Adam Savage's Guide to Flush Cutters and Nippers!
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Adam does a deep dive into his workshop collection of flush cutters and nippers, and explains how he uses different styles of cutters for various project needs. From standard spring-return flush cutters for modelmaking to heavier duty wire snips, here's what to consider when working with materials ranging from coat hanger wire to spring steel.
Hakko Micro Cutter: amzn.to/35gnjRk
Irwin Vise-Grip Diagonal Cutting Pliers: amzn.to/3H8TC1W
Vertex double jointed side cutter: www.vertexinst.com/product/cu...
Knipex Diagonal Flush Cutter for Plastics: amzn.to/3JIwmcJ
Knipex Electronics Super Knips: amzn.to/3JNrEe6
Knipex Compact Bolt Cutter: amzn.to/3sSJnK6
Knipex High Leverage Diagonal Cutters: amzn.to/3HbKART
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Whats the name of the special nippers at the 2 minute mark? Cant find them, and they look really interesting!
@@samuelgunnarsson1983 I'm really interested as well! :D
My apprentice had those irwins. I tried to cut a nail in a pinch and they broke in my hands. Probably a factory defect..but my apprentice was very impressed.💪lol
@@LionAstrology that’s always disappointing when that happens, especially when it’s really nice multi tools.
@@LionAstrology never cut steel with copper wire cutters like these.
Now I want to see Adam do a tour of the Knipex factory, seeing how they make their nippers. Something I never knew I wanted to know about 30 minutes ago 😆
Actually ALL Knipex stuff is [chef's kiss] excellent. I have a range of their pliers and adjustable pliers as well. I'd LOVE to see their factory and people!
I'm a Knipex convert too... They just are a bit pricey and practically means you have to have two sets of everything, cheap ones that can be destroyed in the process and then the knipex set when you really need something extra. I'm especially in love with their flush cutters, they are irreplaceable when it comes to function: they do stuff that regular flush cutters can't do. They will cut individual hairs and the cut is so flush that there is no cleaning up to do afterwards.
German Tool Reviews introduced me to Knipex and KC Tools. When KC Tools has a good sale or coupon code, I add to my slowly growing Knipex, Wera, and Wiha tools collection.
They could also teach Adam the correct pronunciation of the name. 🤣
The Klein Tools factory would also be a worthwhile episode.
For anyone interested the reverse flush cutters that Adam said he got from micromark and customized are made by Merry tools they are listed as cassette pliers.
Thank you! I could not find them until I searched the comments
Also noticed they are half the price om their website instead of amazon
thank you!!
You're awesome. Thanks!
youre doing gods work with this comment. thanks
I found a pair of knipex cutters at the top of a lift shaft whilst on a fire alarm installation job in Manchester UK about 25 years ago. After asking around for nearly a month , I couldn't find the owners so adopted them . They've served me well , will do for many years and I'm honoured to be their current custodian rather than them ending up covered in pigeon crap and slate dust which would have become their fate had I left them. All hail Knipex cutters😀✌️
Great stuff! But, I would add End Nippers. They cut with even force across the cutting face of the plier. They also have the advantage to reach down into places that are not accessible from the side as is needed with most nippers.
Yeah, me too. I thought he had picked up a pair near the outset, but looked a little more carefully and nope.
This right here. End nippers are so incredibly useful, both for cutting and fastener extraction. The extra leverage you can get from them by rolling the nippers is a fantastic way to pull out stubborn nails.
Folks who know.
Install and remove olinker clamps
Flush cutters are great for cutting zip ties as well, such as around wire bundles, so when you're reaching for something you don't accidentally get a sharp zip tie end under your fingernail...
Love flush cutters for this reason exactly. Nail clippers work great too, I have found
I have received many a scratch from a poorly trimmed cable tie :(
@@Herethiccy nail clippers is a great idea! 200 IQ
@@AndrewBlack343 do you work under dashes a lot, too? Looking like a cat attacked haha
Not only great, but absolutely required!
almost everyone i’ve shown the knipex wrench pliers to has purchased them almost immediately. I carry the 180mm version in my bag everywhere I go. truly amazing tools.
