Linedriver

Very nice tool for fly tying but seems a little chincy for the money spent

Really like this. It functions well and made of high quality materials. Much better than using your teeth to cut your line!

Okay let’s get into this. The Gerber Linedriver is pretty great. I have been using it every time I’m out there. Using it to thread my hooks at night makes night fishing easy. I had 3 snags on a recent fishing trip reached down picked up the tool cut my line in a heartbeat. It’s a bit pricey for what it is I agree. My only complaint or gripe is that the whole tool is metal but on the green side where the cutter is for some reason it’s plastic. So I took one star off because it can probably get messed up easy and they say you can pinch split shot with it but I feel like it will ruin the threading portion of the tool over time. The hook vice is perfect I’m using size 14 hooks. The eye cleaner works too removing painted over jig heads. The vice spins so you can tie line fast too. I’m a young chap 26. I fish with my father. He taught me how to fish but his eye sight ain’t what it use to be when he was younger so now I’m the man tying and rigging line. Just returning the favor for all the lines he has rigged for me. I tossed him the line driver and said “father this is the tool for you.” He took to it and started rigging again. This tool is cool for young men and old! Tight lines folks happy fishing thanks gerber!

I should preface that I'm not a fan of all things Gerber- their fixed blades are meh, and their multi-tools are downright garbage (I've seen them break hinges in the midst of field work, unlike Leatherman tools which are in fact the best), and their keychains are okay, but in the words of the great philosopher Albert Van Descartes MacEinstein, keychains doth not an EDC standard make. ...anyway, their fishing tool line seems to actually hit the mark. I get the feeling they have entirely different minds working on these different sectors of their business, and whoever they have designing these are worth their payroll, because this stuff is actually innovative in a fashion that changes your daily work- or play, in the case of fly fishing. (If you are a bait fisherman, you have my condolences, and I bid you come to your senses and learn how to fish f'realz, yo.) This item replaces your standard hemostats with clippers and hook cleaners. This is also MUCH easier to use wit one hand. And, if you had any doubts about the fitness of the tool, that all evaporates when you open the package and get it in hand- it's very solid and soundly operable aluminum with good hinge action and clean cutting of monofiliment line. I can use this on my kayak way more easily than the standard hemo-clipper tools. This is something I don't even have to unclip from the chest rig to use. It's just short of being a hands-free item, but definitely keeps you in the action faster and smoother, with less frustration for spending your time fussing with a stiff scissor action as you had on your newly-replaced tool.

As with any Gerber tool, it is overbuilt. I cannot speak to the value of the tools, as I am not much of a fisherman myself - it was purchased as a gift. But I can say, like any Gerber tool/knife I have owned it is very durable and well built. I expect this will last a very long time. The person who received it especially liked the eyelet clean-out tool - he said new jig-heads usually have the eyelet plugged up with paint, and he previously used a sewing needle to poke them clean. He also liked the scissors and the "funneled" hole for threading eyelets.

This fishing tool has several useful features all in one neat package, including scissors, split shot crimper, a hook threader, and an eyelet cleaner. The end with the eyelet cleaner also rotates so you can use that end to hold your hook and spin it to help with knot tying, such as tying a clinch know. This is the extra hand you sometimes need when tying a knot. The tool has both a pocket clip so you can carry it in your pocket like a pen, and tether ring to hook it to a lanyard or zinger instead. The end of the scissors is a split shot crimper, so there are no sharp points, and there is a sliding lock to close the scissors when not in use. The scissors have the ability to remain open a small amount so when you have this tool clipped in your pocket you can still cut line by passing it through the modest scissors opening without having to remove the tool from your pocket. It's all-metal construction is durable and solid, but not heavy. This is a good buy.

Before I get to my criticisms, I want to start by saying the blades themselves are outstanding. I've had zero issues cutting through braided lines. They've maintained their edge far longer than other high-end blades I've tried. Unfortunately, that is pretty much the only high-point. Almost every other aspect of the design falls short: - The locking mechanism on the scissors is effectively useless. The way the clip is positioned, the scissors are pointed up and the lock itself has almost zero tension holding it in place. These two issues mean every few steps the mechanism unlocks and the scissors open back up. - The spinning hook vise does not turn smoothly or hold securely. They're worthless. - The eyelet cleaning spike is too large for most flies. Unless you're using x/0 sizes (i.e. saltwater streamers), they're not effective. - The hook threader takes more effort to use than threading by hand. I've used a number of threaders over the years, I've never had as much trouble using them as I've had with these. They're bulky and the hard to align with the hook eye. -

I had one of these that a friend had given to me as a gift. Unfortunately, I lost it when my kayak tipped. WIthin just one or two fishing trips, I realized how much I missed it and got a new one. I will be sure to use a lanyard to keep it attached to me next time. The line clippers are the most handy to have around. The hook vise does make it a lot easier to attach a hook. And the crimper is nice to have around. Can't really say I used the eyelet clearing spike much, but its there if you need it. The hook threader was more trouble to use than it was worth.