Belt buckle with integrated toolkit

I traded in my old belt for one of these 686 "Snow Tool Belts" a couple weeks ago and I'm just loving it. Conceived of as a set of snowboard tools built into your belt, the buckle is actually two screwdrivers (Phillips and slot), a bottle opener and a hex socket wrench. It snaps off the thick, high-quality leather belt with four poppers so that you can deploy it without taking off your whole belt. I've just had my first occasion to use it -- needed a Phillips to open the battery case of some electronics -- and it was great, like I was still carrying a multitool (a habit I kicked after losing half-a-dozen of the expensive little bastards to the TSA). I'm not sure if this guy'll survive airport security, but I'm gonna try it out this week in the UK, Germany and the US. Link

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

MORE: Gadgets

More at Boing Boing

The technology that links taxonomy and Star Trek

Hackers prepare for first "national holiday" in their honor

Takuan

an unfixed crysknife? nah, TSA’d cut themself on it.
Antinous

Like they have blood flowing through their veins. Besides, it would disintegrate before it could be used as evidence, ne?
newman100

Oh, yeah, and if you use the bottle opener without taking it off the belt, practice a couple times before you do it in public. If you’re really good, you can make it look like your popping a bottletop with only your gut.
Takuan

have a look at Cold Steel’s Nightshade line of social products. I am sure a decent leatherman could be made that wouldn’t trigger metal detectors.
Grivory, Zytel,Kraton… all these new materials.

When we were kids all you had was the CIA Letter Opener.
eap

Provide essential tools while preventing plumber’s crack. This company deserves some kind of award.
Matthew Miller

You’re so not getting that through the airport screeners. It’s exactly the kind of non-dangerous but threatening-looking implement that they’re great at “catching”.
Kid

Looking forward to hearing your airport survival test results soon. :)
newman100

I can’t vouch for the two-screwdriver belt, but I’ve been wearing my Phillips-only 686 tool belt for two years and 150,000 airline miles. It actually makes it through some x-ray machines too.
gobi desert

No kidding (no pun intended) — get this through airport security? I am guessing no.
Nestor

After being questioned about my 686 belt a few times at the airport I’ve started taking it of early and putting it in the tray with my keys and carry-on. It goes a lot smoother this way.
Stef

How sturdy is it, Cory, and do the screwdrivers stay down in place?

It looks really handy, though I skate a lot and would tend to avoid something like that as it seems like it could cause a wicked injury if you slammed hard at speed – those screwdrivers would make two nasty punctures if they popped up! (Another one to avoid is jeans with studs, they’re not at all nice to land on.) Would’ve thought they’d have taken that into account if they’re for snowboarding, though?

An Atwood Nibble on a set of keys would be another option, can’t see that getting taken off you by security as there’s no blade:
http://www.atwoodknives.com/home/20353239.php
Cory Doctorow

I don’t think there’s any risk of the driver-heads slipping the buckle — it’s very sturdy when done up.

Screwing and unscrewing stuff with a driver that’s attached to a belt-buckle isn’t nearly as good as a standalone driver, but this is about exigencies, not planning.
Giovanni

Just ordered it :)
markfrei

I’m puzzled – I’ve not had TSA issue with my keychain mini multitool (2 screwdrivers, pliers, and wire cutter), even when I’ve had the extra screening.

I fly 2x a month on average and only once was I even questioned about it – and they had no issue when I showed there was no blade.

What multitools are being taken here exactly? I’ve had lots of BS interactions with the TSA, but this one is new on me.
Cory Doctorow

All my tools had knives or scissors
bruenor

Meanwhile the TSA took my Marlboro Keychain multi-tool.. Just like this one on E-Bay..

http://cgi.ebay.com/Marlboro-County-Store-Multi-Tool-Key-Ring_W0QQitemZ220204718838QQcmdZViewItem?IMSfp=TL0802220886a21695
The seller is probably an Alias for a TSA employee selling my confiscated junk..

I’m surprised they would allow any multi-tool on the plane, Airport security refused to allow us to carry tools on the planes pre 911 for fear we would ‘disassemble the plane in flight’ or some such nonsense..
sofauxboho

I’ve had one of these for a bit over a year. Except for the snaps weakening, it has held up very well.

