Techdry Tools has come out with the Dry-X3, which they describe as the world’s first multi-blade detail knife.
The Techdry Dry-X3 drywall tool is said to be 100% designed, manufactured, and assembled in the United States, and with US-sourced materials.
The X3 was designed more for detail and finishing work, such as when working around door frames, and features 3 blade sizes – 1/2″, 1″, and 2″.
The blades are made from aircraft quality (301 grade) stainless steel, and the handle is made from aluminum. It is also built with nylon washers and a patent-pending pressure lock that keeps the selected blade in place.
It weighs around 9 ounces.
Techdry says that their Dry-X3 was designed by [drywall] professionals for professionals, and that the tool was in development for over 3 years.
In videos of the prototype, the blades fan out from the handle when the user presses down on the pressure lock. After you fold out the blade you want, releasing the lock secures the blade in place and causes the other blades to retract back into the handle.
Techdry says that their tools can be rebuilt and customized by users. The parts kit comes with nylon washers, a compression spring, and replacement stainless steel blades.
Over on Techdry’s social media channels, they showed off prototypes of potential blade options.
Price: $35.95
Discussion
The Techdry Tools Dry-X3 seems to be a well-thought-out idea.
Two concerns came to mind: how well will a tool with moving parts endure drywall compound, and won’t the blades stick together, making the tool difficult to use?
However, I’m not too worried. Digging around social media, Techdry’s founder definitely seems rooted in the drywall industry, and so I am confident they took this into account. Plus, you can completely disassemble the tool for maintenance or repairs if it’s ever required.
As for the blades potentially sticking together, I believe that’s what the nylon washers are for, providing just enough separation between blades to allow for easy selection.
Techdry’s presentation of the X3 so far seems earnest. In other words, I really get a “we made a tool we want to use” kind of vibe.
I really like that the tool is said to be designed, manufactured, and assembled in the United States, and from US-sourced materials.
I also like that they’re working on potential expandability – it looks like they already have prototype blade shapes for painting, caulking, and finer detail applications.
I think the tool is appealing, and it definitely has potential. However, I don’t do a lot of drywall finishing work. For those of you that do, what are your thoughts?