Wrench pliers and the cobras are usually the first things that get people into knipex
I was a teaching assistant in college for a hands-on freshman engineering class. A good number of (electrical) wire cutters were ruined when the students used it to cut piano wire and spring steel, instead of the correct cutters. I took it upon myself to teach them that specific cutters were required to use on those. My favorite cutters to cut off model parts from sprues are Godhands, but they are pretty brittle as the business end is very thin compared to other flush cutters.
use the proper tool for the proper job....don't know how many of my dads tin snips I've ruined
Funny thing is... tested actually did a review of GodHand Nippers :P kzhead.info/sun/lM5xZpWCrHZoqqM/bejne.html
I know the feeling. As someone whose collection of tabletop mini's spans from ancient lead mini's to pewter, resin, & plastic, it helps to have different nippers and cutters for the different types of material.
My 2 cents, from the son of a union electrician. I don’t think my dad ever got more mad at me than when I was about 5 years old and borrowed (without asking) his Klein dikes (diagonal cutters) to cut coat hanger wire that left perfectly round gaps in the blades of his prized tool. After he calmed down, he explained that using a tool designed to cut electrical wire (copper) to cut coat hanger wire (steel) was a “bad idea” and I learned to never use his tools again without asking.
I came down here to sing the praises of Godhands too. They are not cheap, and if you ask more from them than what they're designed for they will break out of spite. But as long as you stay within their limits, you will not get a cleaner, more flush cut from any other kind of nippers.
love how adam’s desert island has a full compliment of nippers
The first tool I purchased as a newly wed in 1970 was a pair of Channellock 6" Diagonal Cutters to cut the brake cables of a 10 spd bicycle with a crisp end so they'd feed through holes easily. I still have this tool and actually had occasion to use it yesterday. Amazingly the finish shows no corrosion, the joint operates smoothly, the cutting edges are nearly pristine and close with only a very slight visible line of light. Thank you for calling to my attention that I am the original owner of a tool that has become an antique while in my possession and that it has sentimental value to me.
I still have my Dad's Xcelite No.55 nippers. Can't be less than 60 years old, and still in good shape.
Nowadays we have "parrot cutters" that work really really well for cable hoses.
This is by far my favourite kind of content
Great topic Adam, Luthiers use slightly shouted flush cutters for initial trimming of Frets.
Adam nailed that Linode ad - total pro - my hats off to that level of skill/talent to deliver the message in a friendly, engaging way :D
Thanks Adam, great overview! I bought a Knipex Cobolt cutter when I did my 2nd chain maille armour, and after cutting over 30'000 stainless steel rings, they still work just as well as when I bought them.
Klein Tools J248-8 are my favorite side cutters by far. Nails, screws, you name it. Love those things.
Project Farm did some testing of cutters last June. The Knipex did pretty good in the torture tests (including cutting a drill bit), but he found the Wiha, Klein Tools, Southwire, and Irwin outperformed it with less damage, and less force required to cut a drill bit. YMMV.
Project farm videos are way overrated. They appear thorough, but often the tests done and the products selected for comparison don't make much sense in the real world. When tools are used for their intended purposes, properly, and equivalent types of tools are compared, especially in long term use, you would often reach very difference conclusions than project farm. And you'd rarely if ever find something superior to Knipex.. though there are certainly other good brands which can often be much more affordable.
Mechanic 20 years & Knipex makes my favorite nippers and slip joint pliers 🙂
As an electrician, the Klein nippers are my go to for anything wire cutting related. And they are fantastic for pulling staples and nails.
You talking about the side-cutters, aka lineman’s, aka “Kleins” on any job I’ve been on? The electrician’s hammer? Yeah. I love them to death. If Adam doesn’t have any, he needs some. They just feel spectacular to use.
