Reviewed by The Muddy Madam

I like multi-tools!

I like them because they are useful and compact, which means I can carry them about in my handbag, without having to carry a bag the size of a holdall. I am one of those women who gets on with stuff; if there is a screw that needs screwing or wood that needs chopping I'll grab the necessary tools and go for it. I have my own metal tool box, with my own set of tools (none of them are pink by the way) which I do grudgingly allow the hubby to use if he can't be bothered to ferret out his huge collection.

This little Dime from Gerber's Essentials range is only 2.75" when closed, which is smaller than my usual bag's inhabitant, the standard Swiss army knife, and it has more stuff than it too. 

The 12 tools on the Dime are:

1. Spring loaded pliers - very useful for all sorts of stuff, and spring loaded is a bonus.
2. Wire cutters - you never know when you may have do a 'Jack Bauer' and defuse a bomb.........or rewire a plug (boring).
3. Scissors - which do cut paper, but rigid card is a no no.
4. Retail package opener - which came in very useful when I opened the Fire Starter, and something that I could've done with to open the Dime's vice-like packaging.
5. A fine edge knife blade - perfect for slicing up stuff like those plastic magazine wraps that don't let you look at the magazine you may fancy buying if only you had a clue what was inside (Is this just me?).
6. A medium flat head screwdriver
7. A small flat head screwdriver
8. A coarse file - not sure how much you can file with this as it's a tad on the dinky side
9. A fine file - see 8
10. A bottle opener - a very necessary tool on off-roading weekends
11. Tweezers - perfect for tackling splinters, and wayward brows. It took me a while to find these little buggers, as they are very neatly tucked away at the top of the red bit just below the bottom of the bottle opener.
12. A lanyard ring - not a tool as such, but handy never-the-less

The other thing I really like is the variety of colours the Dime comes in - Green, Red, Purple (& standard Black Oxide for the men folk). Now this isn't just 'girl thing'; I like bright colours because they stand out, especially in a tool box of grey and black, not to mention that handbags do tend to have dark cloth interiors, so anything that is bright and shiny might actually be seen in the depths alongside the kitchen sink of course (OK, it may be a bit of 'a girl thing'). 

If you are a big burly man, don't let my woman's view put you off buying this handy gadget, after all you don't even have a bag, so the size of the Dime should appeal to you even more. I mean no-one wants to see you have a builder's bum moment because the weight of your multi-tool makes your pants head south!

Overall it is a nice compact tool that is fast becoming my new favourite multi tool.

TECHNICAL BITS

• Closed length: 2.75"
• Length when pliers are open: 4.25"
• Weight: 62.4g (2.2oz)
• Material: Stainless Steel
• Colours available  : Green, Red, Purple & Black Oxide

Where to buy: www.gerber-store.co.uk  

Price: RRP £26.99