The three newest multitools on the market are all from Leatherman. Above is the Charge Ti.

With a good multitool, you already have the essentials—and then some. The best part, perhaps, is that those tools are all in one place (on your hip), and travel with you wherever you go—even in the water. Of course, the weight and size of a multitool can be much less than a single, stand-alone hand tool; and often a multitool's use can be extended via interfaces with dedicated accessories or standard items like hex bits or sockets.

Our full-length evaluation of multitools in the November 2001 issue blanketed the field in terms of tool sizes and manufacturers. Yet we recently decided to re-sample the offerings of high-end, full-size tools because three…