Squirt PS4?

J

jackknife

Joined
Oct 2, 2004
Messages
17,489
Anyone got a pic of a Leatherman squirt ps4 alongside a micra or a Victorinox classic for a comparison of size?

Interested in one as an alternative to the micra for the small pliers as main tool instead of scissors, as well as tools mounted on the "outside" of the tool.

Thanks.
 
Carl, here is a crude shot.
image by Pinnah, on Flickr

I'll try to get a shot with the tools deployed later today.

One thing this "from above" shot doesn't capture is that the Squirt is both a bit shorter and thicker. I find it a bit clunkier for pocket carry, as the Micra lays flatter in my pocket.

There are scissors and then there are scissors. The Squirts are of the same size/ability of the Vic Classic but are nowhere near as nice as the Classic's. On the other hand, last week I was working on some electronics that had zip ties for cable control and had to cut off a bunch of misplaced zip ties. The Micra's scissors are more like shears and they blew through the tough plastic with both power and control - just shy of cable cutters. So, for me, that's the core trade-off: shears vs pliers.

Regarding the tools, they are on the outside and are a bit easier to access. But they are also shorter and stubbier and in my big hands, a bit harder to use. The Micra also carries more tools.

I find the Micra more useful for EDC and I carry the Squirt for ultralight backpacking because a) I want the pliers for repairs, b) only need very light scissors for bandages and c) don't typically need screw drivers in the backcountry and when I do, the Squirt is enough.

Two more shots, both next to an Opinel #9 for comparison.
Outdoor Carry by Pinnah, on Flickr

EDC Pair by Pinnah, on Flickr


I feel like a drug dealer...
 
EDC2_zps65086b72.jpg
 
tylosaurus said:
a PS4 is cheap. Just buy one and play with it already.
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What???

The blade on my PS4 Squirt came with a bad grind which I fixed of course. But I prefer the Style series because Pinnah is right the Squirt is a bit chunky when compared to other small multitools.
 
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pinnah said:
I feel like a drug dealer...
Click to expand...

Yeah, you and my cousin Dave!

I've been known as a certain type of person. In the shooting members of the family I've been known as a dyed in the wool revolver man from the get go. But my cousin Dave has some traits very similar to Dave from up north, AKA pinnah.

Now after a full half century with a .38 revolver, Dave the cousin has me seriously looking at changing over to a Glock 26 forth generation. The baby Glock 9mm. Like Dave the pinnah guy has me seriously looking at Leatherman tools for the first time in my life. I still don't like the big ones, but I can see some valid advantages for the small pocket size ones as a 'walking around suburbia' edc.

LIke the Leatherman micra, the small Glock is a bit chunkier, but offers so much more in a package of very similar size and weight. Like the Vic classic vs the micra, there's always a tread off, but if I'm honest with myself, I can see advantages. But I have to get over the old fear of radical change. Sometimes habits can become actually crippling, if it means carrying a 5 shot gun vs a 10 shot that is more accurate as well. The little Vic classic that I've carried so long, when looked at in the harsh light of day, can't handle some things the micra can.

The micra has been a lesson in something, I haven't quite got figured out yet. But sometimes change has to occur to move on, or you become a dinosaur. And looked what happened to the dinosaur!:eek:

So now, once the stone wall has come down, I may be going down the road with a Leatherman in the pocket, and a Glock on hand, instead of the Vic and the .38.

Like my old man once told me; "Every dawn brings a whole new set of possibilities, if we have our eyes open to see it happen."

Ya all have to excuse me now, I have to go look in a mirror to see if I recognize myself.
 
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If you are considering the Squirt PS4 because of the pliers, you might take a look at the P4 instead. It doesn't have scissors but does pack both an awl and tiny screwdriver that were left off the PS4 in a poor tradeoff for dinky little scissors. Once I had a Style PS. It had a nice look and feel and carried well, but after a few weeks with very little use the scissor spring broke while the thing was folded. When I sent it to Leatherman warranty they returned a PS4 for reasons I don't know. That scissors has a somewhat more robust looking spring, so I am thinking they were having too many returns of the PS and replacing broken spring warranty claims with something that has scissor of the same design but hopefully more reliable. Comparing the PS4 with my well worn but still fully functional P4, all I can say is that the PS4 is still in its original pristine condition :p .
 
znapschatz said:
If you are considering the Squirt PS4 because of the pliers, you might take a look at the P4 instead. It doesn't have scissors but does pack both an awl and tiny screwdriver that were left off the PS4 in a poor tradeoff for dinky little scissors. Once I had a Style PS. It had a nice look and feel and carried well, but after a few weeks with very little use the scissor spring broke while the thing was folded. When I sent it to Leatherman warranty they returned a PS4 for reasons I don't know. That scissors has a somewhat more robust looking spring, so I am thinking they were having too many returns of the PS and replacing broken spring warranty claims with something that has scissor of the same design but hopefully more reliable. Comparing the PS4 with my well worn but still fully functional P4, all I can say is that the PS4 is still in its original pristine condition :p .
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I can't figure out what you're talking about, since I'm looking at the Leatherman web site and there is no P4 listed. The only squirt with a P prefix is the PS4. :confused:
 
