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Outlawmws

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I wish I knew how to post pics here. I have a ton of channellock pliers.

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Jim C.

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I did eventually get a pair of 326 needle nose pliers. (See page 6, post #120). Lately I've been looking at a pair of 318s.... which I do not even remotely need, but still want!!

Jim C.
 
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redwrench60

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East Tennessee
I did eventually get a pair of 326 needle nose pliers. (See page 6, post #120). Lately I've been looking at a pair of 318s.... which I do not even remotely need, but still want!!

Jim C.

318s are my favorite heavy duty needle nose pliers. Stout built with a good cutter in them. Harder to find locally then the more common ones.
 
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Jim C.

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318s are my favorite heavy duty needle nose pliers. Stout built with a good cutter in them. Harder to find locally then the more common ones.

And I just about had myself talked out of buying them.....

Jim C.
 

4BT

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Apr 21, 2011
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Here is the previously mentioned pair of CL 548's I picked up. After a 6 hour vinegar bath they cleaned up nicely. I love garage sales where family members sell off pop's old rusty tools for $1 each. I left with a bunch of old wrenches, files and a 50's 18" Ridgid pipe wrench.

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Jim C.

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Yes they are VERY nice!! ^^^^^^^^ Great find and nice clean up!
 

4BT

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Here is the rest of the collection. They recieved a lttle patina due to an open toolbag and some rain on a job. Any idea how to remove the factory clear coating and replace?

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Jim C.

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Not very long ago, Channellock was still printing a catalog. They may still be printing one currently, but I haven't seen one in a while. I really haven't looked too hard either. Maybe their customer service department still sends them out. I don't know. Anyway, I picked this one up at a tool store several years back. There was a stack of them at the register and I took one. They were free. It's dated 2007, has 56 pages and has every Channellock tool being made at the time depicted, measured, and described. It's a nice catalog. More and more tool catalogs seem to be online now. It's probably more cost effective than printing them, mailing them, etc. The internet is a great resource, but I still like to hold a real paper catalog in my hands and thumb through it. So, here's a few pictures of a real paper catalog. Unfortunately, it could become a thing of the past..... Something from the "good old days."

Jim C.
 
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jakemac

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A very resourceful member of the GG board (A***** E. N*****) contacted Channellock to ask some of our questions about dating their tools. Here is a repost of the response he got. Take note of the name of the person who answered his email.

Mr. Ryan DeArment contact me today with the following info:
Channellock began dipping of pliers in the early 50's.
The permalock fastener transitioned in the mid 80's.
The laser etching transition period was longer, depending on the model, starting in the late 90's to the early 2000's.


Here is the thread at Garage Gazette :
http://www.thegaragegazette.com/index.php?topic=18100.0

A big piece of the puzzle, confirmed at the source.
 
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metaldad

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Aug 2, 2011
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nw indiana
A very resourceful member of the GG board (A***** E. N*****) contacted Channellock to ask some of our questions about dating their tools. Here is a repost of the responce he got. Take note of the name of the person who answered his email.

Mr. Ryan DeArment contact me today with the following info:
Channellock began dipping of pliers in the early 50's.
The permalock fastener transitioned in the mid 80's.
The laser etching transition period was longer, depending on the model, starting in the late 90's to the early 2000's.


Here is the thread at Garage Gazette :
http://www.thegaragegazette.com/index.php?topic=18100.0

A big piece of the puzzle, confirmed at the source.

wow! the DeArments are still involved.
 
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LincolnCont.

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May 13, 2010
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Uhmerica
I do like channelocks however I can't stand the 422's, flimsy, I got two pair and they couldn't grip a wooden dowel smothered with Belzona LoL!! They won't tighten steel piping...sliiiip, last month I tried to hold a plastic lock nut on some sink plumbing....sliiiiip.( and that was the wrench not the nut) Absolute junk, sure glad the company paid for 'em. I do like the similar yet far superior GL-12 they're nice for a quick snug on large nuts without lugging a huge wrench around.
 

jeremy v

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I do like channelocks however I can't stand the 422's, flimsy, I got two pair and they couldn't grip a wooden dowel smothered with Belzona LoL!! They won't tighten steel piping...sliiiip, last month I tried to hold a plastic lock nut on some sink plumbing....sliiiiip.( and that was the wrench not the nut) Absolute junk, sure glad the company paid for 'em. I do like the similar yet far superior GL-12 they're nice for a quick snug on large nuts without lugging a huge wrench around.

