Every single multi-tool I own or have used in the past are of the type that must first be folded open before the pliers can be used. Both opening and closing the pliers is therefore a two-hand operation no matter how quick.
I spent the past few months testing out a Gerber Flik multi-plier tool as part of my EDC rotation. It didn’t win me over, at least not completely, but I have to say – it proved itself a hardy and capable tool.
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Gerber Flik Basics & Specs
- one-hand sliding plier deployment
- designed and intended for industrial and hard daily use
- opening assist for smaller tools
- 5.8″ overall length, 4.4″ closed length
- 8.75 oz.
- stainless steel handle
- ballistic nylon sheath
Gerber Flik Tools & Features
- v-cut wire cutters
- needlenose pliers
- plain edge knife blade
- serrated knife blade
- wood saw blade
- bottle opener
- can opener
- Phillips-style driver
- scissors
- small and medium slotted screwdrivers
The tool is solid-feeling when closed, and it’s pretty obvious which end the pliers slide out of.
Nothing needed adjustment out of the box – a plus for any mass production knife or multi-tool.
The Flik isn’t too dust-prone, but you’ll probably want to keep it in a sheath seeing as how there’s no belt clip. I misplaced (tossed aside) the nylon sheath it came with and couldn’t find it for photos.
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How to Deploy the Pliers
It takes a few minutes to become familiarized with the Flik’s one-handed pliers deployment. You grab the tool, flick it downwards, and the pliers slide right out with their own inertia.
Next, spread the handles all the way to prep the pliers for use.
Close the handles again and the pliers are ready to use.
To return the pliers inside the tool, squeeze the two buttons on the handles and then slide them back. A certain finesse is required, and you will fail to retract the pliers the first few times, but once you figure out the proper sequence of motion you won’t forget it.
Tools & Features
Since the Flik features a one-hand sliding pliers mechanism rather than a fold-open design, all tools are outside-accessible. The four primary tools – both knife blades, the saw, and scissors – have little engravings that help you locate and open the tool you need on the first try.
The plain edge blade has a cutting length of about 2-1/4″. It’s straight with a pointed tip that’s great for precision piercing and scoring. It’s an average blade – nothing special but without major faults.
One-handed opening is possible, but it’s easier, quicker, and far more comfortable to just use two hands.
The serrated blade is also average with no major faults. Serrations are ground into one side of the blade, which should facilitate sharpening. I didn’t use the serrated blade enough to where it really needed sharpening or honing.
It is unclear why the saw blade is pointed, but it should come in handy for piercing through foam and drywall.
Multi-tool scissors are either really, really good, or really, really bad. There’s nothing special with how these scissors are designed, but they perform exceptionally well. They are quick and easy to deploy and don’t scratch me up when I try to use them.
The locking mechanism is not as smooth as I would like, but I cannot see any way to improve upon it. The most important thing is that it securely locks onto open tools and never disengages by accident.
On one side you have a can opener and Phillips-style screwdriver. The screwdriver could not be made any better unless it was more three-dimensional, but that would have to be at the expense of the can opener.
On the other side you have a bottle opener and slotted screwdriver bits. The bits are ground on both sides and are fairly stout. If you have to use them as mini pry bars every now and then, they probably won’t mind, but it might void your warranty.
Gerber added in a very subtle open-assist mechanism. The small tools are a bit hard to reach, so Gerber made it so that sliding the locking mechanism pushes the tools outwards a bit, just enough to expose the nail nick.
I never had difficulty pulling out the smaller tools, even after trimming my fingernails.
The v-shape wire cutters are nothing to sign praise about, but they work as advertised. These are not for cutting hard wire – that is best done with multi-tools that have user-replacement blades, such as the Leatherman Rebar.
Overall, I was fairly pleased with the Flik pliers. They’re not exceptional, but they’re usable and with a versatile shape. I was pleased with how accurate and fine-toothed the needlenose portion of the pliers are.
Conclusion
The Gerber Flik has a neat one-handed flick-open plier deployment that I have really grown to like. Retracting the pliers is not as easy as deploying them, but there are few re-dos after the initial learning process.
