I've always carried a pocket knife since I was a young boy. It was always a part of my regular dress procedure to put my wallet in my back pocket and place my pocket knife in my front pocket along with my house and car keys. On my key ring I carried a flat metal coin shaped metal piece with three screw driver blades shaped into the circumference. This little pocket tool was very handy for many activities throughout the day. When the advent of pocket knife combination tool accessories came out, I always glared at the various brands through the glass cases and fantasized of owning one of them: but which one will replace my favorite pocket knife?

Well, I chose the Leatherman KICK for three reasons. I liked the longer and strong Philips screw driver accessory, the two different sized common or flat screw driver blades and the price. I was hooked after that. The Leatherman became part of my dress procedure and I couldn't leave home without it. My first KICK was fantastic and I reached for it constantly while hunting, camping or performing many various tasks. It saved me so many trips to my tool box. What a time saver. While investigating a task at hand the tool you need is right on your side ready to get the job done.

 

Sad to say, I lost my first KICK Leatherman tool. I left it at a water guzzler where I cleaned a pheasant I shot while hunting. I went the next day and replaced it with another KICK.  I managed to hang on to this tool for quite a while longer. I wore it most everyday: No lie! It's last task literally saved my wife and I from certain disaster while fishing in our boat. We were caught in a very windy and rough storm. To make a long story short ,a trolling pole with a leaded line and pop gear got caught up in the propeller. It broke the fishing pole and wrapped approximately a 150 yards of line and the pop gear around the prop. We were at a stand still in the rough water with no control over our direction. I quickly pulled the outboard motor up to barely within my reach and grabbed for my Leatherman. With big waves crashing over the rear of the boat my Leatherman sliced quickly through the leaded line and the needle-nose pliers let me clear the jammed up pop-gear in the prop in quick time.

 

Sadly through the haste of trying to regain my balance and get back into the boat, I dropped my Leatherman into a watery grave. A feeling of treasured loss ran through my thoughts, The next day I took off for the store to replace my Leatherman KICK tool. Again I am met with grief at the counter of Sportsman Warehouse where I am told that Leatherman has discontinued the KICK model. He said to try other vendors which, I have so far and cannot replace my KICK model. I've been five days without a replacement. I will continue my search but fear the replacement of the Leatherman KICK model will be futile. Is it true that my favorite tool is discontinued??? What possibly can replace it??? I've looked at many other models but I have grown very accustomed to the KICK model. This habit is going to be very hard to break if I can't replace it. I only wish I could take a picture of my KICK and send it in with my tale but, all I have left is a sad tale of a very great tool.

 

~Keith M.

~South Weber, UT