my trusty Gerber Diesal, I love this multitool and have drawered my Diesal since the day I got it
As Usual, awsome job SOG! Keep it up!
Peace
John
 
Thanks for the review. I always like hearing what our customers think about our products.
 
I love my PowerLock too and am on my second SOG multitool. My first multitool was replaced not because it had failed me but because the PowerLock comes with those wings that protect your hands, something my old tool did not have.

I own a Leatherman Wave too. It's nice and all but the fit and finish does not compare to SOG's.
 
I will properly buy a SOG multitool in a month or two for my father birthday. It's only pretty hard to decide which one you should pick up. They all look nice.
 
Still waiting for the PowerAssist, delayed for almost one year IIRC. Played with some Leathermans today at the store, especially the Charge and Wave. Expected better fitting for the price.

I've heard that the earlier SOG multitools occasionally stripped off fingers instead of wires, is it fixed?
 
The stripping of hands probably came from the exposed "gears" on the older Powerlocks, on the newever models the "gears" are covered. I've owned several Leathermans, and used just about everything else out there. The SOG Powerlocks only competition is the SwissTool. Just like in my opinion the only competition to the SwissTool Spirit is the Paratool. The Paratool is a great smaller multitool.
 
I bought my first SOG, a Powerlock, at a gunshow yesterday. Simply put, I love it! I love the feel and weight of it. The fit and finish are very good, too.

I've used various Leatherman tools for about the last 8-9 years, so I consider myself a Leatherman guy. Now, however, the SOG is riding on my belt. It's amazing what the geared pliers allow you to do. Things I couldn't do with my Leatherman Charge TTi are easily done with the Powerlock.

My only real criticism is that the internal impliments have a bit of play when locked open; my LM Charge has much less, even though I've used it extensively since I've got it (over a year).
 
Hey Chris,

I was wondering if you knew if the Power Assist will really be out in Oct. The delays are killing me. :(
 
Yes, they are killing me too. I do know that we had a limited number in stock for first production. As for when full production will begin I have been told in that we should have everything up and running by the end of the month. So you should start seeing them in stores by the Middle of November.
 
Chris@SOG said:
Yes, they are killing me too. I do know that we had a limited number in stock for first production. As for when full production will begin I have been told in that we should have everything up and running by the end of the month. So you should start seeing them in stores by the Middle of November.
Click to expand...

That's great news:D The only reason that I ever opt NOT to pack the Powerlock is if I know I'm going to need a knife blade in a fairly quick fashion. This would allow me to leave the dedicated pocket knife at home while still packing a "serious" and heavy duty tool:thumbup:. I think I'll see if the wife will pick me up a Power Assist for Christmas...if I can wait that long;)
 
I'm the original reviewer. I stopped using the e-mail I opened that account with and cannot for the life of me rember my password. Since I lurk often but rarely post it was easier for me to just create a new account. Yeah, I get hit in the head a lot in my hobby :o
Since a review I did almost three years ago resurfaced recently I decided to do a follow up on it and figured while I'm at it I may as well do folow ups on some other old reviews. I'm bored today.
So my powerlock. I use the darn thing nearly every day. Working construction, working on farms and just being a generaly handy and prepared kind of guy, my Powerlock gets a lot of use. I am still very happy with it but find myself eyeballing a leatherman wave or charge, primarly do to the accesability of some of the most used tools from the outside. Its a tough call though since I know the pliers on those don't cut nearly as well as SOGs and I do use those a lot. I do like the knife blade on the leatherman better though and find the blade on the powerlock wanting. The other tools are adequate to there purposes though and while I have been meaning to swap the v cutter for scissors for some time now, the fact that I havn't tells me its not that big a deal.
Overall I am still very happy with my powerlock and still wear and use it almost daily. The cutting power on the pliers was a real life saver more than once, especialy when some old barbed wire was found by one of the animals on the farm. The cheap multitool that the other guy had coulodn't cut it but my SOG shredded it. It did damage the blade on the cutters a bit but its still usable and we saved a calf from fiurther harm. My SOG Powerlocks are there when I need them and as long as what I'm asking is reasonable for the type of tool they are, they will not let me down. I understand SOG is coming out with a bit set for it and I may look into that as it would increase the versitlility of the tool for me.
An all around well built, dependable, solid tool. While I may be looking at another for features that this one doesn't have, that doesn not lessen how good this one has been to me for three years now!
John
 
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