Gerber Center-Drive Plus Review

Nearly every multitool asks you to drive screws with a bit that sits off to one side of the tool, so it cams out, skips, and skins your knuckles. The Gerber Center-Drive's entire reason to exist is one fix: it puts the bit driver on the tool's centerline, so the bit spins true and you can turn it like a real screwdriver, full rotation and all. The Center-Drive Plus wraps that idea in a full-size, made-in-USA multitool with a bit set and a leather sheath. If you drive fasteners with your multitool more than you cut with it, this is the tool the whole category has been getting wrong.

The center-axis driver is the hero feature

On a conventional multitool the driver is one of several tools folding out of a handle, which means it sits off-axis. You cannot spin it in a continuous motion, and every turn puts your force at an angle to the screw, so it cams out. The Center-Drive solves this mechanically: a driver that extends out along the center of the tool, magnetically holding a standard bit, positioned so your hand rotates directly in line with the fastener. You get near-full rotation and the leverage geometry of an actual screwdriver. Because it takes standard bits, the bit selection is effectively unlimited, and the Plus ships with a bit set so you are not hunting for the right one on day one. For anyone who assembles furniture, works on equipment, or turns screws all day, this is not a gimmick, it is the single best driver in any folding multitool, and it is the whole reason to buy the tool.

One-thumb pliers

Gerber's other signature here is the opening action. Instead of unfolding the tool butterfly-style, you slide a spring-loaded plunge lock and the needlenose pliers deploy with one thumb, snapping open ready to work. It is fast, it is one-handed, and the plunge lock keeps the pliers locked in use. The pliers themselves are full-size and spring-loaded, which matters for repetitive gripping. It is a genuinely different deployment feel from Leatherman's fold-out handles, and many people prefer it once they have lived with it.

The blade and the rest of the toolset

The Center-Drive Plus carries 15 tools, or 28 functions if you count every bit in the included set the way Gerber does. The blade is a full-size 2.9-inch 420HC plain edge that locks open, a proper knife rather than a stubby afterthought, sized for boxes, cordage, and food. Around it you get spring-loaded pliers with wire cutters, a saw, a double-sided file, an awl, a pry bar, a bottle opener, and, on the Plus, scissors and a tumble finish. 420HC is the same sensible, sharpenable, corrosion-resistant steel Leatherman uses; it is easy to maintain and honest about what it is.

What the "Plus" adds

The Plus is the version to buy. Over the base Center-Drive it adds spring-loaded scissors, a tumble-finished look, a leather belt sheath, and the bit set that makes the center-axis driver immediately useful. Buying the Plus gets the driver's full value out of the box rather than sending you shopping for bits.

Weight and made in the USA

At about 269 grams, 9.5 ounces, the Center-Drive Plus is a little heavier than a Wave+ or Arc, which is the cost of its full-size outboard tools and that big locking blade. It is a belt-sheath tool, and the included leather sheath suits it. Like Leatherman's USA-made tools, it is built in the United States and backed by a 25-year warranty, so the buy-once logic holds.

Where it beats, and trails, Leatherman

The Center-Drive wins decisively on one axis: driving fasteners. Nothing in Leatherman's fold-out lineup, not the Wave+, not the Arc, drives screws as comfortably or as fast as the center-axis driver. Where it trails is blade steel and refinement: the Arc's MagnaCut blade holds an edge far longer than the Center-Drive's 420HC, and Leatherman's magnetic one-hand tools feel a touch more polished in the hand. The choice comes down to what you do most. Our Leatherman vs Gerber comparison lays out the ecosystem and warranty details side by side.

Who it's for, and who should skip it

Buy the Center-Drive Plus if driving screws is a real part of your day and you want the best driver in any multitool, with a full-size blade and a bit set in the box. It is a superb work-focused anchor for a loadout. Skip it if you mostly cut rather than drive, a Leatherman with better blade steel will serve you more, or if you want the lightest possible carry.

Alternatives

If you cut more than you drive and want premium blade steel, the Leatherman Arc's MagnaCut blade is the upgrade, on the one-hand magnetic platform. Check the Leatherman Arc price on Amazon. If you want the proven all-rounder at a friendlier price, the Wave+ remains the category default and drives adequately even if not as well. Check the Leatherman Wave+ price on Amazon. See how they stack up on the best EDC multitools hub.

Verdict

The Gerber Center-Drive Plus is the multitool to buy if you drive fasteners more than you cut. Its center-axis driver is the best in the category by a clear margin, it spins true, takes standard bits, and turns like a real screwdriver, and the Plus bundles the scissors, sheath, and bit set that make it complete out of the box. It gives up some blade-steel refinement to Leatherman's MagnaCut flagship and carries a little heavier at 9.5 ounces, but for driver-first work nothing else comes close. Check the Gerber Center-Drive Plus price on Amazon.