The UNDERwater multi-tool

[Divectionist]

There is a variety of must have accessories we bring along on every dive, dragging through the water or bulging our pockets, but they are most often used one at a time.

Do you think there is a place for an underwater multi-tool to consolidate the amount of accessories the average diver carries, featuring some of the most used items?

Whilst there are plenty of multi-tools for use above water (I carry a Leatherman Skeletool whenever I am not wearing a suit or boardshorts) and we can find them commonly for regulator maintenance in the SCUBA world also (I have one of those in my SAD kit), there seem to be no multi-tools specifically designed for diving itself.

A 'basic' multi-tool could incorporate a knife with line cutter, extendable tickle stick or even reef hook and a signal shaker, etc., and an 'advanced' tool could feature a small compass, even incorporate electronics on top of the previous, enabling a laser pointer, LED torch, or above water safety through a whistle component, etc.

Either way, fashioned from corrosion resistant metal or a combination of durable plastic and metal, the hand-held device could come with an integrated bolt snap as a purpose-designed underwater swiss army knife that provides primary safety and utility equipment.

Would such a thing make it into your gear bag? What would it have to do?

 

[swimlikethefish]

You had me until "signal shaker," in all honesty...

My line cutters are attached to my harness. They take up no room. Whistle is with wet notes. Compass is on arm and built in to my computer. Back up light is on harness as well and you don't even know it's there. John line is in pocket. To combine multiple items, they would have to outperform my current devices and take up less room. Why combine them and make one large item when I can spread them out over an area to keep their profile smaller.

I do like the idea. But for myself it doesn't fit my current setup. However, I also used to carry a Leatherman and understand the premise. I switched to a sog years ago. The reason was for the added detonator punch and amplified crimping power they supply. So I am not opposed to change. But it needs to be a step up, not down.

 

[Storker]

I already have an underwater multi-tool. It looks like this:

It has the following functions:

• General cutting tool
• Line cutter
• Spear for bottom-dwelling fish
• Prybar
• Anchor in currents
• Hammer
• Tank banger (if I ever would get the idea to bank my tank, which is highly unlikely)
• Whittling tool - for topside use
• Bottle opener - for topside use
• Fruit and bread cutter - for topside use
• Fire iron - for topside use
• Bungee cord cutter - for topside use

And it's made from a combination of durable plastic and corrosion resistant metal.

 

[Zef]

I don't think it is a bad idea but the list of features you present are not what I would consider for a tool I would want to carry. For instance, the proposed LED torch, to be useful from a lumen and power perspective it would not be conducive to the form factor I expect from a multi tool and if the torch ever goes toes up then one would be carrying something with no purpose. Likewise, a reef hook is only useful in currents if one plans to anchor themselves, otherwise it is not necessary, I believe many divers who purchase a signal shaker eventually abandon it, and many divers have already abandoned the idea of carrying a knife in favor of shears and/or a line cutter. I personally have my whistle attached to my corrugated hose with some bungee...this allows me to use if necessary without having to remove it from where it is stored and I don't have to keep it in my hand or re-stow it between use if the occasion for use ever arises. I would be hesitant to buy such a device with electronic components as the cost I am willing to pay for a multi-tool type device would be cost and quality prohibitive to me to have incorporated waterproof electronic components.

For me my regularly worn kit consists of the following:
1. Back plate and wing
2. safety whistle attached to corrugated hose of wing
3. 2 torches with bolt snaps that hang from the left and right shoulder d-rings and are held to the harness shoulder straps by pieces of mountain bike inner tuber
4. DSMB and spool with 30m line carried in left thigh pocket of drysuit or clipped to one of my waist or crotch strap d-rings
5. EMT shears carried in drysuit pocket
6. Trilobite line cutter just off-center on waist strap of harness
7. mask, fins, reg, tank
8. bungee mounted computer on my right forearm
9. bungee mounted compass on the back of my left hand
10. occasionally carry a small slate to jot down bearings between navigation objectives
11. occasionally carry a stainless steel rod/tickle stick to use as a pointer/tank banger but it is rarely carried

I have abandoned carrying a dive knife, a duo-alert signaling device, octo holders/keepers (instead I use long hose primary donate with my octo on a bungee necklace), and those water activated blinky lights, among other accessories picked up over 24 years of diving.

-Z

 

[JohnnyC]

Very few things can or should be multi-use underwater. Many things get lost underwater. Putting all your eggs in one proverbial basket means you may lose all of your eggs. Which realistically means you need redundancy for said eggs, which means you need to carry more stuff anyway, which means why bother carrying one big thing that’s not great at anything, when you can carry several smaller things that excel at their task.

There are also a lot of things on your list that are largely unnecessary for most divers, on most dives. A compass won’t necessarily play well attached to a torch, and a reef hook is very dive dependent, and may be outright banned in some locales.

Point is, multi tools are great on land because we literally have hundreds of ways we can use them to interact with our environment. We do very few of those the same way underwater, and when we do, we need specialty tools to do it safely and effectively.

Now that doesn’t mean we can’t combine some items. Compasses and slates are often used together. Tickle sticks and shakers are quite common. What I wouldn’t want is a flashlight with a knife and a stick and a hook and a whistle all in one device.

 

[happy-diver]

I'm building a dive umbrella to counteract asteroid pieces