Came to the comments to say this
@@FighterPilot72 agree
@@FighterPilot72 No, he's talking about diagonal cutting pliers, known as "dikes" by many in the electrical trade (in the USA, though).
Hey Adam there is a special tool for cutting that spring steel wire. They make it for cutting piano wire. We used to use this wire all the time and getting the proper tool to cut it was a lifesaver, or in my case a hand saver. Look for music wire cutters, they do provide a flush cut. We used that same wire in some GOTG replicas we sold some years back.
A fret puller is about the same as a tool commonly used by anyone who has to pull lots of nails. It's on my wish list, and I don't work on guitars, I'm a master maintenance tech that gets asked to do everything.
Knipex makes a set of combo pliers (the high leverage ones) that cut piano wire too. They aren't flush cutters tho
That's good to know. I've ruined many a pair of cheap side cutters with music wire.
For hard wire like piano wire you might try the "Vertex double jointed side cutter" that Adam lists in the description. Not cheap, but it has carbide jaws and is meant for hard/hardened small screws. Tungsten carbide is often your friend when dealing with other hard metals. Can be brittle, though. Watch out for dropping them or any impact with another hard material.
@@benz-share9058 Dental cutters will be a cheaper way to get carbide jaws. They will be small sized.
Knipex tools are great :) They're a German company and the Germans pronounce their Ks, so it's usually pronounced (also with a short I) as /ˈknɪpɛks/ or /kəˈnɪpɛks/. Sort of like Kaboom! but... with a nippex instead of a boom 😂 Absolutely nothing wrong with anglicising the pronunciation or course, and I'm not suggesting everyone has to say it this way. But I do because it's just strangely pleasing. Ka..Nippex. Knipex Knipex Knipex.
Came here to say this too. It's pronounced "kuh-nippex"
Another +1 to this
Minus one for me, just for the hell of it
Best way to write it in english is i think " QNEEPEX" (Company Official Pronouncing) or " QNIPPEX " (like the most german people pronounce it)
@@threegreencharms you know what, ill +1 this, just for the hell of it
I have been using a couple of GodHand nippers for model making. One for plastic and one for metal wire. They are the best I have used so far in the 17 years of model-making and electrical work.
DSPIAE makes good ones also
I have a few different GodHands myself, and they're are noticeably better than others I used in the past. This recommendation is worth pointing out for those wanting top tier tools.
I am an amateur bike mechanic, and I love the kind of cutter that has 2 "v"s facing each other. The hole then looks like a diamond. This is great for things that are multiple strands, like bike cable. I have also found them to be perfect for speaker wire.
Ohhhhhhh yeah, I worked sales and some service (tube/tire/pedal changes, that kind of thing) in a bike shop for a year, the range of different cutters and unique tools in a bike shop is fascinating! The pedal wrench took me a good amount of time to figure out and that one wrench with the length of bike chain attached was always super interesting to me.
That's called a "parrot cutter"
My favorite use for flush cutters is for cutting the ends off of zipties. This results in a clean look and prevents you from getting cut by the sharp end later.
Special place for folks who leave that razor sharp bit sticking out of zip ties in wiring harnesses.
I love my knipex cutters. We use wire conveyor belt at my work and I’ve had to make many repairs to wire belts over the years and I don’t dare attempt to cut them with anything but my knipex cutters.
Was told about Knipex cutters recently at an off shore fishing clinic. Used to cut hooks out of people. Immediately brought a pair of offset bolt cutter pair. Placed in zip lock bag with a spray of WD40 to protect. Ready for use.
The Godhand GH-SPN-120 nippers are the best ones out there for model making. They are super thin, brittle, and are single-bladed.
I have some end nippers from when I did lawn irrigation, and I use them in the shop all the time. If you have never used a set, they are definitely worth checking out.
I literally came to this video because I need a really good pair for work and now I'm figuring out a way to make the old custom Micromark ones that you have because that is exactly what I'm looking for.
