![]() ![]() The two flat head screwdrivers come in medium and small. The cross driver does a good job on medium to large screws but does tend to slip more often than a true phillips head. There are three screwdrivers on the Leatherman Sidekick, one cross driver style phillips head and two flat head drivers. The wire stripper is functional, but we’ve generally found the main knife blade to be easier to work with when stripping wires. The can/bottle opener does a good job at cutting open cans or opening up beer or soda, we have no complaints at all with it. The Sidekick also includes a fairly standard can and bottle opener attachment with an included wire stripping notch. Wire Stripper, Bottle Opener and Can Opener Overall the saw on the Sidekick was a quality tool at a reasonable size. We found the saw to easily cut through small branches, boards, and even plastic tubing without issue. It has an aggressive double row tooth pattern and is just about the same length as the straight blade. The second outside accessible tool on the Sidekick is a standard wood saw. Leatherman did a good job designing this one to maximize utility in a small space. We really like having a full serrated blade on a multi tool. It does a good job cutting small cords, ropes, and cardboard. The serrated blade is a little more than half the length of the main blade and has a very jagged, swept back profile to it. The straight blade is outside accessible, uses Leatherman’s common modified sheepsfoot blade profile, and is 2.6 in long. They’re both made from 420HC blade steel and come from the factory razor sharp. There are two knife blades on the Sidekick, a larger straight blade and a smaller serrated one. This doesn’t matter if you’re cutting through thick copper or other large wires but for smaller or stranded cabling it can become a real headache. ![]() If you look closely when you close the pliers you’ll notice a small gap between the cutter blades. The wire cutters are our only real complaint with the plier setup. There’s also a regular plier area just below the needlenose tip that works well on small to medium sized bolts. ![]() They join up well, have an excellent bite pattern, and the handles allow you to get a pretty good grip on just about anything. They’re spring action and have a satisfying pop to them when you open and close them. The main pliers on the Leatherman Sidekick are only available in a needlenose point. Let’s go over all the tool on the Sidekick. It has a saw blade instead of scissors and adds in a second serrated blade in place of the box cutter. The Sidekick looks like it was built as more of a builders tool than the general purpose Wingman. They set out to make the best entry level multi tool possible and chose the tools carefully in pursuit of this goal. Given the low price point of the Sidekick we can’t really knock Leatherman for this. It has two outside open main tools that lock open, a knife blade and a saw, but lacks any inside locking tool system or removable/replaceable parts. The Leatherman Sidekick includes 14 different tools build around a standard butterfly open plier system. Let’s explore the inner workings of the Sidekick and see how its tools hold up. What Leatherman doesn’t compromise on is their commitment to making high quality tools out of excellent materials. The included tools aren’t as large or multi function as those you’d find on Leatherman’s higher priced cousins. Like the other entry level tools Leatherman makes some compromises were made in its design. The handles have a distinct rounded shape that stands out from something like the Wave+ or Rebar. At first glance you’ll notice that it has a less symmetrical design than many other Leatherman products. It’s 3.8 in long and weighs 7 oz, putting it firmly in the full size category. Like the Leatherman Rev and Wingman the Sidekick was designed to be a Leatherman quality multi tool at a very affordable price.
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