That is interesting, because my experiences have been the exact opposite of yours. I have a pair of the 422, 432, and 442 pliers and I love them. They self-lock and grab very tight just like my Knipex Cobras do, but the Channellock teeth are not as sharply ground as the Knipex, so they last and stay useful much longer. The Channellock teeth are not one-directional like the Knipex Cobra's are, but the pliers themselves only mechanically self-grip in one direction of rotation. If you try to use them reversed they will slip pretty easily even with a lot of hand pressure squeezing on them. Any plier of that operational design will do the same.

I sold off my couple different sizes of GL pliers because they drove me nuts. The GL pliers have a mechanical stop in the mechanism that stops the jaws from closing further after a certain point (regular channellocks do not have this). The stop is required to keep the much shorter length locking channels in alignment with each other for proper operation and strength. The stop seemed to always catch right before I had a good bite on whatever I tried to grip. It annoyed me because the stop can't be visually seen while using the pliers, so when I would squeeze the handles I never really knew if I was just squeezing against the stop or against the material I was wanting to grip, so sometimes I would think I had a good grip and I would torque on the pliers and they would slip almost immediately and mar the pipe etc. The wrench channels also had too large of an adjustment between settings for me to just go up or down a channel and make it work. If I tried, the teeth would not grab the pipe correctly anymore (only 3 of the 4 jaw surfaces would awkwardly grab the pipe) or else the handles would be too far apart to comfortably work the wrench when squeezing. The GL series pliers are actually the only Channellock product I have not been happy with.

A side note that might explain the difference in our two unique experiences with these pliers. I never use this type of pliers for hex shaped fittings, only for round stuff, ribbed PVC fittings, etc. I have Ridgid spud wrenches, various sizes of Ridgid hex wrenches, and a full range of regular and adjustable wrenches for anything hex or square shaped up to about 4" or so in diameter. They all have smooth jaws and grab very tightly without marring anything, so I always use those instead for anything hex.
 
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Jim C.

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Here is the rest of the collection. They recieved a lttle patina due to an open toolbag and some rain on a job. Any idea how to remove the factory clear coating and replace?

20130709_140337-1_zpsae14bbdf.jpg

That is a nice, well used, "blue" collection!

Jim C.
 
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Jim C.

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I do like channelocks however I can't stand the 422's, flimsy, I got two pair and they couldn't grip a wooden dowel smothered with Belzona LoL!! They won't tighten steel piping...sliiiip, last month I tried to hold a plastic lock nut on some sink plumbing....sliiiiip.( and that was the wrench not the nut) Absolute junk, sure glad the company paid for 'em. I do like the similar yet far superior GL-12 they're nice for a quick snug on large nuts without lugging a huge wrench around.

You know, I've got a pair of 442s and 422s, and have had great luck with both of them. I particularly like the 442s and use them mostly when I'm repairing/maintaining my in ground sprinkler system. I use the 422s for general everyday stuff around the house and never had a problem with them.

Jim C.
 

ganymede

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Nov 29, 2012
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New England
I should've clarified.
If they say just 'Channelock' then they are post 1964.
If they are marked both 'Champion DeArment' and 'Channelock ' they are from before the switch.
 

wrh3

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Loganville, GA
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Jim C.

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Like this----



Or this-------




I have to clean


Nice pictures Hofferwood! Thanks for posting them here. It's interesting to see how the older tools were marked and how they transformed to become the "blue handled" tools that we're so familiar with today. Great collection! I really liked the nut driver set you posted earlier! One doesn't see clean complete sets like that very often.

Jim C.
 
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Jim C.

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Hofferwood,

Great stuff!!^^^^^^^^ and a nice visual history lesson regarding some classic USA made hand tools.
 
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Jim C.

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^^^^^^^Jakemac, thanks for posting that ad. Pretty cool. It sure brings back the days of well made in the USA hand tools. Nice!!

Jim C.
 

zkling

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Jan 23, 2007
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16,939
Can I join the club? Just got my first Channel Lock's over the weekdend at a garage sale. One pair of like new 440's, the other a pair of DeArment 410's. Can't wait to put them to good use. I really like the heft of the 440's. The 410's have since been given a much needed cleaning.
 
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Jim C.

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Can I join the club? Just got my first Channel Lock's over the weekdend at a garage sale. One pair of like new 440's, the other a pair of DeArment 410's. Can't wait to put them to good use. I really like the heft of the 440's. The 410's have since been given a much needed cleaning.

Anyone can join!! Nice garage sale finds! Thanks for posting a picture. :thumbup:
 
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