The Hakko-CHP-170 Micro Cutter are a wonderful set of flush cutters. I use them whenever I'm working with zip ties.
Need to get a set of Klein's. They are incredible. They even cut screws down in a pinch. I've worked with Knipex as well and Klein just rocks my world. I have yet to find anything else that compares.
i don't know why I find these tool deep dives so relaxing
As a mechanical contractor I have used and abused many different brands. For my money all my pliers and nippers are Knipex. They make impressive tools and quality has impressed me after many other different disappointments and failures. Truly professional grade tools that you can depend on.
Shout-out to the king of all flush cutters for model making, the Godhand nippers. Extremely fragile but they are about as good as you can get. Not only a true flush cut, but so fine a cutting edge that you barely stress the plastic.
I was wondering if anyone else would catch on to the lack of Godhand. I am my 2nd pair of the really nice one's. 2nd set because you nailed it, they are fragile.
I recently got my first Gunpla for my birthday, and even though I know nothing about Gundam I loved it, they are super fun to assemble. A good pair of flush cutters is essential. I don't have a pair, but I've heard good things about Godhand nippers for that purpose.
OK but I do recommend checking out Gundam though lol
Great timing! Just got my knipex mini nippers in the mail on Saturday :) The action is so good, looking forward to using them, cleaning up some zip ties. Thanks for your channel and videos!
The parallel jaw pliers with the side cutters were patented originally by Bernard. Bernard sold out to Sergeant. I believe Sergeant in turn was sold to another company. Bernard designed and manufactured many pliers that were specific to many trades. As far as spring action, a friend's father, a surgeon, put a single piece of surgical tubing that ran from end to end of his pliers and wire cutters. The tubing offered some cushioning, but functioned mainly as a spring to open the jaws. According to Knipex US their name is pronounced Kah-nip-ex. Also, they recently introduced a bolt cutter style wire cutter with a gap that is suppose to easre cutting hard wire. Bob
I love the joy you get from the satisfying crack of a pair of these cutters properly used… like around the 11 min mark.
It's a special joy to use a tool that does what it was designed to do very well. Part of it is knowing what it was designed to do of course. A good example is adjustable wrenches, most are useless but a well made one is delightful.
Knipex pliers wrench was my first Knipex tool, and still my favorite. It's a mind-blowingly useful tool, far better than a crescent wrench. And I find myself using it for all sorts of things besides just as a wrench, like bending and straitening metal, straitening electrical wires, etc..
You cannot underestimate a good pair of Dykes. My personal favorite are the Channellock E337 ( yes they cut better than Knipex and cost less). The older standard 337 are great too, I have 2 pairs from my grandfather that can still cut paper after all these years, and one pair has been damaged by a live wire at some point.
im not a model maker or anything, but I have heard really good things about offerings from the Japanese brand Fujiya that make some of the sharpest, TRUE flush cutting side cutters that leave little to no flash/sprues on parts at all when cut.
i worked as a wire drawer for fifteen years and my most often used tool was the Klein side cutting pliers.
also, skip linesman pliers and get yourself ironworker's pliers.
Not technically flush cutters/nippers, but the Klein 1005 "Crimping and Cutting Tool for Connectors" is by far the best pair of cutters I've ever used. They're virtually indestructible and are strong enough to cut coat hanger while remaining sharp and precise enough to cut 24+awg stranded wire. I use these constantly.
Where I came from and grew up, we called those side cutters or diagonal cutters. When I worked in factory where we did lots of cutting and stripping wires in wiring control panels, I had a pair of diagonal cutters with a notch in the blades the correct size for stripping 18 Ga. stranded wire. That was very handy.
A good set of fence pliers and linesman pliers of a couple different sizes are always in my bag along side a set of old, completely unbranded side cutters that were my grandpas from who knows how far back.
I got some nice big Knipex clippers a while ago to cut spring steel for model making and for removing old hooks from fishing jigs. They really changed my life; making an annoying task super easy.
