The Martialist: The Magazine For Those Who Fight Unfairly

SOG and the Blue Monster

Review by Danny Rowell

If I’m ever trapped on a desert island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and have to assemble a Dirt Devil vacuum cleaner, I want my SOG PowerLock(S60)! Luckily, I wasn’t trapped on the island and I had other tools at my disposal when I was tasked with the Blue Monster assembly project. In fact, many tools of cutting, crimping, and screwdriving were available to me. However, I wanted to see if the PowerLock was truly as useful as SOG claims.

The SOG PowerLock (S60) with leather sheath.

Allow me to elaborate. Last Sunday we invested in a new bagless vacuum cleaner for the house. I had the box in the ‘office’ (a.k.a. my little corner of the garage) and decided to see if I could do every task with the PowerLock. Pop went the holster snap, and with a flick of my wrist the multi-tool was deployed in ‘pliers’ mode. I then fumbled around trying to find the knife blade so I could disentangle the packing tape and perform an inventory count on the new Blue Monster.

I say I fumbled, and I meant it. However, this is due more to my inexperience with this particular tool than with the design of the PowerLock. I’m no weapons expert, and I’m certainly not SOG certified, so it took me a minute to work through the mechanizations of this multifaceted manufacturing masterpiece.

With a hearty “Hurrah!” I discovered and rapidly deployed the blade. Without using the calipers, I estimate the blade to be about 2.5 inches long. The first inch from point is standard sharp edge. Indeed it is very sharp. How sharp? I have to admit that even though some of my kin are from Arkansas, I am a rank amateur compared to some of my contemporaries in the industry. Using the tried and true Rowell family phrase of “skinning a rat without waking it up” seems to be appropriate. The remaining 1.5 inches or so is serrated and wickedly sharp as well.

To deploy the blade, one must first deploy the ‘tool bay shield doors.’ The inside of each handle is equipped with shielding to cover the blades and other tools embedded within the handles of the PowerLock. It keeps the tools in and my meaty palms away from said tools, as it should be. Once you deploy the shield doors, you can select the specific tool by placing your fingernail into the groove of the handle and grabbing the slot that is cut into each tool. As I sit and write this, I can deploy the tool of choice simply by using my thumbnail. If you’re a chronic nailbiter, you might require some external assistance.

Some of the tools come out all by themselves, however, the screw driver and can opener bits tend to cling to their neighbors and come out in groups. Small worry, as they are easy to separate and put to bed. Once deployed, the blade (or other tool) is locked into place. Here is what SOG has to say on locking:

All tool components are easy to access and lock in the open position. The Phillips even locks in two open positions. With one of the simplest and safest locking devices ever engineered, just press the back of the lock and close the component into the handle.

Indeed it is simple to lock and unlock the tools. I just press the back of the lock and voila, no fuss, no muss, the component comes free and I can put it back behind the shield doors. Once I figured out where everything was and practiced with the tool for a few minutes I am pleased to announce that I am well on my way to SOG PowerLock mastery. I wonder if I can get professionally certified and start teaching classes!?

Back to the mission at hand… The Blue Monster remained in pieces on the floor. After I opened everything I could open, and did a little extra cutting on the side we were ready to assemble. I positioned the Philips head and inserted Screw A into Slot A and fully engaged three of the four screws in the package. The Philips head locks in two positions: 1800 and 900 in relation to its carrying position. This is one of the two shortcomings I found with the tool. The Philips does indeed lock in both positions. However, when locked at 900 I was not able to close the shield door on that side, nor was I able to collapse the tool. I found that if I was driving screws in this manner, the rest of the tool was almost fully deployed.

When opened to I locked the Philips head and was able to install 3 one inch screws. However, due to the design of the SOG PowerLock positioned the gear heads on the opposite end of the locked tool I found it extremely uncomfortable to put any vertical pressure on the tool with the palm of my hand. It felt like I was doing pushups in jagged road mix.

There remained a fourth screw to install. To compare the new PowerLock with my old and trusted first generation Gerber multi-tool I decided to use the Gerber to install the last screw. My trusted Gerber which I’ve used for more than eleven years is as comfortable as a nice pair of slippers. With a snap of my wrist the pliers deployed, the tool fell out; I positioned it and closed the multi-tool. The Philips head wobbled (as it does not lock like the SOG) and it took a bit longer to install the last screw. However, the end was smooth and didn’t cause any discomfort like the SOG did.

My trusted Gerber did the job, but had nowhere near the functionality or the built in safety that the PowerLock does. The SOG multi-tool has more options, more tools, stronger structure and all around more power. But, then again, it’s a first generation Gerber and an nth generation SOG. So it’s not exactly apples to apples.

SOG PowerLock (S60) (left) and much less functional Gerber multitool (right)

I’ve been taught to use the right tool for the right job, to accept no substitute. If you’re out on a deserted island without a box full of tools or simply assembling a big Blue Monster in your workshop, the SOG PowerLock is a well-built, well-designed weapon of mass construction. As a Jack of All Trades Technician armed with the SOG PowerLock I feel I can tackle any small to medium neo-industrial secret mission.

But I still have to read the directions.