In 1975 Tim Leatherman and his wife purchased a Fiat 600 for $300 in Amsterdam before setting off on an extended trip across Europe and the Middle East. Unsurprisingly, the $300 Fiat was riddled with gremlins and mechanical issues which Tim was forced to address with little more than a pocket knife — an experience that inspired the OSU-educated mechanical engineer to design a single tool that packed a host of functions — an item that would ultimately give way to the Leatherman brand that we know today — as well as the multi-tool segment in general.
Originally known as “Mr. Crunch,” the prototype multi-tool was primarily developed by Leatherman in his garage. And now, more than 40 years later, the Leatherman brand is honoring its founder’s spirit of innovation with the launch of the company’s new Garage innovation hub — a new space for Leatherman’s designers and engineers to experiment and push the multi-tool envelope via the release of limited-edition tools. Taking its name from Tim Leatherman’s original multi-tool prototype design, the first addition to the Leatherman Garage lineup has been dubbed the “Mr. Crunch.”
Equipped with a total of 21 tools and functions, the Mr. Crunch has been outfitted with a chisel and package opener combo, flathead and Phillips eyeglass screwdrivers, spring-action scissors, a wood and metal file, large, medium, small, and extra-small flathead drivers, a full-size Phillips head, a cap lifter, a can opener, a wire stripper, an electrical crimper, an awl, a 1.41” ruler, a removable pocket clip, replaceable wire cutters, and a locking 420 HC straight-edge blade. What’s more, just like Tim’s original prototype, the new Mr. Crunch also boasts shortnose pliers with slip-on heads that transform the tool into a set of parallel-action needlenose pliers.
Limited to only 500 units worldwide, the Leatherman Mr. Crunch Multi-Tool is available now with pricing set at $199. Alongside the multi-tool itself, the Mr. Crunch is also sold with an included leather sheath modeled after vintage Leatherman holsters.
