Leatherman Juice XE6

[Damage1978]

I’ll start by getting the official specs out of the way

Juice XE6 Specifications:
Needle nose Pliers
Straight Knife
Wire Cutters
Hard-Wire Cutters
Extra-Small Screwdriver
Small Screwdriver
Med/Lge Screwdriver
Phillips Screwdriver
Lanyard Attachment
Can/Bottle Opener
Corkscrew with Assist
Scissors
Saw
Awl
Serrated Knife
Diamond File

Length: 3.2 in. / 8.25 cm closed
Weight: 6.8 ounces / 190 grams
Materials: Stainless steel with anodized aluminium scales
Patents/Trademarks: Patents Pending
Available Colours: Storm (grey), Thunder (purple)

With a slightly thicker chassis than the CS4 and KF4, and protected by purple or grey anodized aluminium handles, the XE6 has it all. Along with pliers, wire cutters and four screwdrivers, the XE6 contains a saw, awl and diamond-coated file. It provides a choice of straight or serrated knife blades. The XE6 also houses easily accessible serrated scissors, plus a corkscrew, can and bottle opener, as well as a lanyard attachment. Powerful but still compact, the XE6 will conquer most any task in a flash. The XE6 is covered by Leatherman's 25-year warranty.

Well, I picked this up off Ebay as I wanted a non-locking multitool that I could carry as a legal EDC, as I don’t have a good reason to carry my locking Leatherman Wave (well, not one the Police would accept).

As this is British Blades I guess we had better start with the 2 blades on the Juice hadn’t we. Both the sheepsfoot serrated (same as Wave) and drop-point plain edge (Wave has a clip-point) blades are 2.5 inches long and made from 400 series stainless steel (From Leatherman site: Leatherman tools are made of 400-series stainless steel :yuck: . Carbon content and heat-treated hardness vary depending on the specific implement.) and are of a more polished finish than those on the Wave. They are both accessible without having to open the handles along with all the other tools apart from the screwdrivers and pliers, the serrated blade having the same jimping on the back to separate it from the Plain edge (just like the Wave), the blades lack the one-handed opening of the Wave :mad: , which is a big downside (especially for someone used to Spyderco’s) however the blades have decent nail marks and are easy to open.

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/851/leathermanjuicexe6013ui.th.jpg (http://img150.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leathermanjuicexe6013ui.jpg)http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/8876/leathermanjuicexe6025cl.th.jpg (http://img150.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leathermanjuicexe6025cl.jpg)

The Juice is smaller than the Wave (as can be seen in the pictures) but it fits in the hand better and is a lot more comfortable to use, probably due to the curved shape of the handles compared to the rectangular Wave. The pliers are a little smaller than the Wave’s (and are of the same configuration with built in wire cutters etc), but they still seem pretty tough and are big enough to still be of good use.

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/7744/leathermanjuicexe6035ry.th.jpg (http://img150.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leathermanjuicexe6035ry.jpg)

The scissors quality is great, and being on the outside is a real plus, as they seem to be the most used feature for me :rolleyes:. Also they are bigger than the Wave’s which is useful.

http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/611/leathermanjuicexe6044yw.th.jpg (http://img288.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leathermanjuicexe6044yw.jpg)

The wood saw is the same as that of the Wave (only slightly shorter) and it works well (not great just well). The file is pretty much the same as the Wave too (only slightly shorter), I have no doubt that it will only be used as a nail file, just like my Wave’s.

The corkscrew seems comparable to that on my SAK’s which all work well enough. The combined can/bottle opener seems to be better that that of my Wave. I really like the addition of the corkscrew as I always thought the Wave needed a corkscrew and an improved can/bottle opener to totally replace my SAK’s.

http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/2083/leathermanjuicexe6055wf.th.jpg (http://img288.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leathermanjuicexe6055wf.jpg)

The handles need to be opened to access any of the screwdrivers. I found the flat-heads far easier to open then on the Wave (where they all came out when you tried to open just one). The Phillips-head is quite large for what I normally use it for and I would have preferred a smaller sized Phillips-head to be included in the design as well.

http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/8797/leathermanjuicexe6064rm.th.jpg (http://img288.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leathermanjuicexe6064rm.jpg)

Overall the fit & finish are comparable to my Wave and all the other Leatherman’s I’ve seen which is good. It comes in 2 colours purple (Thunder) and grey (Storm), I got the grey one :D .

