Leatherman Skeletool KBX: The 1.3-Ounce Knife That Asks If You Really Need a Multitool

The problem with carrying a full-size multitool is rarely whether it can do enough. It is whether you will actually keep it in your pocket. Pliers, drivers, scissors, saws, and extra implements are useful right up until their weight and bulk convince you to leave the whole thing at home — at which point the $100 tool in your drawer is doing you no good at all. The Leatherman Skeletool KBX takes the opposite approach. It is not a downsized tool chest; it is a compact folding knife with a bottle opener that doubles as its pocket clip. If your real everyday needs are opening packages, cutting cord, and the occasional cold beverage, that may be all the tool you actually need.

The KBX is radically honest about its scope. It has two tools: a 420HC combo blade and a bottle opener. That is it. There are no pliers, drivers, scissors, file, or wire cutters. For buyers accustomed to calling every Leatherman a multitool, that sounds like an obvious compromise — and it is. If you expect to tighten hardware, repair a bike, or handle serious mechanical work, the KBX is not for you, and Leatherman makes no effort to pretend otherwise.

But the honest question is how often those extra implements justify five or more ounces in your pocket. The KBX weighs just 1.3 ounces. It measures 3.45 inches closed and 5.87 inches open with a 2.4-inch blade. That is knife-only weight in a package that disappears into a pocket, and the clever bottle opener-as-clip design means the most-used secondary function of any carry tool is always right there — no fumbling, no deployment, just a pop.

The market evidence suggests Leatherman is onto something. At the time of checking, the Aurora Orange Skeletool KBX was listed at $39.95 on Amazon with a 4.6-star average from more than 1,600 ratings and a No. 45 ranking in the site's Multitools category. Those numbers shift, but they show real demand for a stripped-down carry that prioritizes presence in the pocket over capability in the drawer.

The verdict: the Skeletool KBX is the rare product that succeeds by taking things away. It cuts the multitool down to the two functions people actually use daily, wraps them in a 1.3-ounce package, and charges a price that makes the experiment painless. If your full-size multitool lives in a drawer, this is the Leatherman that will actually ride in your pocket.