I've been toting the PS4 around for 5 years now. The dinky little scissors have held up just fine, I even figured out one day that they could be used as an awl in a pinch. The little flat Philips combo is great, works on a great deal of screws found on modern kids toys and the like. The knife blade comes with a poorly executed full flat / chisel grind that can be easily converted to a v or convex edge, but will never perform like a Victorinox blade without serious modification. There is simply too much material left behind the edge. The file is of poor quality but can be useful on rare occasion. The pliers are excellent and punch far above their weight.

The only other LM I would look at is the Style PS, it's missing the knife, file and medium flat driver, but is thinner and lighter than the PS4. In my opinion the P4 and S4 are not as nice to carry and use. The rivets used stick out quite a bit and tend to snag and make the handles less comfortable in use.

It's funny a while back I had tried to convince you to give the PS4 a try on another forum and you didn't seem interested at the time.


14849196476_dd9cf1d84e_k.jpg


As for the firearm if you are open to suggestions I'm a fan of the S&W military and police line. The M&P Shield is worth a look IMO. Well priced, narrow, reliable, comfortable. I personally own the M&P 9, but have a coworker who owns and likes a M&P Shield 40.
 
Hacked said:
I've been toting the PS4 around for 5 years now. The dinky little scissors have held up just fine, I even figured out one day that they could be used as an awl in a pinch. The little flat Philips combo is great, works on a great deal of screws found on modern kids toys and the like. The knife blade comes with a poorly executed full flat / chisel grind that can be easily converted to a v or convex edge, but will never perform like a Victorinox blade without serious modification. There is simply too much material left behind the edge. The file is of poor quality but can be useful on rare occasion. The pliers are excellent and punch far above their weight.

The only other LM I would look at is the Style PS, it's missing the knife, file and medium flat driver, but is thinner and lighter than the PS4. In my opinion the P4 and S4 are not as nice to carry and use. The rivets used stick out quite a bit and tend to snag and make the handles less comfortable in use.

It's funny a while back I had tried to convince you to give the PS4 a try on another forum and you didn't seem interested at the time.


14849196476_dd9cf1d84e_k.jpg


As for the firearm if you are open to suggestions I'm a fan of the S&W military and police line. The M&P Shield is worth a look IMO. Well priced, narrow, reliable, comfortable. I personally own the M&P 9, but have a coworker who owns and likes a M&P Shield 40.
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The dinky scissors don't bother me at all, I'm used to the tiny scissors on the classic.

Two months ago, I was a lost cause for Leatherman. Didn't like their stuff, and saw no need for it. Then Dave sent me the little micra. In the spirit of giving it an honest rail, I took the classic off my keyring and for one month, used the heck out it. I didn't like it, but I came to see that in some ways it was a heck of a tool. Like I said in another post, I have a bad habit that a lot of old timers have, being very resistant to change. But I have to be honest with myself in the end, and that means maybe making some changes, like it or not. JUst like the guns. I've been a revolver man my whole life, but shooting my cousin Dave's little baby Glock has been an eye opener.

It's been two months now that I've been playing with the micra, and at the end of the one month trial I set it aside, but kept gutting drawn back to it. There's no denying that it's a heck of a rugged little tool, and will handle a wide variety of jobs. Yes, there's some things that I find a little inconvenient, like having the tools on the inside, but I may even be getting used to that aspect of it. It's grown on me a bit. I know that things grow on you, like warts, skin fungi, calluses, melanoma. Butmaybe for once I found something that grows onme that is not so bad, like small Leatherman pocket tools. Time will tell.

It's all Dave's fault.
 
Haha! I still love my Classic. I even went and sold my Style recently. But now I find myself wanting a Squirt. Ha... Why people?
 
jackknife said:
The dinky scissors don't bother me at all, I'm used to the tiny scissors on the classic.

Two months ago, I was a lost cause for Leatherman. Didn't like their stuff, and saw no need for it. Then Dave sent me the little micra. In the spirit of giving it an honest rail, I took the classic off my keyring and for one month, used the heck out it. I didn't like it, but I came to see that in some ways it was a heck of a tool. Like I said in another post, I have a bad habit that a lot of old timers have, being very resistant to change. But I have to be honest with myself in the end, and that means maybe making some changes, like it or not. JUst like the guns. I've been a revolver man my whole life, but shooting my cousin Dave's little baby Glock has been an eye opener.

