January 2009
Naked Without It
I started carrying a Leatherman PST in 1986 when my normally studio-based video production career expanded to include more and more remote field production. Initially, I only carried it on jobs, but that soon changed as I began to run into situations at home where I would automatically reach for the tool to solve any number of problems.
In the field it was indispensable for quick adjustments to light rigging, cable splicing, opening gear for cleaning or tape extraction and quick fabrication of lighting flags and reflectors from foam board. Oddly enough, the tiny flat blade screwdriver (the smallest tool on the PST) got the most use as a small potentiometer adjustment tool for tweaking camera phasing and other equipment adjustment.
At home there wasn't a day that went by that I wouldn't reach for the tool to open battery doors on toys, tighten loose door knobs or even crimp the 'S' hook on the dog's license tag...mostly the things that one would normally put off if the right tool was not handy. I would perform similar domestic feats for friends and family and quickly earned a reputation for preparedness. Eventually, folks would just ask, "Hey, you got your tool?" I never left the house without it.
Unfortunately, my PST turned up missing from a checked audio bag at the airport. In the week between arriving home and purchasing a new Leatherman Wave, I felt truly naked. No less than five opportunities to use the tool would present themselves on any given day and I was relieved when I finally had another Leatherman on my belt.
That one, too, eventually fell victim to the luggage monster after a trip to Austin, TX and, remembering the last time I was naked, I immediately picked up a Leatherman Blast on the way to work the next day.
So, three years later I sit here typing. I visited the site earlier today to get the address to return my Blast for warranty repair. It's packed and shipped and I happened to notice 'Tool Tales' while browsing the site...and I'm missing my Leatherman already.
I think I'll be stopping at the store on the way home. It never hurts to have a backup...and I'm feeling naked again :-)
Kurt H.
Pittsburgh, PA
OK, you voyeur, you. Enough of reading other people's stories. It's time you told your own tale of gripping heroism or even just neat DIY'ism. We know there's a Shakespeare in you somewhere. Don't make us use the Steens to find it.