"boot pinch pliers" are kind-of the offspring from a wild night between some nippers and a jemmy/pinchbar. Very handy.
I'd like to mention the cable cutters for braided wired changed my cutting
I love nippers and flush-cutters too. My collection is mostly Knipex nippers, but also a bunch of Tsunoda (Japanese) flush cutters. My recent favorite is the Tsunoda, KBN-125, specifically for cutting cable ties. They have a little knurled section for gripping /tightening the cable tie, and a lovely flush-cutting head for cutting the excess 'tail' perfectly clean and non-scratchy every time. Never realized how annoying that little scratchy part was, until I got a tool that reliably stops it from happening. Only $25 or so...
I find your videos massively entertaining, even when you're talking about stuff that doesn't necessarily concern me. I'm glad you never got into drugs because the way you get excited about tools is the same way junkies talk about getting high! 😂 Thanks for all the information and inspiration , you're the best!
Need to be on drugs to watch these tool videos
Life is for those who can't handle drugs!
Project Farm has a fantastic video on testing Side Cutters.
Hi Adam, there are a lot of newer nippers from Tamiya, "Godhand" and other companies especially made for the really fine sprue nubs on model kits. Since they're so specialized, the cutters are really thin and fine, so nice that they barely leave any need to sand the cut mark.
Need to look for Lindstrom pliers / cutters for the small / detail / electronic size. Quality like you’ve never seen!
Those first knipex nippers you bought are the same ones I have, albeit without the little bend of the handle. I love them so much and consider them critical to the point that when I lost mine, I replaced them immediately
I love my flush cutters. Was actually just using it for a kit-bash I'm working on.
Knipex and Wera two all time favorite tool brands
Xuron cutter, made right here in Maine, are my favorite. They even gave me a tour of the factory a few years back.
For me end nippers too. The 357 from channellock are my favorite even over the comparable knipex version. They sit tighter in the hand but do not lack power. Plus you can pull nails with them.
Kuh-nip-x are my favorite hand tools I have as a mechanic
"Desert island set of nippers" *grabs the majority of the ones he brought out to show*
I've had my Klein diagonal cutters for about 15yrs now, still going strong!
Snap-on nippers are A+ and have never let me down
Early on in my engineer career I went out and spend $1500 on a ton of Knipex gear, primarily VDE rated tools. Best I've ever had!
Working as a network installer, flush cuts were great for keeping the cut end if a zip tie from slicing you (or the next guy) up. I love a good pair of lineman's plires for cutting thick coax or ground wire.
German/Austrian steel is something else. These people put in the extra work to make sure its high quality and a pride. Anytime I need a hand tool I look for the 3 major German brands. Knipex, Klein & NiceinCheap
Thanks Adam ! I love Knippex too but I’m also a big fan of NWS pliers ! Both a great quality brands 😍
The most common nippers I use are wheeled glass nippers, and it is so zen to just cut 5mm thick glass tiles like they're made of card stock. Three light clicks take me from a 1 inch tile to a piece that can act as a brushstroke in a piece of art.
Love the Knipex mini bolt cutters. I cut several miles of galvanized electric fence wire into 1.5" lengths when I made a couple of chainmail shirts (one ring 5/16" inner diameter = 1.5" when straightened).
For electronics, EREM 776E wire cutters. Even ones damaged by factory use and sold off cheap are good as long as you avoid the inevitable mildly bad spot. Phenomenal wire cutters, particularly for tight spaces where you _have to_ get a good cut in tight spaces.
One of my favorite things is finding multifunctions for tools that were designed for one particular purpose. A handyman in my life showed me a trick that I use very frequently. You can use nippers/cutters such as Adam has shown us as a brad/staple/tack/nail puller. You can use a claw hammer or pry bar for especially sturdy and stuck nails, but these cutters have the added benefit of getting into tight places. You can gently mar wood so you can get under the staple with the tips. Pliers are way less functional for this purpose because pliers don't provide enough force and precision on the wire surface. If you want to retain the integrity of what you're pulling, just use a gentle touch. If you don't care about it because you're going to discard it anyway--pull like a savage (yuk). I make sure to always keep a cutter/nipper in my tool supply.
