Modifying a Leatherman Wave to make it legal.

[dannyg]

Hello, new to the boards, though I've been browsing them for months, finally decided to join in starting with a suggestion/question.

I recently purchased a Leatherman Wave multitool as an EDC knife without knowing the exact law, with the news talking about them recently I decided to look into the law a bit and have come to realise that my knife is illegal for every day carry, (ie without a valid reason) I'm a rather annoyed that its illegal just because it locks, I mean if a person is going to use a knife against a person then I don't think they care about the law, or if it locks or not, but anyway lets not get into the discussion of our silly laws.

I thought about just carrying it anyway, but with me being 20 I feel as though I'm likely to be more of a target for a police search or that they wouldn't believe me. I've looked into buying a Swiss Army Knife but none of them really take my fancy, so I've thought about modifying my Leatherman.

For anyone unfamiliar with the Leathermans locking mechanism, here is a picture of the blade locked.

And here is a photoshopped image of what I intend to do, it involves holding the locking spring in the down position whilst running a bead of TIG weld across it, then grind flush.

After seeing them photo's in high res, What I thought was a clean knife really isn't, It's due a bath!

Now my question is, would this make my knife legal if I did it on both the serrated and non serrated blades, or would I have to do the saw too? and also does anyone have any suggestions of ways I could do this without welding as I don't have a TIG welder and would need to blag a favour.

Opinions and suggestions will be welcome.
Thanks
Danny

 

[gzornenplat]

Couldn't you just undo the torx screw and file down the locking bar?

 

[BigShot]

I have no really helpful answer, but as a tester, see how sturdy the blade is if you're holding down the lock (or maybe find some temporary way of jamming it down so it doesn't engage the blade) that way you can decide if you actually want to modify it before you weld things down..
Personally I prefer my blades to be relatively secure in the open position, but others aren't so fussed.

One alternative is the British Army Knife - If you don't particularly need an actual point on the blade (it's a sheepfoot blade so cutting only, not so hot at poking) it might be ideal.

They come in 3 flavours. 1 piece, 2 piece and 3 piece.
1 piece = sheepfoot blade.
2 piece = sheepfoot blade and a can opener
3 piece = sheepfoot blade, can opener and a marlinspike.

Be aware though, I believe some of them lock open.

There are many styles from older ones with rubber scales to the more recent ones (like mine) which are all metal.
Mine comes with these words (all in uppercase) on the side

The original
British Army Knife (this line written in old english)
Stainless Steel
Made in Sheffield England

The cutting edge was a bit of a mess when i got it, so don't be too surprised if you can't find a super neat one - but some elbow grease and a rub over some wet and dry, stones or diamond should see it right without too much bother.

The look might appeal to you if you're into the leatherman look too.

Hope this helps.



Oh - and try the forum on the BritishBlades website. That place is crawling with people who can answer your questions about both the practical side of the modification and the legality of the end product.

 

[Traper]

see how sturdy the blade is if you're holding down the lock (or maybe find some temporary way of jamming it down so it doesn't engage the blade) that way you can decide if you actually want to modify it before you weld things down..

I agree.

I think that you can ruin your tool. I own a Wave and I can't see using it without lock.

 

[jimmyuk]

Hello,

Have you tried to bend the locking bar so that it bends downwards and therefore doesnt shift into the path of the back of the blade? Might be possible to place a screwdriver underneath the bar at the part where it is first visable and then bend the end downwards...

Just had a better idea. Just pop some large washers on between the blade and the body of the knife. Make them big so that they cover the space that the lock moves into. Problem solved and easy to undo. If your not sure what I mean post back and I'll sort out a diagram somehow.

With regards to the saw locking I'll put washers on them too.

Hope this helped

Jim

 

[dannyg]

gzornenplat - i'm not really sure, though im a bit hesitant to try as I imagine they have thread locker on them and are set to a specific torque.

BigShot - I went with the Leatherman mainly because of it's features, main one being the pliers. And thanks for suggesting i try it without the lock, I've just tried and it flops about that's that idea down the drain.

jimmyuk - Good suggestion about the washers, but again I've realised the knife is useless without the lock.

So now my question has changed, I think I'm going to have to give up the pliers and get a SAK

Thanks
Danny

 

[gzornenplat]

The Victorinox SwissTools have a different locking mechanism which looks like it
should be quite easy to remove (I don't think you'd be able to put it back, though)
and the blades on mine flick into place on their own when I hold the lock in the
unlock position while opening any of the blades/tools.

If you are interested, I'll take a couple of close-ups so you can see what it's like

 

[BigShot]

DannyG - if you're really not keen on the look of the SAKs there are alternatives, such as the BAK that I described above.

