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Aviation snips recommendations

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MEDTECH

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Just looking for a decent pair for home use. Something that cuts avg gauge ducts, sheetmetal and other materials. Looked at Irwins but some feel they are not sharp enough for cutting without extreme effort. Browsing Amazon reviews but, obviously, GJ is the best place for tool info. Budget up to $25. Thanks as always
 
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Kscardsfan

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I've got a random collection of Wiss snips that I've accumulated over the years and they seem to work just fine for my admittedly very limited needs. I've heard good things about Malco (sp?) as well, but I'm not an HVAC or aviation guy so I don't use my tin snips for much besides odd jobs. I'm sure Bacho and Knipex make some that are out of this world quality and performance wise, but they come at a price that I'll never be able to stomach.
 
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MEDTECH

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Kscardsfan said:
I've got a random collection of Wiss snips that I've accumulated over the years and they seem to work just fine for my admittedly very limited needs. I've heard good things about Malco (sp?) as well, but I'm not an HVAC or aviation guy so I don't use my tin snips for much besides odd jobs. I'm sure Bacho and Knipex make some that are out of this world quality and performance wise, but they come at a price that I'll never be able to stomach.
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Thanks for the reply. My needs mirror yours; just light, random usage around the house/garage. Also read about Malco and believe they are USA-made, as well.
 
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FSrepair&fabrication

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Lenox are my favorite, wiss are also good, both will last a long time if youre not using them to cut wire or trying to cut thicker sheet metal.
 
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brtsvg

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Wiss and Midwest are both good choices. Interesting that these aviation snips are very high quality, absurdly inexpensive, and US made. I’ve yet to see Chinese made snips, which is a real rarity in the hand tool world.
 
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rlitman

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brtsvg said:
Wiss and Midwest are both good choices. Interesting that these aviation snips are very high quality, absurdly inexpensive, and US made. I’ve yet to see Chinese made snips, which is a real rarity in the hand tool world.
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Huh? HF sells Chinese made snips. They're total ****. Milwaukee snips are made in China. They're not ****, but considering the COO, they're also not getting my recommendation.

Wiss and Midwest are worlds apart in quality, but the differences are hard to spot unless you know what you're looking for, but at least Wiss (and Malco) are quality American made brands.
 
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danski0224

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Tinner said:
And they're better than Midwest. Midwest are very good, but Klenk are better and more expensive.
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That's debate-able.

I don't like the Klenk style with the wide lower blade.

I have a set of Bessey snips, made in Germany, going over 3 years of daily use that will out-cut anything I have used by Midwest. I have cut stuff that would have broken Midwest snips.

Not terribly expensive upfront, but I would have gone through at least 4x Midwest snips by now... so a better buy. The lower part is shaped a little differently, so it was a change in use from the Midwest style.
 
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metlmunchr

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The snips the OP purchased are really only good for notching like you'd do at the end of duct sections for turning drives. For general use, pairs of left and right offsets is what you need. Red and green handles.

I prefer Midwest. Wouldn't waste the space Klenks would take up in the box if they were free. Wiss was top notch at one time, but the current ones are way down on quality compared to what they used to make. Malco sold rebranded Klenk offsets at one time, but I haven't looked at them in probably 25 years.
 
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anndel

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My Wiss got dulled so I replaced them (Left, Right and straight) with Midwest which appear more durable than Wiss.
 
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PugetDude

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Another vote for Midwest. I have L-R- Straight and Offset Aviation Snips- and their cable cutters which I used on a large cable rail project. I was blown away with how clean they cut the stainless cable; went out and replaced my snips with Midwest.
 
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MEDTECH

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GForceJunky said:
FYI, Amazon, Walmart, Zoro, and others all have these for $14.99/piece. If you paid the $21 the eBay link is showing I would cancel if it's not too late.
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Thanks for posting this. I checked Amazon before ebay and the price didn't include tax or shipping at 14.99. Also, they weren't in stock until March. And Walmart and Zoro also had shipping charges plus tax. But I appreciate you checking that because it is so easy to overlook.
 
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MEDTECH

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danski0224 said:
That's kind of a crappy choice for the purposes listed in the fist post.

You won't be making too many long cuts with those.

You need right and left offset aviation style (not straight) snips.
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I see your point and thanks for the reply but my needs are really very few and far between. Probably use once a month, if that. Just wanted something on hand when the need arises. I can always add to my toolbox if they don't meet my needs which is part of the reason why I'm a huge fan of this site. Never have too many tools
 
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BlakeTheCarGuy

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Great choice. I’ve got an old pair of Midwest they are great and still going strong even after using them to cut fencing and other stuff with them too.


Sent from my iPhone using Garage Journal
 
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SHIFT

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MEDTECH said:
I see your point and thanks for the reply but my needs are really very few and far between. Probably use once a month, if that. Just wanted something on hand when the need arises. I can always add to my toolbox if they don't meet my needs which is part of the reason why I'm a huge fan of this site. Never have too many tools
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I totally understand where you are coming from, but you will likely struggle to do what you need to do with that set of bulldogs. They have a very short throat, won't turn and will bind up on most cuts longer then a few inches. They are mostly used to to trim s-cleats and angle stock, or to make short cuts through formed duct seams (button-lock, snap-lock, pittsburgh) prior to the pieces being hammered together. For those things they are irreplaceable. For general sheet-metal cutting you need to go with a set of lefts (red handle) and/or a set of rights (green handle).

