Plier recommendation - UK

[Brunel]

Hi,

I'm in the market for a set of pliers (combination, long nose, cutters, and water pump) and would like some ideas. I don't want to trash my various Knipex insulated pliers (which are excellent) by using them on the car. I'm thinking plain plastic handles for ease of cleaning - like many here, I don't think two-component soft grips are suited to greasy jobs.

I could get this style in Knipex, but I'd like to consider a different brand. I was thinking of CK (the classic range), which look similar to Knipex (maybe they are the same?). Or I could go American and get Channellock.

Any thoughts on relative quality (Channellock are quite a bit dearer), or other makes to consider, would be appreciated.

They will not be getting heavy use and I can't afford brands like SO or Hazet.

 

[Shippy95]

I got a load of them from B&Q when they were in reduced section, the JCB ones.
Lasted me well and work perfectly great for a spare set.

 

[winlinmac]

There's also NWS and Stahlwille Pliers. I assume they're cheaper in the European countries, right?

 

[JonnyMac]

Facom make good stuff.. they have started combining makes (sidchrome here in Oz) and the prices are lower than they used to be..

 

[Brunel]

Thanks guys.

Shippy95 - I want something better than JCB-badged Chinese tools

winlinmac - NWS make pliers with dipped handles, but they're unobtainium. Stahlwille are dearer than Knipex over here.

JohnnyMac - hadn't thought of Facom. Will check them out.

Still looking for someone with experience of CK pliers.

 

[dutchgray]

I have a couple CK pliers & cutters, they are fine but Knipex is better I reckon. They can be found cheaper usually which is nice.
Any of the known German brands will be fine so I would go with Knipex as they tend to be the easiest to get in dipped handles here.
Channellock is not better than the German brands and isn't generally worth paying the premium they cost here, in the US where they are quite cheap then I can see why they are so popular.

 

[Dave455]

To be honest, you won't get much better (or better value) than Knipex. Just get the plain 'dip coated' handles from somewhere like TBS Aachen online. I'd agree that the soft handles are not suited to work in greasy/gritty environments!

Alternatives, well I'd consider VBW, nice tools and occasionally available at reasonable prices new on fleabay (also German) or NWS as suggested! VBW manufacture for Stahlwille (same tools with red grips) but are often cheaper. Anything NWS can be sourced from MSC, but I wouldn't pay a premium over Knipex prices!

CK look good, but in my experience they tend to be made of poorer quality steel and rust really easily. I had a couple pairs in my road box and was forever cleaning them up!

The only cheaper option would be to look, again on fleabay, for new/ surplus British brands such as Elliott Lucas, Record and Wilkinsons. The latter are getting scarce now, but I've seen both the former available from a couple of pounds! May take you longer to find specific patterns and sizes though!

American and Japanese tools are generally nice, some superb, but will generally cost a lot more in the U.K. than the Knipex!

 

[Rico.]

To be honest, you won't get much better (or better value) than Knipex. Just get the plain 'dip coated' handles

This is the way to go...


I have a moon pile of Facom pliers in all shapes and sizes and I can certainly
Recommend them, but it's hard to ignore the value that the plain handled
Knipex offer.

 

[Moose-LandTran]

Have a look at NWS, they're German, cheaper than Knipex and very very good quality. I have a number of their pliers and love them, they get used every day in a very busy shop where we work mostly on large vans, so they see a lot of use.

They do VDE grips, a simple dipped texture grip and a nice comfort grip. The comfort grips are really nice to use, hard-wearing and easy to clean. The finish of the metal is really good and hasn't corroded like my Knipex have. (My Knipex have bare metal with lacquer.) I find NWS side cutters very sharp and very strong, and their combination pliers have a little groove cut in the ends of the jaws which makes them perfect for using on those slimline hose clamps like VAG use one their small fuel and coolant pipes.

Aceparts on eBay sell the dripped-handled NWS pliers:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1x-NWS-Si...923513?hash=item2c91196c79:g:guoAAOSwP~tW4pQv

I have a pair of these and they're my go-to side cutters.

 

[Rich.]

I have snap on pliers and i prefer my Knipex stuff, which was 1/3 the price. I only use the red handles for greasy work and have NWS for my VDE gear. I agree with the above, in the Uk knipex gear is a bargain and about the best you can get, i have a tonne of it and plan to get a lot more.



Rich

 

[Brunel]

Thanks for the further comments, guys. I do have a load of Knipex VDE and agree that they are superb.

Regarding the NWS ebay link from Moose-LandTran, the Knipex equivalent can be had for 16% less:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Knipex-74...al-Cutters-Cutting-Pliers-200mm-/380960218440

I know what I'd buy

Dave455, just how bad are CK compared to Knipex? I only occasionally work on engines so they might be OK for me.

 

[Dave455]

Thanks for the further comments, guys. I do have a load of Knipex VDE and agree that they are superb.

Regarding the NWS ebay link from Moose-LandTran, the Knipex equivalent can be had for 16% less:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Knipex-74...al-Cutters-Cutting-Pliers-200mm-/380960218440

I know what I'd buy

Dave455, just how bad are CK compared to Knipex? I only occasionally work on engines so they might be OK for me.

Yes, maybe! I bought a pair of combination pliers, snipe nose and cutters to keep in my car box. Unfortunately, all of them started rusting, despite being oiled and kept dry. I'd clean 'em up, but couldn't get them clean easily as the surface finish isn't good! They're the only pliers I've ever had that have developed rust pits!

I bought 'em on price, from a local shop, but with Internet prices what they are there isn't a difference! E.G. Knipex combination pliers, dip coated handles, are about €10 at the mo from TBS Aachen. (Just under for 6inch, just over for 7 inch). That's about £7.50 or $11.50. I don't think you can get C.K. for much less!

