Gerber Gear Dime 12-in-1 Mini Multi-tool – Needle Nose Pliers, Pocket Knife, Keychain, Bottle Opener – Father’s Day Gift – EDC Gear and Equipment – Black

Surprisingly helpful little multi-tool
I’ve carried larger Gerber multi-tools and pocket knives before owning this thing, but I’ve never used any of them as much as I’ve used this one. It seems to be the perfect mix of small tools that you can always use (box cutter, tweezers, pliers, scissors, straight-edge screwdriver, file, & bottle opener) while being extremely convenient to carry. I should have lost this one a long time ago but, surprisingly, I never forget about it because I end up using it so often.This is the 2nd one I’ve bought: it’s going in the first aid kit in my wife’s diaper bag. The tweezers/pliers are the perfect size for pulling splinters and ticks off. It’s just a surprisingly useful little tool.

Geber Returns to the Quality Pocket Tool Business in a “Small” Way
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.

Might be the #1 keychain multitool now
I lost my leatherman squirt after 8 years of having it on my keychain so I’m very familiar with that multi-tool. If the Squirt was still available I would have bought another but I had to find a substitute.It’s important to know that I’m not just one of those EDC guys who just uses an overpriced knife to open boxes. I’m an electrician who uses tools in industrial and residential settings so even thought I take care of my tools they go through hard use. I’ve also had knives and multi-tools since I was a kid.So far the gerber dime is almost a replica of the squirt and it looks cool. That’s good. However, I will list the negatives here.1. It comes with two package openers. A “package opener” and a knife which is also a package opener. If you don’t know how to open packages with a knife without cutting too deep you should learn how to use a knife properly.2. The pivots are tight which means it will not open as easy as a leatherman tool. The machining is not as high quality. The blade does not come as sharp as a leatherman. The steel is listed as stainless steel which means that it is not as high quality as a leatherman.3. The package opener is located in a way that you might try to push against it with your thumb to complete the opening which for someone without calloused hands could result in injury so watch out.4. The file is shorter than the Squirt’s file. This means you can’t push the file back and forth much as it is maybe a half inch long. I used to use the Squirt’s file alot to ream conduits and smooth edges of metal. This file is also located on the end of the Dime that is nearest the keyring so it’s just not in a good place. They probably should have just left it out.With that being said everything else is almost like the Squirt so I will be giving this 5 stars until something goes wrong because the Squirt is no longer available. Maybe if Gerber sells enough Dimes Leatherman will realize there is a market for this category of tool and start to produce keychain multi-tools again.

 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.

Excellent in every way for its size. It additionally has a blister pack opener blade.Utility for most applications in pocket size(dime)