“Excursions” series
All over the year, and especially during summer season, mountains, valleys and pine forests become a popular destination for plenty of excursionists. “Excursions” is a series of 5 weekly articles to prepare yourself optimally for your outdoor activities from trekking to camping, with suggestions on clothing and equipment: which are the best fabrics to wear, which backpack model to choose, the necessary technologies for footwear, the many functionalities of the multi-tools. The series will end with an article on a topic you asked us to cover, i.e. how to prepare your survival kit - that we wrote taking a cue from the precious suggestions of professional military operators.
Article 4 of 5
All tools in one hand: 3 Leatherman multitools for excursionism
As the word itself suggests, multi-tools means that a single tool contains many different functionalities, as if they were several tools in one. In general, almost all Leatherman multi-tools are equipped with a number and variety of functions that meet the majority of the requirements for venturing outdoors; we have chosen for you three different models suitable for outdoor adventures that, according to us, represent the best possible compromise between size, weight and functionality.
Key Points
• Signal®
• Raptor® Rescue
• Rebar®
3' reading
• Signal®
The Signal® is one of the few multi-tools designed specifically for outdoor activities. Ideal for setting up a bivouac, organizing a base camp or other bushcraft needs, this complete tool incorporates special and functional accessories such as a 420HC combo knife (with flat and serrated wire); a wide saw blade for cutting branches and twigs; an awl with thread loop for any interventions on leather; a small hammer appendix to beat pegs or tent-pegs; a can opener/bottle opener; a detachable diamond-coated sharpener to sharpen even the most used blades.
Image 1: Signal®’s hammer appendix
In addition, the Signal® is equipped with an emergency whistle with a ferrocerium rod installed on the back to start the fire (separable from the Signal®).
Image 2: Signal®’s ferrocerium rod
Among the other interesting aspects of this multitool, we point out the possibility of locking every feature into place in order to avoid any accidental opening in your pocket; a replaceable pocket clip; outside-accessible features; replaceable wire and hard-wire cutters. The Signal® represents the ideal compromise to have everything you might need ready-to-use during excursions, in a practical and light tool: in total, in fact, it offers 19 different tools with a weight of 7.5 oz and a thickness of .63 inch.; lastly, it comes with a practical sheath. Click here to know more.
Image 3: Signal®Topo Green with a topographic map designed on the blade
• Raptor® Rescue
Although the Raptor® Rescue scissors are better known in the professional areas of emergency services, their extreme compactness given by the "closable" architecture - they measure only 5 inch. at closed length -, makes them particularly interesting for other uses such as excursionism considering that, in fact, they take up a very little space to be left at home.
Image 4: Raptor® Rescue folded
Developed with the input of special operations medics, EMTs and fire professionals familiar with standard shears, the Raptor® Rescue were crafted with the right balance of multipurpose features for emergency response without an overkill of tools to complicate sometimes life-threatening situations, when every second counts. These scissors are in fact ideal as a tool to include in your IFAK – which, as we know, should never be missing in your equipment, but we will talk about this in more detail in the next article on how to prepare your own survival kit starting from military survival techniques.
Image 5: IFAK with Raptor® Rescue
In everyday life as in the outdoors, the Raptor® Rescue can be used not only in critical situations, such as, for example, for a quick cut of the injured person's clothes (no, nail clippers are not suitable, ed), but also as multitools scissors for various fabrics (sheets or tarpaulins, jute bags, plastic sheets, aluminum cans, bandages), as kitchen scissors, gardening scissors or for cutting small branches and shrubs. The equipment also includes a strap cutter and a carbide glass-breaking tip; these folding scissors are made of 420HC stainless steel while the handle rings are covered with fiberglass reinforced nylon, for insulation and comfort. Also, they include their own support for multipurpose belts, to always have them ready in times of need. Click here to find out more.
Image 6: Raptor® Rescue in their own support for multipurpose belt
• Rebar®
The Rebar® is another equally versatile multitool that offers 3 separate blades: one with flat wire, one with serrated wire and a 420HC steel saw.
Image 7: Rebar®
Having these tools with distinct characteristics offers more cutting surface and work on the length; the knife with serrated wire, for example, is suitable for fibrous materials such as ropes, cardboard and fresh twigs, while the flat blade is ideal for wood shaving or to create feather sticks, wooden "curls" taken from the central part of the trunk, which is drier, useful to create a firelighter.
Image 8: Rebar®’s serrated wire
The supplied pliers, on the other hand, have been optimized to offer greater resistance and have wire-cable cutters with replaceable shearers, ruler and screwdrivers including the one with Phillips-type tip, useful if in our equipment there are radios, satellite phones or other small electronic devices.
Image 9: Rebar®’s pliers
The set of tools (17 in total) also includes awl with thread loop, can opener / bottle opener and wood-metal file, all with a weight of 6.7 oz., a thickness of .65 inch. and its own sheath; all of this makes the Rebar® an absolutely versatile product, that can be identified as an indispensable tool for the outdoors as well. Here you find Rebar®’s product page on our website.
This is the fourth and penultimate article of the “Excursions” series, which will continue on our Tactykal Tips blog with the last not-to-miss article! Coming soon: Survival Equipment, from military to outdoor: 5 tips for your DIY kit, written with the help of military professionals.
If you missed the previous article about outdoor footwear, click here.
If you have any curiosity, send us an email to info@tactyka.com with the topic you want to know more about.