Spyderco Forums

Im curious to know which toolsteel they use on multitool pliers.
Leatherman,Gerber,SOG,do they all use the same standard toolsteel on their multitool pliers?
the toolsteel used,any chance it could be D2?,Because of high chromium content making it more corrosion resistant.
Anyone who can shed some light on the subject?

I have no clue , but I very much doubt it would be D2 , its expensive stuff and hard on tooling ( it is afterall a die steel ) .

Chris

IIRC, SOG Powerlock has all it's tools made from 420HC (and it's alike with others).
Certainly no D2.

From the Leatherman web site...

http://www.leatherman.com/about-leatherman/faq.asp#6

They note that their tools are made of 400-series stainless steel, with carbon content and heat-treated hardness varying depending on the specific implement.

One of their tool models, the Charge, comes with either titanium (TTi) or 6061-T6 hard-anodized aluminum alloy (ALX and AL) handles.

The Charge TTi comes with a main blade of S30V. The main blade of Charge ALX, Charge AL, and Skeletool CX is made of 154CM.

Their line of hunting knives come with blades made of 420HC, 154CM, or S30V.

http://www.leatherman.com

I think the reasoning behind using 400 steels (such as 420, 440A) for the tools, is that 400 steels are tough and corrosion resistant. The area where the 400 series starts to fall down is in edge retention. And thus the high end multi-tools substitute a good cutlery steel for the blade.

So, a "cheap" 420 steel would actually make a better, tougher plier (for example) than a good cutlery steel. You wouldn't want a hard, brittle pair of D2 pliers, because edge retention is of no consequence for pliers...but toughness is.

Also, seems like I'd read somewhere (or heard) that the 400-series stainless steels are better suited, more workable, or more easily machined for large factory-production volume of some knives and tools.

The question is whether you are talking about the blade steel or the steel in which the rest of the tool is manufactured.

Most of them state which steel the blade is made from, but of what steel is the rest of the tool is comprised?

Daniel wrote:The question is whether you are talking about the blade steel or the steel in which the rest of the tool is manufactured.

Most of them state which steel the blade is made from, but of what steel is the rest of the tool is comprised?

As from what ive read sofar and Googled,its the all the same steel,pliers,blade and other tool implements,except for toolbits/toolsteel.
Otherwise everything on the multitool is 100% stainless steel,manufactured.

Most of the manufacturers state that their tools are made of stainless steel, but that could mean that the handles are one type of stainless, the pliers another, tools another, and the blade another type of steel.

I would be interested to know what steel that they use for the parts and the handles. I own most of them and looking at them closely, I cannot tell for sure what the parts are made from. I have Leathermans, SOG's, Gerber, Victorinox and I cannot tell from looking at them. :confused:

As stated by other folks, I would guess that different parts would be made from different steels due to the different uses of each part. It seems to me that the pliers on most tools are harder than the screwdrivers, but that could be due to different hardening.

Inquiring minds want to know! :D