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59 of 59 found the following review helpful:
 Defect worries unfounded Nov 24, 2009
By C. Brace
My wife wanted me to order some of these as stocking stuffers for friends and family. We live in area with alot of big lakes and rivers, so it makes sense to have a safety device like this in every car. While noticing that several reviewers had problems with them not working, I was tempted to go for the larger LifeHammer instead. I would feel terrible if someone was relying on a gift from me to save their life, and have it fail when that time came (God forbid!)
I took my chances and ordered 8 ResQme keychains (4 Blue, 4 Yellow.) All arrived quickly in usual Amazon fashion. I found a scrap piece of soft wood and proceeded to test them out. Of the 8, only 1 (yellow) failed to "strike" the wood and leave an impression from the steel point. However, after cycling the device 5 or 6 more times, it began to strike the wood and leave an impression in the wood. After 10 or so additional tests, I was unable to get the device to fail again. My guess is that there was some plastic "flashing" inside from the injection molding process that was slowing down or stopping that striker from firing properly (based upon a small, thin piece of yellow plastic being left on the wood after the 5 cycles preceding the device starting to work properly.) So, if you get one that does not work, try cycling it many times and see if that fixes it before going through the return process. ** I STRONGLY recommend testing this or any other device you may some day rely on with your life. The chances of needing to use this are remote, but please make sure that it works in the event that day arrives.
While I would certainly have preferred that all of the devices worked upon delivery, the end result is that they were all working in short order, and I feel comfortable giving them as gifts to people that I care about. The 4 stars in because the factory should be testing these before shipping them out the door...
115 of 122 found the following review helpful:
 This will work..... Jan 02, 2009
By R. Hatch
This thing will work. Back on my days on the fire dept. we used a spring loaded center punch (automatic center punch) to break out car windows. You don't have to swing it like the hammer type so you don't have to worry about follow through and hitting a person on the inside of the car. It will work best if you use it on one of the corners of the window. This thing works on the same principle as the center punch. It will not work for the front windshield, it is laminated. It will break the front window but the laminate holds the window together. The seat belt cutter is a nice thing to have also. It seems like most of you folks want this for water safety. Remember one thing, when your car hits the water it is like hitting a brick wall. Anything in the car is going to go flying around. This thing is designed to stay on your keys till you need it and you just pull it off. If you can just pull it off, I would say the force of the impact COULD send this thing flying. FYI, even a plain old screwdriver can break your windows in no time. Just lay the screwdriver flat against the glass (best if done on one of the corners). Press the handle of the screwdriver with the palm of your hand then grab the tip of the screwdriver with your other hand, pull it back and let go. It will snap the tip of the screwdriver into the tempered glass and shatter it in little pieces.
48 of 50 found the following review helpful:
 ResQMe keychain emergency escape tool Jul 08, 2007
By J. Scofield
"Fix it up man"
This is a great tool. Its about 3" long by 1.25" wide and .625" thick. Thats roughly the same size as a standard remote keyfob. It is very lightweight so it doesn't make your keys too heavy either.
I chose the yellow so it would be easy to find, and so far it's helped me find my keys at least 20 times. To top it off it comes in a set of 2.
The basic concept is easy. There are two tools, one to cut the seat belt and one to break open the window. The tool attaches to the keychain by a plastic clip that snaps on firmly and doubles as the seat belt cutter protective cover.
When you need it you can just grab it and pull away from the keyring, leaving the keys in the ignition. Slip it over the seatbelt and pull. Slices like butter. Then press the larger end against the window and press. No need to smack or swing or use any force at all. The spring loaded punch will do the work for you. The hardened metal point pops into the window smashing it easily. Try it on a cardboard box, or a piece of scrap wood and you can see the dent it makes. Don't try it on your window though, unless you are ready to buy a new piece of glass.
There is a note in the instructions warning that it does not work on laminated safety glass. Front windshields use that type to keep the pieces from cutting you if it breaks. It makes that milky spiderweb look and holds all the pieces together.
I have had the lifehammer tool, but there is no good place to keep it. If I needed it, would I have time, or even be able to find in the glove box or the bottom of the center console? I doubt it. With the ResQMe keychain, its right at the ignition, where you could reach it any time. This is a fantastic improvement.
It comes in several colors too help accesorize too. Personally I love the yellow. Comes in package of 2 so you have one for your loved one too.
36 of 38 found the following review helpful:
Great in concept, but they're a killer to bathroom sinks. : ) Jul 05, 2007
By Chicago Lawn
"Spyke"
I bought the two-pack and can only rate them in concept in that I hope they'll never be needed. I gave one to my sister and one to my g/f, the only people I ride in cars with. It's one of the few items that will be important to have IF needed, but yetter yet if NEVER needed, (kind of like a parachute or bulletproof vest.)
One note: DON'T TEST THESE ON A BATHROOM SINK!. They work very well, but the sink won't work well afterwards.
27 of 29 found the following review helpful:
Compact, Easy to keep close at hand. Jun 10, 2007
By S. N. Gaines
I've used full sized automatic center punches as window breakers, during my emergency response days. This is an excellent fill-in unit. It attaches to your keychain, and is a sort of pull-apart unit, so that you have easy and instant access to the thing if you need it.
The window breaker will only work on the side or rear windows, the front windshields of American cars are laminate tempered glass that have a sheet of plastic between the layers. This won't break that. But the side or rear glass, no problem. Just push the flat end of the breaker against the glass, you'll hear a little "pop" and the window breaks into thousands of tiny glass crumbs.
As far as the seat belt cutter, it seems sharp enough, although I don't want to test it and possibly dull the blade. Seems like it'll do the job nicely if called on.
Of course this thing is not a cure-all. You need to have a plan in the back of your head. Watch the TV show "Mythbusters" and look for the submerged car episode to see what I mean. Trying to figure out how to use this while your car is filling up with water and you and your passengers are panicking is not the time to be reading instructions or formulating an escape plan.
This item, which is much smaller than those "Escape" hammers you can also buy, is very cheap insurance. The advantage over the hammers is that you don't have to swing this to make it work, just press it against a window and you're out.
I got one for every member of my family, including the non-drivers. No telling if you'll be a passenger in someone else's car when the need for this thing arises.
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