Modest Mod of a Leatherman tool

[Colin Krusor]

In addition to my knife, I appreciate having a small pair of pliers, scissors, and a saw. I seem to find uses for these, and I've always carried a mini multi-tool for that purpose. For about two years I've carried a Leatherman Squirt PS4 that I modified by replacing the screwdriver/bottle opener parts with a small saw blade. When I recently lost it, I looked into just replacing it and doing the same modification, but the current model PS4 no longer has hex (or torx) bolts that permit easy disassembly for modifications. Now it just has smooth-headed tamper-proof rivets.

So I did some reading and ran across the Style P4. It is a pared-down version of the Squirt PS4 with an elongated handle and carabiner clip on one side. The Style P4 is about 0.5 oz lighter than the Squirt PS4. It only has pliers, scissors, and a nail file, but, unlike the Squirt PS4, the Style P4 has removeable screws (with size T6 torx heads). So, I picked one up at REI and replaced the nail file with a small saw blade that I fabricated by cutting a sliver out of a Gerber folding saw. I shaped the head (pivot) end of the saw to match the end of the nail file component that I removed, so the saw neatly springs open and closed like any of the factory-included components. The modification interferes with using the carabiner clip, but I wouldn't have used that feature anyway. I'll probably attach a lanyard. The modified tool weighs 45 grams (1.6 oz).

Before and after:

[peter vacco]

yes … sweet.

of note i can only add that small rivits and such can often be removed by use of the very thin dremel tool slotting blades.
this same blade also does a bang-up job removing the spot welds that retain the overheavy handles on titi pots.
you get very nice control with the dremel tool.

[Sean Rhoades]

Genious!! I really like simple, functional mods such as this.

[Andrew Zajac]

I think that you did a great job, it looks like it could have come from the factory like that. What do you think the purpose of such a small saw would be? I'm having trouble thinking of uses. I can't imagine it would be easier to saw through little sticks than to just break them.

[Colin Krusor]

Thanks. I'm pleased with how it turned out.

I've found that small saws on mini multi-tools and swiss army knives work well for wood up to about 3" diameter. With the saw blade on my last little multi-tool (which was shorter than the saw on this one) I was able to cut through a wrist-thick hickory handle from an old pick axe. I would not have been able to break that.

I won't be cutting kiln-dried hickory while backpacking, obviously. In practice, I've found them useful for two things: cutting big sticks to support a tarp and cutting dead roots that protrude from the ground in campsites. On a trip to Plumas NF a month ago I found a campsite that was ideal but it had a sharp protruding root in the middle from a stump nearby (the root was dead). It was springy enough that bashing it with a rock would not have accomplished anything, but cutting it out with the little saw took just a few seconds.

[Mike Oxford]

Now that's a mod I can truly appreciate!

[Tim Good]

Nice job, I like thos new PS tools

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