Misusing tools without harming them is a fine art, and one I enjoy. The irony is that my work is a 2 minute walk from a large home improvement store that probably has the right tool for whatever job I'm doing. But the company doesn't want me going off site on the clock, and would rather not reimburse me for "random" tool purchases. If the policy changes and I'm still working at this location we may end up with more tools and more care with our tools.
Great information. I have screwed up a few pairs of cutters over the years. Those pliers with the cutter on the top are what I used when I made transformers at Westinghouse many years ago. They were good because you could use the jaws to pull the wire from the spool onto the machine and then cut it quickly after it was connected to the coil winder. If you didn't have them it took a lot of picking up and putting down of pliers, screwdrivers and cutters. My favorite and only tool that I use for cutting hard wire is a Crescent 10-1/16" fencing pliers. If you don't have a pair you need them for something.
Great video as always mate! I'm a steel fixer and in my industry it's Knipex or nothing. I use my end cutting nips every day for 8-10 hours. Usually get a year out of them before they go dull. Compared to cheaper nips, where you barely get a month. You should buy a pair! I feel they would be a fine addition to your collection of nippers :) Thanks for constantly putting out awesome content! Cheers from Australia
In addition to the ones you listed, I like flush end nippers, for those spots that you can't get into with side cutters.
Knipex end nippers are the bomb!
Knippex Twin Force, they have a unique hinge design which basically moves the fulcrum forward to a virtual position that gives more leverage for cutting
Talking about your cloth scissors reminded me that just this week, I learned about Ernest Wright Scissors. I thought ~$30 for a pair of Gingher 8” tailor/dressmaker’s shears was getting up there, but once I used them, I knew they were worth the extra. The Ernest Wright ones push over $125 with shipping, plus have a huge waiting period for them to fulfill the order. I’d actually like to get some 10” or larger shears. The Wright ones at 10” start at $183 plus a 6 month wait before they can start fulfilling an order. The 12” are $253, and the biggest 13” are over $300, but both of those are not in production yet.
My go-to for cutting wire are a set of tie wire cutters, with the cutting edge perpendicular to the handles, rather than (roughly) parallel to the handles. Apart from being great for cutting thick wire, they have a great trick where you can grip two wire ends in the jaws, then rotate the cutters in line with the handles to twist the wire together evenly, without needing a lot of clearance.
Before when I was cutting wire frequently at work I was tired of the cheap cutters work had so I bought a pair of KNIPEX - 73 71 180 cutters. They vastly improved my wire cutting. It's interesting how a little subtle thing like buying a more expensive tool can greatly improve quality of (work) life. I never had to struggle to cut any thicker wire after I bought those.
Adam, not really a nipper. But I would advise to get a Knipex wrench plier. You can use it instead of an adjustable wrench and it is awesome!
If Adam is bringing 7 sets of nippers to an island, I want to see the rest of the kit. HA!
My thought as well!
Seven pairs of cutters for a desert island? I said take only what you need to survive! They are my industrial strength flush cutters! And I can't live without them! 😁😂🤣😆😉
Great video and stories.I work in an electronics assembly company in PA, where we have many flush cutters. My horror story involves 4 pair that were broken trying to cut a 1/4-20 screw in half, not by me. I found an assembler cutting this screw on her 5th pair of cutters. I stopped rhem and explained the difference between steel and tinned coper leads. She thought it would cut like any other component.
That's when you pull out the dremel with the cutting wheel haha
My favorite knippers are made by Keiba from Japan. I love them and hope to one day have all of them.
As a hobbyist model maker, I've gone through a fair few pairs of nippers but fairly recently I picked up a pair of Dspiae single bladed nippers and they are wonderful, definitely worth checking out even though they are at the slightly more expensive end.