If funds are thst tight go the eBay route. There are NEW Record combination pliers (6 inch) on there at the mo for £2.50 delivered, and you'll find bigger pairs or snipe nose for not much more if you keep hunting!

 

[Brunel]

Dave455, thanks. I'd forgotten about TBS Aachen. Whilst they charge EUR 15 for delivery, their prices are good. I have a bad feeling about this (ie I'll end up spending a lot more than I intended!)

Looking at TBS Aachen, it made me realise again that the UK tool industry has been decimated. They stock Gedore, Hazet, Knipex, Stahlwille, Wera - all top-quality German makes going strong. I think the only quality tool manufacturer we have left is Abingdon King ****. Very sad.

 

[Brunel]

Here's a photo of my Knipex VDE collection. Rather modest by GJ standards!

The quality of Knipex is absolutely superb - German engineering at its best!

 

[TigerDude]

how are you trashing pliers on a car?

Hopefully you're not using pliers to take off regular fasteners.

 

[Brunel]

how are you trashing pliers on a car?

Hopefully you're not using pliers to take off regular fasteners.

No, of course not! Perhaps trashing wasn't the best choice of word (forgive me, I'm a brit trying to speak American) - I just meant that I want to keep my insulated tools clean and in good condition for electrical work, but that's not going to happen if I use them for mechanical tasks on my car.

 

[jchaneng]

To be honest, you won't get much better (or better value) than Knipex. Just get the plain 'dip coated' handles from somewhere like TBS Aachen online. I'd agree that the soft handles are not suited to work in greasy/gritty environments!......
CK look good, but in my experience they tend to be made of poorer quality steel and rust really easily.

exactly what i was going to say.

i use pliers and cutters of all sorts all day every day, none are perfect but knipex are the closest i have found yet. currently have some CK and although they look great (hardly important) and are nice to hold the finish is s~#t and will be gone witin the first week leaving them to rust, even when used reguarly, not realy a big problem but for the cost id rather have knipex. the jaws on the CK are much softer than knipex, even draper seems to be better then CK pliers.
i also agree that the origional diped knipex handels are far better for dirty/grease than any of the softrt two part types.

 

[dutchgray]

exactly what i was going to say.

i use pliers and cutters of all sorts all day every day, none are perfect but knipex are the closest i have found yet. currently have some CK and although they look great (hardly important) and are nice to hold the finish is s~#t and will be gone witin the first week leaving them to rust, even when used reguarly, not realy a big problem but for the cost id rather have knipex. the jaws on the CK are much softer than knipex, even draper seems to be better then CK pliers.
i also agree that the origional diped knipex handels are far better for dirty/grease than any of the softrt two part types.

You do know the good Draper pliers were made by Knipex for a while, I don't know if they still are but you still see them on eBay sometimes.

 

[Banana Man]

I've used Channel Locks everyday for over 15 years, they get the job done, with that said I would pay the few extra bucks and get Knipex. The one stand out long nose plier would be the Snap On, Knipex for everything else if price is a big concern.

 

[Dave455]

Looking at TBS Aachen, it made me realise again that the UK tool industry has been decimated. They stock Gedore, Hazet, Knipex, Stahlwille, Wera - all top-quality German makes going strong. I think the only quality tool manufacturer we have left is Abingdon King ****. Very sad.

You're not wrong there!

The problem seems to have been mismanagement on an epidemic proportion! Whenever I've spoken to any of the managers concerned they seemed to have no real knowledge of the tools their firms were making, and an obsession with competing with 'the far east', which you cannot do on price, and is an irrelevance when your main competition is from Europe!

What's really sad, is that when British firms have sold out to American buyers, they have been trashed instantly and everything outsourced! If that passes for business acumen in the U.S. then the long term situation doesn't look good there either! Long term hope seems to rest with those firms still committed to producing quality, and manufacturing domestically!

Ultimately though, the important thing for me is the quality of what I'm buying, and if a German or Japanese manager understands his products and customers well enough to produce what I want, then I'd rather support him, than some knobber trying to justify his bonus by saving another farthing off the cost of a pair of pliers!

Rant over, for now, but tune in next week for another instalment...

 

[Robbie UK]

Another UK member here.

I also worship at the altar of Knipex, with dipped handles for everything but electrics/electronics.

 

[decaf]

Yeaaaahhhh....knipex **** me like
GO FOR KNIPEX!!!!!!

 

[Dave455]

Looks like we've found the 'Altar of Knipex'!

Awesome collection decaf!

 

[smiffy]

Ffx have got really really good deals on irwin branded nws at the moment
16 quid a pair half the price of anything else in that kind of league

 

[Superbec]

I got a set of wiha's just because they were cheap. I would have gone knipex otherwise

here it is https://www.prof-tools.nl/detail.asp?Lang=3&Prod=124018

you can get it 3-4 euro's cheaper from amazon , that wasn't an option for me

It's amazing bang for the buck, I still like my knipex set a bit better but the Wiha is right there in quality .

With that grip you don't have to worry about dirt or oil , just wipe them and that's it.

Long nose is better than knipex's hand's down.

If money is no object go for knipex, I have the wiha for a home-owner set I'm building.

 

[jchaneng]

You do know the good Draper pliers were made by Knipex for a while, I don't know if they still are but you still see them on eBay sometimes.

yea used to be dont think they are anymore though, draper has taken a serious downturn over last few years but seems to have got more expensive. i keep buying the old knipex made versions in old tool shops and auto jumbles etc, i have loads stamped w germany so shows thier age and they are still in better nick than ones i brought last year.

 

[jchaneng]

very nice knipex collection btw, whats your opinion of the two part soft grip compared to the dipped handle versions? iv never tried the knipex soft grip as its so dirty and oily where i work.