I will readily admit I’m somewhat late to the game when it comes to multi-tools. As many others before me have found, though, once you have one you’ll wonder how the hell you lived without it.

The Gerber Dime Multi-Tool is what we might call a micro-tool. It is very small, as you can see here.

Closed, it is a mere 2.75″ long. Even so, it weighs a hair more than two ounces, so it feels a bit weighty in the hand. Not so much that it feels cumbersome in the pocket, mind you, but enough that when you hold it, you know something is there.

Unfolded, it measures 4.25″.

The pliers are spring-action, which is a nice feature. When opening and closing the Dime, you’ll notice this spring action at work as well, particularly when closing it as it sort of “snaps” shut.

The pliers have wire cutters at the base of the jaws. I tested those out on some thin snare wire and had no issues cutting it.

All of the other tools are fully accessible when the Dime is closed, another great feature and something that has become more common among multi-tools. On one side, we have a small file and a small slotted screwdriver head. The tip of the file is also tapered a bit to be used for Phillip head screws.

As well as a small pair of scissors.

The other side of the Dime contains a knife blade:

And what Gerber calls a “retail package opener.”

The knife is decent right out of the box, but could have used a little touching up to make it razor sharp. The retail package opener is an interesting component and seems to work very well on the plastic clam shell cases that are so common nowadays.

At one end, we have a bottle opener that is fixed, meaning it doesn’t fold down into the tool at all. Sort of a bonus to this is it gives a nice place to rest your pinky finger when using the pliers.

Right next to the bottle opener is a small pair of tweezers that slide into a slot on the Dime.

I’ve had the Dime for about a week now. Each component seems to work as intended — the scissors cut paper, the wire cutters cut snare wire, the knife makes wood shavings, etc. However, I will say that each of the tools, except the pliers, were damn near impossible to open when the Dime first arrived. Everything was very stiff. But, after using the tool here and there for a few days, things began to loosen up. There are torx heads that look as though you could loosen a hair but other reviewers who have tried that met with mixed results.

All in all, I like the Dime but recognize it for what it is — a micro-size multi-tool that is limited in its capabilities. You aren’t going to be able to use the Dime for some tasks that are better suited for a larger multi-tool. The screwdriver head, for example, is only about 0.75″ long. The file is about the same length, limiting its use.

That said, it is the perfect size multi-tool for your Altoids tin size kits.

The Gerber Dime is available on Amazon right now for well under $20. While mine shown in the above pics is red and black, there are other colors available, such as all black as well as green and black.