Deconstructing Product Design

Pocket Survival Tool

Tim Leatherman, 1983

1. The Swiss Army knife is unquestionably a classic of design and the seminal multitool, but in modern use one is quickly reminded that the knife was originally designed for soldiers in the late 1800s. Still useful, but perhaps not ideally suited for practical civilian use — a limitation that would ultimately be the inspiration for the modern Leatherman multitool. Tim Leatherman comments: “My wife and I decided to travel abroad in 1975. We were young — it was one of those budget trips, and we bought an old Fiat in Amsterdam for $300. I was carrying a Boy Scout–type knife and used it for everything, from slicing bread to making adjustments to the car. But I kept wishing I had a pair of pliers! During ...