I also saw a really nice knife in a farm supplies shop last night, but can't for the life of me remember what brand it was. It was a really simple thing, just a main blade and a springback to hold it open. Cost about a tenner.
I'm not sure if you'll get a full-of-features knife without going down the leatherman or largeSAK route, but if it's the look of the leatherman you're after there are choices and all relatively cheap too.

I suppose if you really do need the pliers, you could remove the offending blades from your leatherman so you can EDC that, and supplement it with something like the BAK or similar for cutting duties.

 

[sandbender]

Good suggestion about the washers, but again I've realised the knife is useless without the lock

A wise move I think, removing the lock is just asking for the removal of finger parts

That said, I have a Leatherman 'Crunch' which features a single, very small, non threatening blade. I filed away the blade part that engages with the locking mechanism making it a legally carry-able folding knife, additionally I have found the pliers on the 'Crunch' to be more useful than the ones on the 'Wave'.

http://www.leatherman.com/multi-tools/full-size-tools/crunch.aspx

 

[sapper1]

If you really don't need the blades ,I'm sure they can be removed.I wouldn't like them to be unlockable, as you say they just flop about.

 

[ArkAngel]

Leatherman designed this knife to have locking blades....

They know better than you!

I would think you are asking for trouble (and shorter fingers) if you try to modify this knife.

Slipjoints (UK legal) have a degree of resistance built into the mechanism to prevent easy closing on the fingers. Removing the lock will create a free floating knife blade that could easily close on you.

My advice would be to either:

1, Continue using and carrying it as intended. Most Police officers that i know carry multitools and although the law states they are illegal "without reason" i don't honestly think you have much of a problem. Unless you are using it in a threatening manner or consider yourself to be prone to be "stopped and searched" the chances of anything happening to you are slim. I have lent Police (that i don't know) my swisstool and they haven't batted an eyelid.
**that is unless you get a Police officer without any commen sense**

2, Hold to the letter of the law. Carry the Wave as and when you have due reason to. For UK legal EDC have a look around and carry something legal.

I stopped using my Swisstool for that reason. I now carry a Shing slipjoint (custom knife) for a blade and a leatherman squirt for small pliers and screwdrivers.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do

 

[Oblio13]

Every time I read something like this, it blows my mind that it's even an issue. It's a sad state of affairs, and I wonder how much further it will go.

 

[BigShot]

Oblio - my sentiments EXACTLY!

The entire concept of these laws are so fundamentally flawed, and so fundamentally stupid that I find it hard to rise above abject ridicule and bitter sarcasm about it all.
That there's pretty much NO hope of turning it around with the frenzy the media are whipping up and the fact any sensible politician (oxymoron? I dunno) who agreed that it was silly would be comitting professional suicide to argue as such just add to the situation.

Utterly daft - it really is.

 

[Bodge]

I agree.

I think that you can ruin your tool. I own a Wave and I can't see using it without lock.

^^^^^^
whs

 

[Ben Trout]

I've got a Gerber Legend mutiltool that is currently doing EDC duty. I undid the pivot bolt and took out the blade then spaced out with washers. Original washers and blade are stored together so I can reverse the process. I have a baby Victorinox and Gerber Eclipse in my wallet if I need a cutty thing.

My advice would be not to do anything that can't be undone to the Leatherman. It's a decent and pricey piece of kit so dont wreck that one. Is there any way of shimming between the lock and the scale so that the lock cannot engage? A little bit of superglue and it should only be removable with solvent and tools.

 

[Ogri the trog]

Anything you do to override the locking mechanism is likely to cause damage in the long term. I'd leave it well alone and only carry it when you have a specific purpose. If you find yourself in a situation where it might cause a problem, get it into the bottom of a bag so it is not immediately available and come clean about it being with you.
Frankly if you have any doubts, leave it at home and take the tools you need for your work only, then there can be no repercussions.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Bushcrafter1]

There was a case went to appeal a few years (can't remember the name) and the courts decided that a multitool is not a knife, therefore the 3 inch exemption doesn't apply. So anyone carrying a multitool runs the risk of arrest even if the blade doesn't lock and it's below 3 inches.

 

[Opal]

D'yer know, reading this thread has got me thinkin', everyone run!

maybe a SAK could be made with a piece of spare metal which could lock the blade when in use, yer know what I mean, left inserted like the toothpick at the side or the tweezers.

 

[dannyg]

Reading the responses to this thread has pretty much changed my attitude towards this, What world are we living in where I feel as though I need to modify an everyday useful item, just to walk down the damn street without getting arrested. I think I'm just going to leave it as it is and then if need be, explain why I'm carrying it. If it then goes too far then so be it.

Again, thanks to everybody for there suggestions and opinions on this subject.
Danny

 

[Opal]

Dan, it's unusual to see a Wave in Southport.