Review of multitool Ganzo 201-h

The Ganzo 201-h multitool looks great - everything is done neatly and beautifully. The instrument sparkles with metal, feels pleasantly cool in the hand and, thanks to its massiveness, gives the impression of a reliable and expensive thing. In this regard, there is not the slightest complaint about the Ganzo 201-h. We can safely recommend it as an inexpensive and at the same time effective “male” gift. But with functionality it’s not so simple...

Everything is learned by comparison, and it would be logical to compare an inexpensive Chinese multitool with some American Leatherman (or similar) whose cost is 5-10 times higher. However, I don’t have such a tool in my arsenal and therefore, for comparison, I will use individual elements of my Victorinox camping knife.

• multitool
• set of bits (screwdriver bits)
• fabric case
• brief instructions

The case is made of thick cordura and has two compartments - for bits and for the multitool itself. The partition between the compartments is thin and sometimes gets crushed when you try to insert a clip of bits there. There are 3 loops on the back of the case, so it can be attached to a belt both vertically and horizontally. The valve closes with a button. And although it looks quite durable, I personally still wouldn’t risk wearing the case on my belt in a horizontal position all the time.

The pliers are spring-loaded, which is quite convenient. There are notches on the handles to prevent your hand from slipping. The maximum opening is about 35 degrees (30 mm between the ends of the jaws, 20 mm in the area of ​​the serrated recess). Side cutters are traditionally located at the base of the pliers. But there are no wire cutters on the side surface of the hinge. The side cutters worked well with copper wire and braided twisted pair. But their rigidity is not enough for steel wire.

The screwdriver bits inside the original packaging are generously lubricated with machine oil (do not get dirty). The flexible rubber holder holds 10 bits - 3 Phillips screwdrivers, 3 straight screwdrivers and 4 hex screwdrivers. Well, and a magnetic adapter for a “square”, available in the multitool. The bits are made of a fairly soft material; under high loads, the edges “lick off”.

The knife, like all other additional tools in the multitool Ganzo 201-h, does not have a lock. This element appears only in the more expensive, “three hundredth” series of multitools. The length of the cutting surface of the blade is about 5.5 cm. The thickness of the butt is 1.5 mm. The blade is pentagonal in cross section. The shape of the blade's tip is "sheep's foot". I don’t undertake to evaluate the quality of sharpening and the material of the blade - the knife cuts paper and thank you for that.

Strop cutter (serrator) - a saw-tooth blade for cutting fabrics, thick ropes and other fibrous materials. They also say that they are good for cutting tomatoes:)

Scissors with a spring of original design. At least I've never encountered one like this before. Such a spring is more difficult to break, but it takes up a lot of space (more than the classic spring from Victorinox) and takes away almost 0.7 mm of thickness from the handles of the scissors. Because of this, the rigidity of the structure is lost. In addition, the lever that you need to press with your finger to operate the scissors is twice as thin on Ganzo as on Victorinox. If you work with scissors on hard material for long enough, pain in the ball of your thumb is almost guaranteed. Well, and most importantly, the cutting surface here is more reminiscent not of manicure scissors, but of office paper scissors. The profile of the blade of Ganzo scissors is not beveled (chisel-like), but completely rectangular (blunt). This means that cutting your nails with them will be quite difficult. And these scissors are reluctant to cut fabric:(

The following tool combines a bottle opener, a can opener, and a thin cable stripper. I am more accustomed to another type of can opener - not a “fang” cutting backwards, but a “shark fin” cutting forward (this movement seems more natural to me). But I think this is a matter of taste and is not of fundamental importance.

A narrow straight screwdriver to complement the bits. In my opinion, it's a little disproportionate. The tip is quite thick, designed for a deep slot, but the width of the tip is small - you can’t turn a powerful screw like that. It turns out “neither here nor there” - no longer a watch, but not yet a power screwdriver.

There is an awl with a hole (loop). The hole is close to the point, which is good. But the tip of the awl itself is not too pointed and very wide (8 mm at its widest point). It is not entirely clear what materials are supposed to be perforated using such a massive awl.

The length of the working surface of the saw is only 4.5 centimeters. This means that you can more or less comfortably cut branches whose thickness does not exceed 2 centimeters.

According to my measurements, the multitool itself weighs 260 grams, and the weight of the complete set (with case and bits) is 380 grams.

Video review of multitool Ganzo 201-h

Which multitool should you choose?

The Ganzo model range includes about one and a half dozen multitools. When the online store Captain invited me to write a review of one of the Ganzo multitools, I compared the available models (based on photographs and descriptions on the site) and came to the conclusion that they are all very similar and differ only in design. Yes, the 300 series has a blade lock, but otherwise the differences are minimal. Perhaps with a more detailed comparison of real samples, I would change my opinion, but so far, as real criteria for selection, I consider only aesthetic preferences (appearance) and the weight of the instrument (from 85 to 280 grams excluding accessories).