Compared to my Wave, what can I say…
The Wave is great for around the garden and when I get the chance to go hunting its indispensable for light hide building and clearing small branches out of the way and stuff. But the Wave isn’t really pocket size, its heavy and can be uncomfortable to use for extended periods of time.

The XE6 is truly pocket size, lightweight and comfortable to use. So far I think it will be more that adequate to replace my Wave and my SAK in my EDC kit along with my Spyderco UK Penknife.

My only complaint so far is that the wood saw sometimes closes in the wrong position blocking the awl from closing. This appears to happen because the liner next to it seems slightly out of shape pushing the saw out of position when it closes. So it might just be on my Juice and not a flaw in the design.

[Danzo]

Good review Dan, makes very interesting reading. I like that it has full size usable pliers as well as scissors and, to me, the vital corkscrew.........

:happy99:

........which I find a glaring omission on the Wave.

;)

Whilst I think most people can probably still justify a locking multitool to the good constable, if only by being polite, it is certainly true that the current climate is worrying, and this looks an excellent completely legal option, particularly if EDC'd in conjunction with a UKPK.

I've also found the Wave just a bit big, even carried in a belt sheath, so this could be ideal.

:biggthump

Danzo

[MagiKelly]

Good review.

I have a Juice Pro as my EDC which is basically the XE6 with a small pair of tweezers added. I sold my Charge Ti as the locking blades meant it really was not getting carried, also the scissors were just not as good as the Juice.

For the size and functionality I think the XE6 or Pro are hard to beat.

[Danzo]

I don't want to take this thread off topic but does anyone have any idea whether a older model Wave with a hand engraving by Tim Leatherman is worth a few quid more than a normal one? It isn't engraved 'to me' but I do have provenance from another member here about the background.

I want an XE6 now and I have no spare cash!

:rolleyes:

Danzo

[Damage1978]

I want an XE6 now and I have no spare cash!

:rolleyes:

Danzo

Danzo,
If you get one try ebay, mine was new and less than half :O what Heinnie are asking.

[Danzo]

Danzo,
If you get one try ebay, mine was new and less than half :O what Heinnie are asking.

Blimey, that's good! Thanks for the heads up mate.

:biggthump

Danzo

[Perfection]

I have both the XE6 and the slightly smaller KF4 (in a super cool yellow colour!) and I much prefer the KF4 ..... its thinner, lighter and has a Ruler etched onto the side which I seem to find essential on a daily basis :)

Ebay is definitely the place to buy this kind of gear ..... anybody who still uses the High St. needs medical attention !!

[MagiKelly]

I have both the XE6 and the slightly smaller KF4 (in a super cool yellow colour!) and I much prefer the KF4 ..... its thinner, lighter and has a Ruler etched onto the side which I seem to find essential on a daily basis :)

I agree tha smaller ones are better to carry but I really missed the file. And yes it does get used mostly for my nails.

[Brangdon]

I have an Xe6, but I found it a little too large and heavy to carry. I also didn't like the way the pliers were made off-centre by the number of layers.

I bought an Cs4, which omits the serrated blade and the file. I don't like serrated blades so that was no loss. It's a shame to lose the file but I usually carry a small SAK which has a nailfile, and the Xe6 file was too thick to use as a hacksaw - it's about 3 times as thick as a proper hacksaw blade, which removes so much metal that it's really hard to use.

