GERBER Dime 12-in-1 Mini Multi-tool, Black

Definitely one of Gerber’s better product efforts and a real revelation to those of us who’ve lamented the company’s slide in quality over the past 15 or so years. The Dime is a surprisingly well-executed mini multi-tool with a good choice of blades. The build quality is very nice and any criticisms about the tool’s capabilities are really more a function of the inherent limitations of any multi-tool this size.

The spring loaded pliers are commendably well aligned and come together very precisely. So much so that they could work as tweezers in some applications (although the Dime actually comes with a small set of tweezers that slide into one of the tools outer scales). The pliers have a unique stepped tip design, only the outer 1/8″ actually make contact when the jaws are fully closed. That might sound bad, but in practice the arrangement works quite well for small, delicate tasks, allowing the user to work very closely and precisely. And let’s be honest: any tool this small is only going to be useful for small, relatively delicate tasks; you can forget about working with any fastener larger than about 3/8″. If you find that unreasonably limiting, you should really be looking at a full sized multi-tool, like the excellent Leatherman Wave.

Gerber eschewed a more conventional spear or clip saber shape for the knife blade and instead went with a modified sheep’s foot design. An unusual choice, but that shape, along with a slight belly along the honed edge, makes the most of the blade’s minuscule 1 1/4″ length. It also encourages use that applies pressure only in direct opposition to the way the blade closes (no stabbing or auguring with this blade shape); a sound engineering decision given that this is a non-locking blade.

The package opener is a very pleasant surprise. It absolutely excels at opening those infernal clear plastic clam-shell retail packages without damaging the contents, something all too easy to do if you’re using a regular knife blade (do NOT ask me how I know that). The actual cutting edge is positioned at the end of the tool blade, is reverse swept and only about 5/16″ long. It requires more of a pulling than a pushing stroke, which fosters much better control. The end result is a tool that’s very efficient at slicing through that hard plastic while staying clear of the package’s contents. So much so it easily earns it’s keep as dedicated, single-purpose tool on the Gerber Dime.

The scissors are sharp and well engineered, but any substantial cutting job would be extremely tedious due to their diminutive size. I use them to trim my nails. The flat head and pseudo-phillips head screw drivers are what they are: tiny and limited to light duty tasks. I call the smaller a “pseudo-phillips” head because it’s only 2-dimensional; really just a scaled-down flat head that’s tapered so it can fit a phillips head fastener. The phillips driver blade also sports a dual-sided file. The file is one of only two real nits I have with the Gerber Dime. It’s a true cut-file design, but the cutting isn’t very deep or aggressive on either side. At best it could relieve some bothersome edge on a small piece of metal or hard plastic. Beyond that it makes a serviceable nail file.

The other minor complaint I have is the split ring that is attached to the lanyard hole. It’s just spring wire and not particularly strong. I like to use a paracord lanyard to suspend my mini-multi tool inside my pants pocket with the other end attached to a belt loop. I find it rides much more comfortably than just resting at the very bottom of my pocket. But after about a week of supporting the tool’s (tiny) weight at the end of the lanyard, that split ring began to deform and pull apart. I discarded it and now run the lanyard through the bottle opener (which, by the way, is quite effective at its intended function).

The Gerber Dime is a much better and more thoughtfully executed design than the mini multi-tool it replaces, a clunky version sold exclusively at Cabelas. Don’t be put off by my rating of only 4 stars; I’m really quite enthusiastic about the Dime; it’s just that I’m a bit more realistic and conservative in my product ratings than some reviewers are. Very few products are perfect, including this one. But its as nice a mini multi-tool as I’ve yet found.

Me parece que es una herramienta muy útil. Su tamaño pequeño y poco peso la hacen facil de transportar en tu bolsa del pantalón. La navaja tiene bastante filo.

I had used cheaper multitools but this one is 100 times better. it’s made out of high quality materials, fit and finish is amazing, all the tools open and close easily, it’s small which makes it extremely portable (I have it on my keychain), and all the tools are useful, no crappy tools just to bump the total tool count number. it’s a must have if you are handyman or DIYer.

 Me gusta mucho como está fabricada, al abrirla tiene un sistema de seguridad que mantiene las partes en su lugar para mejor manejo. Y cada parte está muy bien detallada, algo muy importante es que las tijeras y las pinzas tienen sistema de resorte para facilitar su uso y las tijeras son duraderas ya que el resorte va asegurado de la misma navaja. Muy bonito diseño y bien atornillado todo. El único detalle que no me gustó tanto es que mi abridor de paquetes en particular llegó con la punta un poco chata, no puntiaguda como esperaba, fuera de eso la he cargado diariamente conmigo y la he usado en varias ocasiones, es muy útil para las pequeñas tareas del día a día.

ممتازه من أفضل الماركات في هذا المجال