It's been two months now that I've been playing with the micra, and at the end of the one month trial I set it aside, but kept gutting drawn back to it. There's no denying that it's a heck of a rugged little tool, and will handle a wide variety of jobs. Yes, there's some things that I find a little inconvenient, like having the tools on the inside, but I may even be getting used to that aspect of it. It's grown on me a bit. I know that things grow on you, like warts, skin fungi, calluses, melanoma. Butmaybe for once I found something that grows onme that is not so bad, like small Leatherman pocket tools. Time will tell.

It's all Dave's fault.
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Reminds me a lot of how the toy like Victorinox Classic grew on me years ago ;) darn thing was sharp and easy to keep that way. The dinky little scissors were pretty handy as well. Guess that's why I ended up carrying a Pioneer years later.

Obviously the PS4 has the convenience of tools accessible in the closed position, a nice feature. Another one that is often over looked is the keychain attachment point. It should be the industry standard for small multitools. It will make you wonder why Victorinox didn't think of that.
 
I now keep a Ps4 on every keychain for family cars. Used to have the Micra's, but found the pliers to be much more usable than the larger scissors. My first change out was a P4, but found I really missed having some form of scissor, then stumbled into the Ps4 and picked up a half dozen.

All of mine have great grinds on the blade. And the scissors are strong enough to trim finger nails if you hold them right. Both the pliers and scissors have been used and appreciated more times than I would have even imagined when purchased. The blade, not as much because I always have a larger and easier to deploy blade on hand also.
 
jackknife said:
The dinky scissors don't bother me at all, I'm used to the tiny scissors on the classic.

Two months ago, I was a lost cause for Leatherman. Didn't like their stuff, and saw no need for it. Then Dave sent me the little micra. In the spirit of giving it an honest rail, I took the classic off my keyring and for one month, used the heck out it. I didn't like it, but I came to see that in some ways it was a heck of a tool. Like I said in another post, I have a bad habit that a lot of old timers have, being very resistant to change. But I have to be honest with myself in the end, and that means maybe making some changes, like it or not. JUst like the guns. I've been a revolver man my whole life, but shooting my cousin Dave's little baby Glock has been an eye opener.

It's been two months now that I've been playing with the micra, and at the end of the one month trial I set it aside, but kept gutting drawn back to it. There's no denying that it's a heck of a rugged little tool, and will handle a wide variety of jobs. Yes, there's some things that I find a little inconvenient, like having the tools on the inside, but I may even be getting used to that aspect of it. It's grown on me a bit. I know that things grow on you, like warts, skin fungi, calluses, melanoma. Butmaybe for once I found something that grows onme that is not so bad, like small Leatherman pocket tools. Time will tell.

It's all Dave's fault.
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Geez! Warts, fungi, calluses, melanoma :eek: ??? Some comparison, even if the Micra comes off as less bad. About the Micra; it is the most versatile and sturdy of any in its category, with the best slotted screwdriver and scissors (Vic's are more precise, Micra can tackle more and tougher materials.) As to how it feels and carries, after 9 years with one, I got used to its quirks, no big deal about its method of deployment, I don't even think about it. My only issue is that it is always trying to chew its way out of my 5th pockets, never making it all the way but leaving little ragged holes. Eventually I solved that with a little leather slip, but it adds another step from pocket to task and back again. I am less enthusiastic about the S4, but the P4 is a handy pair of pliers when I am carrying a SAK.
 
jackknife said:
...
Two months ago, I was a lost cause for Leatherman. Didn't like their stuff, and saw no need for it. Then Dave sent me the little micra. In the spirit of giving it an honest rail, I took the classic off my keyring and for one month, used the heck out it. I didn't like it, but I came to see that in some ways it was a heck of a tool. Like I said in another post, I have a bad habit that a lot of old timers have, being very resistant to change. But I have to be honest with myself in the end, and that means maybe making some changes, like it or not.
Click to expand...

For what it's worth, Carl, I'm finding this opportunity to have a "ring side seat" during your "evolution" to be very interesting and thought-provoking. Thanks!

- GT
 
Hacked said:
.... Another one that is often over looked is the keychain attachment point. It should be the industry standard for small multitools. It will make you wonder why Victorinox didn't think of that.
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Bingo! I never use the keychain loop on SAKs, and for most of my Vics/Wengers I file or grind it off entirely. Those loops always seem to dig into my hand the wrong way. But one good thing I'll say about the Squirt — I'm not a multi-tool guy — is that the keychain loop disappears into the body.

That is a really good feature, and I too wish the SAK line(s) followed suit the same way.
 
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yeah, the lanyard ring is so good on the leatherman, my tti does it. Do the Squirts have pocket clip like the wave and charge models?
 
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