Leatherman FREE P4 Multitool with Magnetic Locking
Leatherman FREE P4 Multitool with Magnetic Locking
Using magnetic architecture, Leatherman’s largest product launch in its 35-year history—the FREE Collection—creates a new technology for opening, handling, and closing tools.
A complete reimagining from the most popular multitool maker on the market releases today with the first of three FREE Collection lines, the FREE P Series, with two styles made of 420 steel for lightweight pliers-based tool design. The FREE P2 ($120) and P4 ($140) feature many of the same implements found within the classic Leatherman tools, but with new technology and a new design.
All FREE Collection products include access to all implements from the outside of the tool, which eliminates the need for a nail nick that required a (sturdy) fingernail to open the tool. Instead, using a proprietary magnetic design, Leatherman says they will offer “frictionless deployment of the implements.”
A new locking system couples with elastomer springs for a durable, frictionless system. The new locking technology also reduces wear on the individual implements, the company says. Each tool opens and closes with a distinct noise, confirming the placement of the tool in either the opened or closed position, and a textured design is meant to enhance the grip.
Tim Leatherman invented the multipurpose tool in his garage 35 years ago. Now, Ben Rivera, president and CEO of Leatherman Tool Group, says that in 2019 the company is “reinventing the category Tim invented.”
And the P series is just the beginning.
The FREE T Series, available in June with the T2 ($40) and T4 ($60), features eight to 10 tools in a packable size, offering a less expensive and smaller entry into the technology.
The FREE K Series, launching in August with the K2 ($80) and the K4 ($90), was designed for the folding-knife user who wants multipurpose functionality with a blade as the base, instead of pliers. The primary implement in this collection comes as a 3.35-inch 420 steel blade. The aluminum handle includes eight additional tools.
The FREE Collection is made in Leatherman’s Portland, Oregon, factory and comes with a 25-year guarantee. And now that guarantee expands to elastomer springs and magnets.
Tim Newcomb is a journalist based in the Pacific Northwest. He covers stadiums, sneakers, gear, infrastructure, and more for a variety of publications, including Popular Mechanics. His favorite interviews have included sit-downs with Roger Federer in Switzerland, Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles, and Tinker Hatfield in Portland.
