I Feel Naked Without This $70 Multi-Tool
The Free T4 contains 12 tools—including a knife with a 2.06-inch blade, a bottle opener, four screwdrivers, a file, scissors, and a package opener—packed into the 4.3-ounce stainless steel unit that is smaller than a candy bar (it measures 3.63 by 1 by 0.88 inches closed).
All of the tools open and close one-handed, which is a convenience I miss when using larger tools like the Leatherman Skeletool CX, the top-pick from our multi-tool guide. Sure, the Free T4 lacks a pair of pliers, which I don’t need to use every day, but if the task at hand takes more than a few seconds, I’m pulling out a proper set of tools.
Due to its compactness and the included pocket clip (rare in a multi-tool) I can attach it to my jeans pocket, ready to tackle whatever life brings me that day. And yep, it has a pair of tweezers like my old Swiss Army Knife (but no toothpick, which everyone loses anyway).
Multiple times a day, I open a tool for a three-second task:
- Removing a tag from clothing: swing out the scissors
- Tearing the plastic shrink-wrapped collar that’s keeping me from sampling a new bottle of hot sauce: ditto, or use the knife blade
- Tightening a light switch faceplate that’s coming loose: turn to the flathead or Phillips screwdriver
- Opening a cocoa can lid: use the package opener/pry bar
- Unboxing a new tech item: use the package opener again
- Tightening a loose hinge on your eyeglasses: take advantage of the small screwdriver on the end of the awl tool
Any day I don’t open my Free T4 is a dull day.
