Not happy with Knipex Alligators

[Stuey]

I ordered 2 pairs of Knipex Alligator pliers, and I'm not too happy with them. When adjusting the jaw opening, half the time the joint locks up because I did not align the pivot precisely enough. While I have jammed up tongue and groove pliers before, it did not happen as often.

Is the problem with me not being used to the way these tools adjust, or are others as dissatisfied with the pivot design?

Edit: I put together a video showing what I'm talking about:

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[allinon72]

They will loosen up with use. Even then, I'm not a big fan of the alligators. I have both these and the Cobras, and I just don't see a reason to use these over the Cobras.

 

[PT Doc]

The cobra adjustment works well and I especially like it on the adjustable plier wrench.

 

[garfunkle24]

Although like others I prefer Cobras, I never had too much trouble with the Alligators. Does it seem like something that would improve as they 'loosen up'?

 

[pacsguy]

Stuey, I agree...

I got the same pliers on that amazon deal.. and they are poorly designed.

 

[Sterff]

I used to have both the Alligator style and the Cobras. I sold all of the alligators because I believe the Cobras are a better plier. If I want a plier like the Alligators I use my Channellocks.

 

[Stuey]

What happens is that during an adjustment the cylinder/pivot gets stuck between holes and jams up as I try to close the pliers.

It's as if there is a very narrow sweet spot and if I move the cylinder slightly ahead or beyond of it, it jams and I need to pause to push it into proper place.

Maybe it will improve over time as the pivots are rounded up a little bit. But I'm not at all a fan of tools that must be worn in to work properly.

I was using them for the first the other day and was thinking maybe I got a defective pair. Whipped out the larger pair, and it does this even worse.

 

[byoungblood]

I just bought a used pair (over 20 years old, still says W Germany on it) and they seem to glide into position with little effort.

 

[njride]

Maybe it will improve over time as the pivots are rounded up a little bit. But I'm not at all a fan of tools that must be worn in to work properly.

Some great tools need breaking in though, take a new pair of klein linemens out of the box and you'd probably be pretty upset.

***** about those though, i have a pair of really abused twisted old channel locks that are a pain in the *** like that, I keep forgetting to toss them and they seem to always end up back in the rotation.

 

[cundifc]

The cobra adjustment works well and I especially like it on the adjustable plier wrench.

Those things are awesome. Just bought my second pair.

 

[Stuey]

Some great tools need breaking in though, take a new pair of klein linemens out of the box and you'd probably be pretty upset.

***** about those though, i have a pair of really abused twisted old channel locks that are a pain in the *** like that, I keep forgetting to toss them and they seem to always end up back in the rotation.

Well, that I can understand. I've had pliers and knives that needed to be used until the pivot loosened up. One pair of pliers (Craftsman Pro long nose) never loosened up. I exchanged them but all the ones on the rack were the same way.

But this does not seem to be a case of simply needing to break it in a little bit. It looks to me that the machining is just too precise, if that makes sense.

I do like the auto-lock feature, though.

I added a video that shows what I'm talking about. While I was at it, I showed how the handles "auto-lock".

 

[decaf]

Cobra FTW!

 

[DrunkSmurf]

As others have already mentioned, I prefer the Cobras as well, but I think a little break in period and perhaps learning curve will hopefully get you closer to happy.

I don't own any Alligators, but I've used some older ones and they didn't seem to be particularly troublesome.

 

[american lockpicker]

My French Bahco pliers don't have this problem.

 

[wave180]

To the OP, I know what you're talking about, I tried them at Sears yesterday and compared to their Craftsman-Knipex version cobras which I bought.

 

[Monte]

Cobra

 

[AutomatiquE]

Stuey, all Alligators have this little issue. You just have to look your pliers when setting it. Knipex Cobra is better...and please do not compare Chanelock to Knipex. Nothing to do.

 

[MrMark]

I have both Cobra and Alligator. I have no trouble with the Alligator and actually prefer them.

 

[IndyGarage]

If I were in the US and I were buying old style slip joint pliers, I would buy Channelocks over Knipex Alligators any day. Channelocks work fine, and they are much cheaper.

The Knipex Cobras are a different design altogether and far superior. I would never pick up a pair of Channelocks after using Cobras if I could help it - which is exactly what I've done.

Vise Grip/Irwin makes a Cobra knockoff that works good, and is much cheaper than Cobras. I have a small pair of them in my toolbag. The locking mechanism is a little different and their aren't as many stops in the mechanism, but I've been using them for almost a year and they work fine.

 

[MrMark]

The jamming you report doesn't occur when the lower jaw handle is supported/tilted slightly up, as it would be when actually using the plier. Try that and see how it does for you. I think you have a slight operator error.

 

[Stuey]

The jamming you report doesn't occur when the lower jaw handle is supported/tilted slightly up, as it would be when actually using the plier. Try that and see how it does for you. I think you have a slight operator error.

Thanks for the tip! Poitioning it more vertically does help, but it still jams a bit.

If it's only half-jammed, I can force it into a proper position with some force. But after doing that a couple of times I noticed that some of the inner surfacers are wearing slightly.

Even so, I'm just not liking them. For what I paid (less than $10 each), I'll keep them for the auto-locking feature. But for regular use, I'll stick to my Channellocks and Cobra/Irwin-style quick adjustables.

 

[MrMark]

Stuey, extend your right index finger (cradle the handle with it like you would when adjusting in use) and see if that helps. I can't make mine jam when I use them this way.

 

[Stuey]

If I'm very careful and watch what I'm doing, the pliers own't jam up either. But I'm not sure that such intense concentration will become second nature.

But I also still jam them even closely watching the positioning. It really does seem as if there's a narrow sweet spot. I'll keep in mind your positioning tips in hopes that it can drop them into the sweet spot more often.

But still, adjustable pliers should not require so much of a learning period. Every other pliers I have ever used, Knipex Pliers Wrench, included, were straightforward and easy to use from day one. Some needed a little working to break in, but not like this.

 

[MrMark]

I may like the Alligator better than the Cobra because the Cobra is designed for a right hander and I forget to switch to right sometimes.

 

[fordbroncodave]

strongly disagree with the issues with these pliers. they are symmetrical and do not utilized a bolt and nut setup. regardless of the pin not lining up correctly everytime, there is really no way to prevent that.

i reach for these before my snap on's most of the time. the quality in every pliers knipex makes is superior at a fraction of truck brand pliers cost

 

[Stuey]

I'll still give them a chance, but right now, after using them a couple of times, I'm not happy. I never said they were bad. If anything, the issue arises because the mechanism is too precisely machined. No other pliers in my box ever had a learning curve like this.

 

[lwlobo]

These are the reasons I started buying Cobra's after first getting a pair of alligators:

Pin locking issue you referenced. Can learn to minimize, but it's still frustrating.

Coming out of slot/position. The Alligators will sometimes slip to another notch when you don't want them to. Cobra's will not.

Rough notch resolution. Sometimes with Alligator pliers one notch is too open and the next is too tight. The notches on the Cobra's are quite a bit smaller giving better size resolution.

IMO, Knipex Alligators very good pliers, much better than traditional Channelocks, but quite inferior to Knipex Cobras.