Because I fail at doing video reviews…. #multitool

….and it’s not that I haven’t tried, here’s some experience I’d
like to share because it’s both good and bad at once.

What you see below is my Leatherman Charge TTi. My Charge TTi has some
serious quality issues, which is why I had sent it in to the service
center at Zweibrüder Optoelectronics, the German distributor of
Leatherman multitools.

It took them about two weeks to totally screw up this tool.

The tool came back with a wobbly saw blade and still tight screws
which prevent me from opening all screw drivers. They were supposed to
repair it, maybe fix new screws and bend the Titantium handles so that
the blades don’t scrap along the handles. None of this happened, but
instead they only made it worse. Much worse, really really bad.

They do have a quality control, at least according to the receipt I
received, but they obviously failed at doing a final test. The tool
isn’t usable, or maybe only 60% of it work as intended.

Having lost my trust in their service quality, I directly contacted
Leatherman US via their US Facebook page – and instantly received a
reply. Leatherman USA promised me a new Charge TTi, which is something
I never expected and which now makes me really happy in the end. So
it’s a clear win for their social media channels and also for their
understanding of customer service. I just hope this will also
influence the German distributor, because their (hey, German
engineering?!) service quality is the complete opposite of what
Leatherman USA had to offer.

I am a loyal fan to this brand and will buy anytime again because
their multitools have already saved me in so many awkward situations.
There’s just this different understanding of service quality in
Germany that urgently needs to change, because otherwise it’s bad for
the brand and the associated marketing channels (Zweibrüder
Optoelectronics also sell the famous LED Lensers, and I am sure they
wouldn’t want to have similar quality issues with their LED lights).

@Leatherman US – thank you for the quick fix!

@Leatherman Germany – bitte schnellstmöglich den Reparaturservice nach
LM-Leitfaden ausrichten. Mir immer noch unverständlich, wie ihr mir
das tool in diesem – wirklich verschlimmbesserten – Zustand
zurückschicken konntet. Deswegen hatte ich direkt LM USA kontaktiert,
weil das Vertrauen erstmal weg war.

Also interesting to see how social media feedback is regarded the norm
in the US (as opposed to Germany).