I'm pretty pleased with the Cs4. I especially like that the corkscrew has an "assist" that presses against the top of the bottle and gives you something to pull against. Good scissors too. The choice of tools is spot-on, with nothing that I wouldn't want. The build quality isn't as high as a Vic Swiss Tool, but maybe that's inevitable if you want less weight and no locks. One handle is slightly thicker than the other, which seems inelegant to me.

The Xe6 is the top of the Juice range; it has everything that a Juice can have. In practice that can be too much. I'd advise anyone buying to seriously consider what they want and see if there is a smaller one that will do instead.

[kniv-per]

Good reveiw Dan....
The juice-series are just right for Denmark, because the knife are not one hand opened, and the blade are under 7 cm..
This makes the tool/knife legal to carry anywhere in DK (not planes)
kniv-per :ninja

[ElThomsono]

Good review, and good pictures, I hadn't realised how fat it was :O . Does anyone else think the corkscrew looks very similar to the victorinox one?

How stiff is it to open the pliers, they don't look adjustable :S

[Damage1978]

How stiff is it to open the pliers, they don't look adjustable :S

The pliers are the same as the Wave's just a little smaller and maybe slightly easier to open.

[Danzo]

I have an Xe6, but I found it a little too large and heavy to carry. I also didn't like the way the pliers were made off-centre by the number of layers.

I bought an Cs4, which omits the serrated blade and the file. I don't like serrated blades so that was no loss. It's a shame to lose the file but I usually carry a small SAK which has a nailfile, and the Xe6 file was too thick to use as a hacksaw - it's about 3 times as thick as a proper hacksaw blade, which removes so much metal that it's really hard to use.

I'm pretty pleased with the Cs4. I especially like that the corkscrew has an "assist" that presses against the top of the bottle and gives you something to pull against. Good scissors too. The choice of tools is spot-on, with nothing that I wouldn't want. The build quality isn't as high as a Vic Swiss Tool, but maybe that's inevitable if you want less weight and no locks. One handle is slightly thicker than the other, which seems inelegant to me.

The Xe6 is the top of the Juice range; it has everything that a Juice can have. In practice that can be too much. I'd advise anyone buying to seriously consider what they want and see if there is a smaller one that will do instead.

That's interesting Brangdon. I think the CS4 has everything I would need in a small multitool whilst the XE6 may be just a bit too chunky, thanks for the tip.

:biggthump

Danzo

[marts]

I have the Juice Pro. My favourite bit is that the bottle opener can be opened one-handed. Clearly designed by a Man ;)

[Ski]

I remember being in a outdoor/knife shop in Barmouth, Wales after a lunchtime glass of wine, talking to a complete stranger about Leathermans short-sightedness in only producing the Leatherman Flair with a corkscrew.. And to get that you had to have the silly little fork too!

I said it wont last and neither would the company if they didn't sort out a more practical model with a corkscrew.

After my rant the guy smiled and on leaving the shop said.. "I'll see what i can do." :O

The guy behind the counter told me he was quite high up in the company and always listened to criticism.

Whether this was true or not or whether he was just a rep delivering stock i shall never know..

I must smile when i add though, that the next 60 or so campfire bottles of wine i shared with friends also came accompanied with the statement that if it wasn't for me and my rant with a complete stranger... We may well not have been sharing the wine. :D (Unless of course someone had brought along another cork screw.)

The Juice and it's cork screw have been one of my favorite companions through many countries where wine is drunk and friends are made. :)

[KamSingh]

Nice Review, i just ordered a Juice XE6 Pro and Leather Case for £50

[KamSingh]

My only complaint so far is that the wood saw sometimes closes in the wrong position blocking the awl from closing. This appears to happen because the liner next to it seems slightly out of shape pushing the saw out of position when it closes. So it might just be on my Juice and not a flaw in the design.

My one does this too:mad:

[Schwert]

I have both the Cs4 and XE6. I stopped carrying my Wave in favor of the Cs4 and now carry the XE6, primarily for the file.

My saw and awl always compete for the same space...I need to push the saw tip over to close the awl.

I think these 2 Juice tools are near perfect for daily carry.