In terms of tools and features, the Flik is about average. There are no gimmicks, but I do wish the knife blades were easier to open one-handed. The blades on Leatherman’s new OHT (one-handed tool) don’t look any easier to open, so it seems to be a design compromise rather than a cost-cutting measure.
Overall, the Flik’s quick pliers deployment won me over. It’s not perfect, but it works reasonably well and leads to more positive than negative feelings. With the Flik you get a versatile assortment of essential and most-used tools and features.
If you want a glamorous all-in-one multi-tool, look elsewhere. If you want a robust tool that won’t let you down, the Flik seems to be up to the task.
MSRP is $65, but you can find the Flik online for about $45.
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Thank you to Gerber for providing the review sample unconditionally. Review samples are typically given away, donated, or retained for benchmark and comparison purposes.
Tim
These are cool looking but i like my sog powerlock.
Did you ever try the powerlock?
Stuart
Well, SOG is still in the doghouse with me with because of how they never responded to my emails to customer service and rudely rushed me off the phone when I called in. Here’s the minor rant from late 2010.
Even so, I do still carry my PowerLock every now and then and love how it can be quickly flipped open one-handed (at least most of the time). It’s quicker to deploy than the Flik but larger and the knives and tools take longer to access. It’s a sort of apples and oranges comparison and I’m not sure which I would choose over the other.
george
shoot, my old pair, well over 12 years, will do the same thing.
DenitaWalters
Took the words right outta my mouth. I was a diesel mechanic in the Army and I always had a Gerber on my hip. Some of the operators would flinch when I’d whip it out for a quick repair on their equipment because it “sounded like a switchblade.” Lol
Harold
I have an Gerber Multi-Plier 600 multi-tool with the one-handed pliers deployment. It has a replaceable carbide insert wire cutter which performs quite well and has 3 cutting sides (you can rotate the insert). The pliers themselves are bluntnose. However, what I don’t like about my set is that the knives and other tools are accessible from the inside, only AFTER deploying the pliers, which have to be retracted to get them out of the way. This results in the blade facing the “wrong way” on the knife and saw. In this area, I like the Flik better. The MP600 also has an adapter that slides over that “skinny” phillips head and converts it to a 1/4″ socket ready to accept standard bits, which are included with this model.
Frederick Okoth
Have broken one piece of my pliers for gerber diesel multiplier how can I get one piece for replacement the rest of the pieces are ok ,,,,,,,,,,fredd okoth from nanyuki Kenya ,east Africa
Stuart
I don’t know if the pliers are replaceable. Have you tried contacting Gerber, or the place you bought it?
John
I managed to overcome the lock on my Flik for one of the knife blades. Which was very worrying. So – what with the weight – it got retired. If I want heavy, I have a Surge, thankyou, which is built like a tank
Charles S. Herndon
Recently found a new-old merchandise Flik w/ no sheath or use instructions. I first saw this tool being used at a tire repair shop. It was clearly “high mileage,” but still working and in daily, heavy use. I decided to try to find one and did- was told that it was a return some years back because the opening mechanism didn’t work= good buy, plus I knew the Gerber USA tools are guaranteed for life, and I’ve had good luck with their warranty service in the past. As I got to know the Flik, it could be easily opened per design. It is actually better made and sturdier than other Gerber (& other brands of) multi tools I have had that seemed to wear fairly quickly with normal use. My question- do the pliers have some normal side to side play in them when flicked out as a result of their sliding construction, or do I need to find some thin stainless shims to stop the side to side movement? The pliers work fine, but I’ve avoided heavier use until certain the play was normal. Your tutorial, located in a Google search, was very helpful. I hope, that as a possible result of the passage of time in the posts, that you and others can still comment on my new-old Flik. Please advise & much oblige in advance, CSH
Stuart
It’s hard for me to say whether what you are experiencing is normal, as certain types of play might be, but not others.
I don’t still have a Flik in my immediate possession. From what I recall, there could be a little freedom of motion – play – to allow for easier opening and closing.