It’s curious a specialty tool like this would be called the Trucker’s Friend. For certain it is a tool a trucker would want to have in their tool box, but its usefulness goes way beyond that limited functional area. I would say this tool is by all regards a prepper’s friend as well.
Trucker’s Friend, A Serious Prepper Tool
The Trucker’s Friend is available from Innovation Factory. To be honest, the package the tool is attached to actually lists fields in which the
Features
For a rather compact hand tool its features are many. It is useful for 
SHTF Tool
This is the tool for worst case scenarios like a catastrophic social collapse, dirty bomb, attack, extended power grid failure, EBT card’s go 
Other characteristics of the Trucker’s Friend include a super user friendly handle. It is a rubberized covering with finger grooves molded into the handle cover. The manufacturer calls it a “shock absorbing Powergrip.” Indeed it is. You can get a really solid hold on this tool and as I noted when using it in a swinging or chopping action, the grip does not slip. Some of the tools on the market today have slick plastic grips to which I have to add double-sided sticky tape in order to get a firm grip. You don’t need that with this tool.
Also important to long term use and reliability is not only the cast alloy tool-steel blade, but the shank which has been heat treated for added strength. The fiberglass handle then is inserted up into the shank. The handle is non-conducting, which is a nice feature for many working applications.
The finish on the metal is a rust resistant matte black finish. It does scratch and mar, but is not damaged in the classic sense. It holds up well outdoors. Rust can be easily taken off with some steel wool. There is a leather cover available from the manufacturer, too, which I would recommend purchasing along with the tool not only for safety sake, but also to offer a measure of tool protection from the elements.
- Handy all-purpose hand tool designed for professional truck drivers
- Cut branches, pry loose nails, chip away hard-packed ice, and more
Last update on 2020-08-12 at 08:48 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Field Use
Barring the absence of hunting season where I could really put this tool through some practical paces, and as I intend to do this fall, I did 
The next trick was to extract the nail. The nail puller does work, but the nail head groove could be a little deeper or something. The big nail head I was using managed to slip out of the Trucker’s Friend's extractor claw several times. There is another pry bar on the head end of the tool with an insert groove and a hole at its terminal end. I used that too, and with the nail shank and head fitted into that hole, the extraction power is positive.
Though I did not have any wood to chop or a tree to cut down (the wife frowns on that in the yard), I did have several over-sized roots to sever from a water willow growing its way toward the house foundation. The Trucker’s Friend made short order of that chopping task. I have not yet sharpened the factory edge, as I wanted to see how it would chop fresh from the package. It “done” good as they say here in the Deep South. The handle on the Trucker’s Friend is super.
Conclusion
How else can the Trucker’s Friend be used? Imagine its multiple uses around a Bug-Out base camp either a fixed location on rural property 
The Innovation Factory’s Trucker’s Friend is made in the U.S.A and is backed by a “hassle free” lifetime replacement guarantee. If this Trucker’s Friend does not make it through the usual rigors of a SHTF, then you are in much worse deep doo-doo than you might suspect. Keep the Trucker’s Friend close and buy more than one.
- Handy all-purpose hand tool designed for professional truck drivers
- Cut branches, pry loose nails, chip away hard-packed ice, and more
Last update on 2020-08-12 at 08:48 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
All Photos by Dr. John J. Woods
I'll have to buy one & give it a work out to see if it can handle the rough use that i'll be giving it.
Is this better than the crovel?
Having owned a Crovel, I would say that it is too heavy for anything other than vehicle duty. The pry tool at the end of the handle made it uncomfortable and possibly dangerous to the users wrist if not careful. It is a good concept, but needed a little tweaking. I am available for consulting, for a small fee. This tool looks very useful.
back during the viet nam era, we were issued a hatchet with a prybar and hammer head , made from creap chinese steel. i broke two heads off two tools before i had a teammate weld the two pieces back together with his arc welder and 440 steel tto strengthen the 2 rusty ends .. turns out the snatchet was made from melted down steel nails …lmao.. those chinese could make em cheap and by the millions only to hhave them break quickly make=ing them useless .. i still see them offered though on various sites.. a great tool as long as you dont need to use it in an emergency.. good article
P210SIG Bob Leeper and pineslayer have stated all we need to know.
I only inject that a non specific tool does a poor job at any specific task
I even hate using a hatchet as a hammer although they have similar attributes A hammer is better for nails than a hatchet, as they are clumsey to use with smaller nails
a nail bar comes in at least 6 configurations and I have still had to use nippers and a pair of pliers fencing pliers seem good until you have to nail a 16 penny nail they work great for wire staples and cutting wire.
I have one…. 10 out of 10 rating