I started in the United States took it through 8 countries in South East Asia. The only place I had trouble was at the 4th security checkpoint in Manila, and even they eventually let me through.

Know that it does not work very well as a bottle opener, though.
crozierm

I’m surprised to see only a #2 philips head, I thought that most snowboard binding bolts were #3. I’ve stripped enough heads that a decent #3 is a permanent fixture in my snowboarding duffel.

In other situations I suppose the #2 is much more useful. Maybe the company will make a different (or customizable) version. I’d love to have one.
Tom

I lost an end-wrench to an airport screener in Toronto last summer. Forgot it in the pocket of a pair of shorts that got stuffed into my carry-on, and was surprised as hell when the screener stopped me and said there was an “illegal tool” in my bag.

The funny thing was that we couldn’t find it. The screener was helpful and polite, and eventually ran my bag through the X-ray again so I could see what we were looking for, at which point I realized what had happened and put my hand on it with no problem. They would have kept it for later pick-up, but it was cheap junk.

The screener had no clue as to why wrenches aren’t permitted, although I guess it’s some latent fear that a terrorist will perform unauthorized maintenance on the aircraft, thus voiding the warranty.
nanuq

I’m tempted to make a Batman utility belt joke out of this but it does look cool. Is it reversible too?
manicbassman

That would make a real mess of the back of my Bass Guitar…
jenjen

What’s nice here is if someone says “screw you” you can take them up on it.
billso

It’s out of stock at Amazon.com.
bolamig

I have flown at least a dozen times with my key style multitool on a keychain with other keys in my carry on bag:

http://www.swisstechtools.com/productdetail.aspx?PID=VZ75GDTdP68A

Nobody ever noticed it. About half the flights were in the USA and the rest in other countries. I wasn’t trying to be testy, just forgot it was there.
forgeweld

The pocket protector for the twenty-first century! I love how they stamped ‘flathead’ and ‘#2phillips’ on the bits. Does the belt have ‘belt’ stamped into it?
jimh

They sell this at SFO snowboarding here in my ‘hood. While I prefer to carry a tool with a #3 philips for snowboarding, it is a pretty cool belt.

At least one customer of the shop has already had his taken away by the TSA however, and they’re not cheap. I would check it.
Vogon Poet

Got it, use it. Very handy when the screws holding the bindings on my snowboard were loosening up.
Re Stef@7: The screwdriver bits fit through the belt leather, and wedge against the bottle opener part (as seen in the illustration), like dual prongs in a regular belt. No need to worry about them popping up if you’re actually wearing the belt as intended.
Deidzoeb

Couldn’t the thing be made as just a belt buckle to attach to any belt, or any standard-ish belt with two holes like that?

Re: TSA security theatre. I haven’t flown often enough to see how it works, but my groundbreaking business idea is that somebody should open “Mailboxxors Etc” concessions just outside of airport security. For those devices interpreted as dangerous by TSA but harmless enough to pass postal standards, and worth enough that you don’t want to throw them away, you just put it in a box and mail the thing back to yourself, either back to your home or on to your eventual destination. I’m sure TSA would find some excuse to object to this, or it wouldn’t be worthwhile if you’d have to go back out of the “secure” area to mail your junk and then endure the same 45 minutes of pat-downs and bullcrap a second time.
squeevey

I’ve had this belt for about 3+ years. It’s a fantastic, sturdy leather belt.

TSA Concerns: I fly regularly with this belt and there have been a few times I’ve forgotten about it, and it went through fine. There have been only two times I have been questioned about it. One of the two times they glanced at it and let it through. The other time they wanted me to surrender it. I ended up going back to the ticket counter and getting a box from them and they put it below the airplane for me.

Other Comments:
The tools work fine, although I use other multi-tools. The bottle open has worn itself down and is now extremely difficult to open bottles with. If you want it just for the bottle opener, I’d suggest a different belt.
Takuan

TSA pat downs…. a suicide anthrax bomber could use that… think of how many the TSA would infect and how many flights….
Takuan

Has anyone made a multi-tool in Grivory or similar material? Something useful but non-metallic?
Antinous

Sandworm tooth?