Urban survival

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brentondan47

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May 28, 2022
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If you had to pick a multitool for urban survival what would you pick? I'd go with either the Leatherman supertool 300 or maybe the gerber mp600
 
I like my Charge+ TTI.
I like it has scissors, bit driver, double ended eye glasses screwdriver (flat and philips), a built in lanyard or fob ring, and that the pliers are sturdy and have replaceable wire cutter jaws.
IMHO, it is best carried on the belt. It isn't precisely petite. ... I think even with the snap on pocket clip it would not be suitable for pocket carry due to the weight, which is a bit more than a standard Brass Bolstered Buck 110.

To be honest, for an urban enviornment, depending on how discrete you want to be (E.G.: Do you want it to show at your job, for example) a 85mm or 91mm SAK makes a lot more sense.
They weigh considerably less. I carried a Huntsman loose in the bottom of my right front pocket for 15 years. No one could tell I had it.
The scissors were probably the second most used tool, slightly ... very, very slightly behind the punch/awl/reamer. (No car by choice. I rode a bicycle.  LOTS of 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬 goatshead thorns/sanburrs on the streets/bike lanes*, paved bike/horse/jogging/rollerblading multi use paths to remove from your tires ... hopefully before they ventilate your 🤬🤬🤬 tube(s). (*in some areas the bike lane/multi use trail and sidewalk are officially one in the same.)

I'd suggest a SAK with scissors for urban use over a full size Leatherman, SOG or Gerber multi tool. If you  need the pliers, consider the 111mm SAK Hercules. It has a medium duty pliers, and scissors. It is light enough for pocket carry, as well.
 
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I've got a nice variety of multi-tools but if I was in a strange scenario where I could only leave home with one of them, it'd be the Victorinox SwissTool. It's an absolute beast and has a silly amount of useful implements.
 
From the tools I own right now I would pick my Leatherman Bond. Maybe not perfect choice but during the hot summer I have carried it clipped IWB to my college shorts. Carries amazingly well that way. Very discreet and frees pocket space too.
 
afishhunter said:
To be honest, for an urban enviornment, depending on how discrete you want to be (E.G.: Do you want it to show at your job, for example) a 85mm or 9mm SAK makes a lot more sense.
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I have to agree with afishhunter on that.

Being a lifelong city guy, living most my life in and around Washington D.C. with time spent in NYC and Baltimore, a small SAK will do ya for most situations. Urban environments don't need much knife or even tool. Opening boxes/packages, dealing with a screw here and there, popping a bottle top off, is about the what I had to deal with. Going into various government buildings discreet carry was needed. Most urban buildings have security these days, and while it is not as severe as airport/TSA, large items get a hairy eye and questions. But I've walked right through security at the National Gallery Of Art, The Smithsonian Museum complex, the National Aquarium in the old Commerce building, the old Post Office Pavilion with food court and museum.

A multitool may squeak by, but in all my life living as an urbanite, I just never needed the array of tools or larger blade of a multitool. Too bulky, heavy, and just plain not needed. But a SAK tinker, or recruit, or even a classic was plenty for a dense urban environment. About 2 years before we moved to Texas for our retirement, I started carrying a Leatherman squirt that I had been gifted from a forum member right here on this forum. There was many times that squirt was my sole EDC carry around D.C. and it was fine. I must have survived to tell the tale as I am still here.
 
True survival, or just surviving everyday life with as little headaches as possible ?

I live in a rural farm town so I'm not sure how urban that is, but if I had to survive with a multitool it's going to be what's on me.

On a work day that would be my Leatherman bond.


If it's not a work day then that's going to be the Sebertool m4.
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I can only think of two main things that I would consider to be "urban survival" features on a multitool: a safety cutter and a glass breaker. There are tools that have just those two features and nothing else. You could carry one of those in your pocket, and maybe throw in a whistle. Nobody would raise an eyebrow.

Carrying a knife in many urban environments is frowned on unless you are a tradesman. Some people will even freak out over a little swiss army knife. It's sad.

I have a small 2 layer knife that's got a safety cutter, a glass breaker, phillips and flat drivers, a saw, and a pocket clip. I would carry that with me everywhere if it didn't look so "tactical" and therefore scary to a lot of people.

I like the little mini knipex cobra xs and I consider them to be more useful than the pliers on most multi tools. I have found that there is no such thing as the perfect multitool and confining yourself to carrying just one thing can be pretty limiting.
 
If urban survival means post apocalypse. I’d go with the leatherman wave original.
 
The OP didn’t really specify what “urban survival” is. But I think about my very first apartment I rented. I had some tools I kept in my truck but every now and then I needed to adjust something, like a door hinge or window screen. I felt it was so silly to contact the office and ask them to send the maintenance man over for 30 seconds worth of work so out came my Leatherman PST. Likewise I worked in the city and wore it on my belt and every now and then would use it for something similar. If anything was a bigger task then I’d grab an actual tool from a tool box for the job.

But back to the question, I guess I’d go with the Leatherman.
 
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It really depends on what is urban and what is Survival:

For me the two extremes would be:

SHTF Scenario:
LM Surge with complete Bitset (and maybe ratched) together with a small Crowbar. Nothing beats this in terms of usability. Urban means lots of ressources (may it be debris or technical equipment) that can be manipulated, repaird, crafted etc with both. A Crowbar is for access.

EDC urban scenario:
Victorinox Tinker (Deluxe Tinker) or of you like bits then a Cybertool. Lots of usability, low profile. Or for geeks you can add a small bitset. I really never use a MT on daily urban scenarios, for small office jobs the pliers (or super-tweezers) are plenty.
Some may want to carry something smaller like the LM PST or Bond or Juice, but this depends on their preferences.

Michael
 
To me, Urban Survival means homeless in the city. I would think the older MTs, larger and heavier, would provide better function and service in that sort of environment maybe for a longer term use. Something like a Swisstool, or Leatherman 300, or Gerber MP600, etc. Breaking & entering, turning on water valves, bridging electrical meters, making heaters, securing door locks, making window barriers, etc,etc.
 
Edit: Some of my answer went a bit missing, In the day to day urban Survival = get along and do stuff, I want a small knife and scissors a pair of Tweezers,
Small pliers, needle pencil. A few coins a few notes and at least one debit card. I used to carry a Victorinox compact to work and a small Maxpedition pouch packed with extras - eg big scissors, small pliers, bits and bit driver.
Don’t forget the dental floss, I’ve bodged repairs on umbrellas, split seams, bicycle saddles, backpacks, and even replaced spectacle screws with it. Darning needle is handy too as the sewing hole on a Sak reamer is pretty useless. IMHO

Be Prepared - I didn’t realise for years that I carried most of this stuff for other people who weren’t.
 
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willisoften said:
Don’t forget the dental floss, I’ve bodged repairs on umbrellas, split seams, bicycle saddles, backpacks, and even replaced spectacle screws with it. Darning needle is handy too as the sewing hole on a Sak reamer is pretty useless. Sorry Felix too much stretch for me
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What you can also do is take a regular needle and thread

Then roll the thread around and along the needle then store it in the saw or scissor liner space
 
I really like the supertool 300 for general tool use. My most commonly used urban items outside a pen and knife are a flashlight, scissors, file, and screw drivers. If its an emergency pliers and a glass breaker seem like a good idea.
 
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