The Midwest snips are good quality and are a really good choice for most folks. I am partial to Klenk snips from my time in the trades, but I don't necessarily think the extra cost would be warranted for the occasional use you described in your original post.

Lefts: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OCGQFT8/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Rights: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OCGQJL2/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Both as a set: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GKOKH44/?tag=atomicindus08-20
 
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MEDTECH

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SHIFT said:
I totally understand where you are coming from, but you will likely struggle to do what you need to do with that set of bulldogs. They have a very short throat, won't turn and will bind up on most cuts longer then a few inches. They are mostly used to to trim s-cleats and angle stock, or to make short cuts through formed duct seams (button-lock, snap-lock, pittsburgh) prior to the pieces being hammered together. For those things they are irreplaceable. For general sheet-metal cutting you need to go with a set of lefts (red handle) and/or a set of rights (green handle).

The Midwest snips are good quality and are a really good choice for most folks. I am partial to Klenk snips from my time in the trades, but I don't necessarily think the extra cost would be warranted for the occasional use you described in your original post.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OCGQFT8/?tag=atomicindus08-20
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Thanks for the detailed explanation. I value your reply because you have the experience and, as a tradesman, you obviously used tin snips on a daily basis. The good thing about my choice is they are also good at cutting other materials. But, I will take your advice and get a set of off-sets. Even if I rarely need them, it makes sense to have the right tool for the job. And they are cheap enough to have at hand. Will still keep the bulldogs as I am sure they have their place as well. Much appreciated, SHIFT. Just saw I have a gift card in Amazon for a credit on a return. That will pay for the set you linked with room to spare. Now, it's a no-brainer. Just ordered...thx!
 
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SHIFT

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MEDTECH said:
Thanks for the detailed explanation. I value your reply because you have the experience and, as a tradesman, you obviously used tin snips on a daily basis. The good thing about my choice is they are also good at cutting other materials. But, I will take your advice and get a set of off-sets. Even if I rarely need them, it makes sense to have the right tool for the job. And they are cheap enough to have at hand. Will still keep the bulldogs as I am sure they have their place as well. Much appreciated, SHIFT
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The snips I linked in my previous post are for the standard right/left snips, offsets are another thing altogether and are always a bit more expensive. They are made for cutting tight radius curves/circles but they are also more comfortable to use on long straight cuts because they tend not to bind on the material being cut. Offsets have two downsides: (1) they take a little more finesse to use because they have to be held at the correct angle to get a bite on the material being cut, and (2) they are a bit fragile and will break if you try to cut something too thick. If you are patient and don't mind paying a bit more, I would say to go for the offsets as they are more versatile to me.

Amazon has a pretty good deal for both Midwest left and right offsets and a power nut setter for $49.89: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08DY3PJHW/?tag=atomicindus08-20

The only snips that I don't recommend are the straight-cut (yellow handle), regardless of the brand. All left-cut and right-cut snips can cut straight by default, so it never made sense to me to have a dedicated set of straight-cut snips...
 
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MEDTECH

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SHIFT said:
The snips I linked in my previous post are for the standard right/left snips, offsets are another thing altogether and are always a bit more expensive. They are made for cutting tight radius curves/circles but they are also more comfortable to use on long straight cuts because they tend not to bind on the material being cut. Offsets have two downsides: (1) they take a little more finesse to use because they have to be held at the correct angle to get a bite on the material being cut, and (2) they are a bit fragile and will break if you try to cut something too thick. If you are patient and don't mind paying a bit more, I would say to go for the offsets as they are more versatile to me.

Again, thanks for clarifying. Yes, I did order the right/left set you linked. Not the off-sets
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rlitman

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SHIFT said:
...For general sheet-metal cutting you need to go with a set of lefts (red handle) and/or a set of rights (green handle)...
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Yes. For those that don't know, the red handled "left" is the go-to snip for right handed people. It sounds backwards, but the red snip is oriented like a right handed pair of scissors, whereas the green snip is oriented like left handed scissors, and actually works better in your left hand too. The right and left refer to which way they are designed to turn around curved cuts, and not which hand you use to hold them in.

SHIFT said:
...The only snips that I don't recommend are the straight-cut (yellow handle), regardless of the brand. All left-cut and right-cut snips can cut straight by default, so it never made sense to me to have a dedicated set of straight-cut snips...
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Agreed. I don't understand why the yellow is made at all. For anything the yellow can be used for, the red, green or bulldog can do a better job.
 
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ChevyEFI

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In HVAC, the guys packed reds and greens always, offsets sometimes, yellows can be handy when working around assembly. The big ones were popular in the shop. Malco was king; they lasted, and IIRC supply houses stocked them, and warranted what they sold.
 
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1madmouse

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The Bulldogs are for cutting thicker sheetmetal. The yellow Aviation ones with the shorter blades are also bulldogs. The bench models , (larger ones ), will pinch the heck out of your hand if you are not careful. Like when cutting downspout material, you will dull your good reds and greens if you cut the pressed seam with them, that is what the shortblade yellow bulls are for. If you see the yellow bulls, it is obvious the blades are much shorter. I will try to get some pics and post if I can.
 
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