Leatherman 830850 Skeletool CX Multitool

I thought I'd share my thoughts after using mine for about 3 months now.

For me, the CX the perfect size, weight and mix of tools. I love the bottle opener and quick access to the blade. The assembly is very good, nothing has come loose or slackened up over the time I've had mine and it gets used pretty much every day.

The one thing I was never really happy with is the size of the blade. If it were 1/2" longer it would've been perfect. I'm not sure why Leatherman didn't make it longer since there is plenty of room to make it, oh, say, about 1/2" longer without changing the overall length!

Another thing that has started to bug me as time went on is the sheer complexity of the design with all the holes and complicated edges. It looks nice but the downside is that it is a serious pain to clean. Using the tool for anything "wet", like gutting fish or even cutting up a steak, isn't practical. Of particular irritation to me are the holes in the blade spine because they really fill up with crap quickly and it takes a toothpick to clean them out (a longer blade would've helped here too).

So, the bottom line for me would be that it's pretty much a 5 star tool for "dry" situations but doesn't really work well as a general purpose tool if you want to use it camping/fishing/BBQ/etc.

A light and reduced feature Leatherman tool. The main tool has only the multi-use pliers, a knife blade, and a bottle opener/caribiner clip. A bit receiver uses the two double-sided bits included and all but one of the bits in the separate Leatherman bit kit I purchased at the same time (the eyeglass bit in the kit won't work with this tool, though). This tool is much lighter than my Wave but certainly better looking; fits the hand nicely. When clipped onto my pants pocket it's easy to forget it's there. A good substitution for a pocket knife if you're used to a larger knife.

I have a Leatherman Charge TTI that I use as my primary multitool, but I wanted something that I could carry with me that wouldn't be quite so heavy.

The Leatherman Skeletool CX fit that bill perfectly! It is much lighter and slimmer than a full size multitool, but retains an amazing amount of functionality and tool options.

Although I do use my Charge TTI for various tasks, I use my Skeletool more! It can handle most anything you throw at it.

Build quality and fit/finish is great, it feels nice in the hand, and it looks awesome! Anyone who sees it will have questions for you and inevitably want to hold it.

This is by far the most useful multitool I've ever owned. It has just what most people need on a daily basis, and is consequently much lighter than the others. Buy the other ones if you really need a corkscrew, leather punch, wood saw, toothpick, etc.
I chose the CX version mainly because of its serrated edge blade, and the tungsten coating is nice looking as well, although I'm sure it will wear off with use, as do most coatings.
You can save a bit of cash if you can do without the serrated blade and fancy coating. Either way, you can be sure you'll use and love this multitool.

I had been in search of a new Leatherman tool for a couple of weeks when I encountered the Skeletool. I liked the tool as soon as I saw it. I was wanting a smaller Leatherman than my Surge and this was it. The skeletool has just enough functionality for my own needs and is lightweight. The blade is partially serated and is sharp as a razor. The pliers work well and the easy to deploy screw driver is excellent. For those that only need the basics this is the one for you. I like this tool and am glad I found it. The pliers are still on the tight side but that is normal for Leatherman. The only thing I would complain about is the tool does not come with a sheath of any kind. I ended up using an old sheath I had from a previous Leatherman.