Knipex Plierswrench

[iroc409]

OK, no for another question!

I have been eying the Knipex Plierswrench. Are these a good investment? The gadget/tool **** inside me really wants a set because they are really neat. However, the biggest thing I can think of off the top of my head for using them are to change out shower heads without making marks.

What else do you use these for? One thing I've thought is that my combination wrench set only goes up to 3/4". On some rare occasions, I need something bigger but haven't really wanted to buy a large size wrench set. Would these replace a whole large combo wrench set?

I do have one project recently they probably would have been perfect for--installing fittings for a remote mount filter on my truck. I had to use Channelocks, and they chewed up the brass some. These were for elbows, not the regular fittings, were an odd shape and it was difficult to get them tightened.

 

[jjjrmx5]

I posted this very question a month or two back and got several pages of results.
They are on my list to buy but do have some limitations.

Here ya go:
http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=107541&highlight=jjjrmx5+Knipex

 

[MrMark]

I just used mine a couple days ago and had the opportunity to compare it side by side to the crescent wrench. It is a great tool but it is not a complete crescent wrench substitute. My take is that is excels in plumbing applications involving low torque nuts especially when you don't want to mark the nut. However, when you really need to break something loose, the crescent wrench lets you apply more torque.

 

[Monte]

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[honcho]

I just used mine a couple days ago and had the opportunity to compare it side by side to the crescent wrench. It is a great tool but it is not a complete crescent wrench substitute. My take is that is excels in plumbing applications involving low torque nuts especially when you don't want to mark the nut. However, when you really need to break something loose, the crescent wrench lets you apply more torque.

I'm not so sure about the Knipex not allowing enough torque. I needed to remove a towing ball and my 12 inch crescent wrench wouldn't open big enough. I thought I'd grab my 10 inch Knipex plier wrench and give it a go. It grabbed the big nut and while it is two inches shorter, it worked like a champ. If it hadn't worked, I was going to go grab a long pipe wrench.

I bought mine primarily to work on large size headset locknuts on bicycles but have been using it everywhere. Well worth the expense.

 

[bart1]

I'm not so sure about the Knipex not allowing enough torque...

I also think if adjusted properly you can put at least as much torque on them as a regular adjustable wrench.

 

[tonydanzah]

You can put plenty of torque on them. I stuffed a golfball in mine when i first got them. I squeezed it as hard as i could, the golfball went egg shaped right before it shot out like a rocket.

 

[Altec]

You can put plenty of torque on them. I stuffed a golfball in mine when i first got them. I squeezed it as hard as i could, the golfball went egg shaped right before it shot out like a rocket.

That made my day!

 

[bart1]

That made my day!

Know what I'm doin' when I get home...

 

[MrMark]

Let's put it this way, when you can only use one hand, as in the majority of times I use the tool because I am holding another wrench in the other hand, it is very awkward to pull hard on with one hand. Because almost all plumbing applications I come across require this backup wrench, I do not feel as capable with the pliers pulling with one hand. The ergonomics are wrong for that for me. It is simply not as sturdy as a bar of steel crescent wrench.

 

[superautobacs]

I agree that there are limitations to the plierswrench. I once said that this will make adjustable wrenches obsolete, but now I know that's not true.

If you're working in an confined/awkward position, where you can only use one hand, the plierswrench becomes very annoying to operate....especially when your vision is obscured due to obstructions the whole thing becomes very cumbersome to operate. Of course, one can argue that I wasn't using the right tool for the job, etc, etc.

In any case, there's still a place for the adjustable wrench; I'll never throw them out (except for the crappy ones...which are out in abundance ).

I find the plierswrench to be an awesome tool for bending/squeezing tasks, and due to the parallel movement of the jaws, I can press-fit small things together really quickly and easily.

 

[bert.]

i've not long had mine. at first i thought they were a bit gimiky, but after using them i recon there great also you can relax your hand and use them as a ratcheting openender

 

[slipjointed]

Once I got my first plier wrench, I stopped using regular adjustables.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Having one of these guys with you under the car also saves the aggravation when you discover you don't have the correct size wrench within reach.

 

[J.A.F.E.]

I have two different sizes and like them quite a bit. Kind of an adjustable wrench and pliers all in one and I use them that way every day. They really shine where you need to grip something round without leaving marks and in my work that is quite often. Adjusting them is a bit fussy though.

 

[slipjointed]

One of my favorite things is that the clamping force is parallel, so you can grab just as hard with the tips (give or take)

 

[iroc409]

Thanks for the info everyone. I played with one again at Sears today, and I think it's going on the list. They seem like they would be useful.

 

[reptilezs]

I agree that there are limitations to the plierswrench. I once said that this will make adjustable wrenches obsolete, but now I know that's not true.

If you're working in an confined/awkward position, where you can only use one hand, the plierswrench becomes very annoying to operate....especially when your vision is obscured due to obstructions the whole thing becomes very cumbersome to operate. Of course, one can argue that I wasn't using the right tool for the job, etc, etc.

In any case, there's still a place for the adjustable wrench; I'll never throw them out (except for the crappy ones...which are out in abundance ).

I find the plierswrench to be an awesome tool for bending/squeezing tasks, and due to the parallel movement of the jaws, I can press-fit small things together really quickly and easily.

i too said that the pliers wrench would make the adjustable obsolete. my pliers wrench has replaced my adjustables for the most part. adjustables still have their place though

 

[jjjrmx5]

Thanks for the info everyone. I played with one again at Sears today, and I think it's going on the list. They seem like they would be useful.

LOL.

I walked into my local mom and pop hardware store that I have been going to for decades and they are stacked full to the gills with hardware and tools. It would take hours to visually inventory what they carry--which I never have, but today I was looking around and voila', they carry the full Knipex product line hidden behind one of many counters and clutter.

A quick mention and they said, oh yeah, we can order anything you want from them if we don;t have it. Since you're a regular customer we'll match Sears or any realistic internet pricing on them as well, just for you.

Made my day.