I've heard them called many things but not really nippers, though it makes sense... Wire cutters, side cutters (which I think is the most regional name for them), diagonal cutters, sometimes dikes (from diagonal cutters) mostly by sparkies... Don't forget the pair built in to lineman pliers, which I use quite a lot when I don't need the sharp point. Then there's also the mini bolt cutters, which typically have compound action. And yes, Project Farm has done a grueling comparison of mini bolt cutters which includes a few higher end diagonal cutters.
I don't know why I love them but i have always loved the fencing pliers that my dad had. Their shape has always intrigued me and if you are looking for tools with a weird form factor i would put them really high up there.
Those are useful! Also, those use a bypass cutter, instead of a conventional or anvil-style blades.
This is super useful! The "cutting anything except for fabric is a deathwish" scissors and the learning curve that goes with them have been something of a generational tradition at this point because all of us on my mom's side have learned to sew xD
Tangentially related to Nippers, is the humble Nibbler. Amazing for widening holes in plastic or metal sheets. I don't own one myself (used one in shop class), but I just found one on Amazon for $15, so it's going in the Workshop tools wishlist!
I have a pneumatic nibbler. It shoots these little half moons of metal everywhere that are sharp as hell. They're like crescent shaped double headed pins. It's a nightmare! They stick into the soles of your shoes, of course. Which is good if you live in icy climes.
Really enjoy the knipex mini bolt cutters
Knipex pliers are a game changer, im an electrician and used to carry channellocks and a screwdriver with me all day. My brother got me a pair of 250mm cobras and the grip that you get isn't even comparable to channellocks along with the slimmer and shorter design with more dexterity and a bigger jaw opening. So yea my brother got me into an expensive addiction haha
As a modeler you should try Godhands. Super expensive but the single blade flush cutters can cut a sprue off a part with almost no clean up afterwards. Definitely worth the 50 bucks.
He may have already. Norm did a video on a $50 pair back in 2019.
love the medical nippers especially and the piano pliers side nippers. There is also a compound piano wire (music wire) cutting nippers made by Starrett where the jaws are screwed on and can be taken out for precision grinding to sharpen them and put back on.
Klein makes very good small blue handled nippers. Cuts single stranded copper wire cleanly. Have a pair that’s 30+ years old.
My Dad used to have 2 pairs of the pliers at 14:00 .We called them Sargents pliers (I think that was the brand) and they were used exclusively for fencing. They can cut thick wire and also grip wires extremely well due to the parallel faces making a very large contact area
Those would be the Bernard parallel jaw pliers, I think Sargent may have made almost all of the Bernard Patent pliers and actually still makes them in the USA today. I know many are just marked Bernard, but I believe that was kind of just before Sargent fully took over. They're not exactly cheap, and that kind of matters when secondhand examples are so common for next to nothing.
And to this day Adam Savage is finding small bits of wire all over that work space.
Nailed it... all great choices, use multiple brands in different locations. Trailer, shop, tool cart. Project Farm does a great unsponsered reviews of brands, torture tests, price comparison.
Knipex has soooo many awesome products.. I am certain Adam loves mores than just a few of them
the flush cutters, nippers, and plyers made for opticians are some of the strongest out there. the cost is definitely a factor, but ive never been able to cut things like titanium screws with anything else at work. i could see them being incredibly worth while for anyone thats hard on their cutters
One of my favourite pair of nippers is an old pair of "Hoof nippers" (directly translate from the Swedish "hovtång"). It's what you use when shoeing and de-shoeing horse hooves.
I work for a telephone company. We often get Klein side cutters but I've taken to getting the Irwin side cutters from my local hardware store. I really want to try the knipex brand, I've heard so many good things about them, from you mostly.
Thanks for posting this, ii have been using generic nippers from a local hardware store, and they aren’t very good for the heavier gauge material. Going online shopping today !