Snap Ring Pliers. Any suggestions?

[rogersmithiii]

The Deere mechanic showed up to work on my backhoe, and he pulled out a slick 12 piece set of Mac snap ring pliers. They seem to be running around $270 for the set.

Is there another brand that might be decent for less money, or so I bite the bullet and pay up?

I'm tired of using punches and screw drivers to get these rings out.

Thanks

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

Knipex, Snap-on or Channellock and Cornwell is what I have had the best luck with. They don’t bend or break. Not sure of the prices of them these days. Channellock would probably be the cheapest.

 

[51cub]

I got a Mac TPQ56 that never let me down yet. Event the rings deep inside the front hub of an F series that used to really make me ugly until I got this pair

 

[Rinspeed]

I have the Snap-On with different tips and while not cheap. nothing Snap-On makes is, it is a very high quality tool.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Astro makes a set that won't break your budget.

 

[Zimbo]

Scope out the Lang Tools 3495 set.
These are a good price and are identical to some of my old snap-on and blue-point pairs.


Sent from my iPad using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[lardy1]

I recently bought the Lang set. Very comprehensive and it was highly recommended. Not the cream of the crop but a good, affordable set.

 

[Legion Prime]

I've been buying individual Knipex/Orbis as needed, no ragrets. Cheap snap ring/circlip pliers will only be additional money spent before buying the good ones you will end up buying anyway if you used them with any frequency. You seem set on buying good quality the first time round which will only add up to savings in the long run both in money and effort/frustration.

 

[doorfx]

 

[ZRX61]

The Deere mechanic showed up to work on my backhoe, and he pulled out a slick 12 piece set of Mac snap ring pliers. They seem to be running around $270 for the set.

Is there another brand that might be decent for less money, or so I bite the bullet and pay up?

I'm tired of using punches and screw drivers to get these rings out.

Thanks

Pretty much all sets are rebadged Stride products. That's why they all look the same except for the color of the handles & the boxes they come in.

 

[Bighead38]

I was working on a skid steer out in the field a few weeks ago. I forgot to bring snap ring pliers. I found that a pair of needle nose I had just fit in so I used the needle nose to spread it and a flat head to pop it off.
The next day I didn’t have the tool to put a master link in the chain. Put as much much pressure as I could with vise grips and tapped it down with a hammer. Sometimes you have to get creative when your working in the field.

 

[anndel]

Lang Tools

 

[demarpaint]

After using Channel Lock with the replaceable tips I decided it was time to step up and bought a set of Knipex Snap Ring Pliers. I'm glad I did. At the time Amazon.de was much less then anywhere else I checked for them.

 

[joshmodelskidoo]

I have a pair of unbranded, lisle and craftsman. The unbranded are junk. The craftsman and lisle have interchangeable tips. If you don’t want interchangeable tips then maybe the icon or tool truck stuff as far as I know. I seen someone mentioned lang and they make some of the tool truck brands I believe

 

[William Payne]

Sorry for the thread resurrection but who still makes the old style pliers with the fully metal body and handles with no plastic grip? I know the Germans still offer them but want to do my research before buying the stahwille set.

link to show what I mean. These are my personal factory style of snap ring pliers.

STAHLWILLE 6702 4pc CIRCLIP PLIER SET - Waitemata Hydraulics & Engineering Supplies Ltd.

SW96650004: STAHLWILLE 6702 4pc CIRCLIP PLIER SET

www.waihyd.co.nz

 

[paulsomlo]

Sorry for the thread resurrection but who still makes the old style pliers with the fully metal body and handles with no plastic grip? I know the Germans still offer them but want to do my research before buying the stahwille set.

link to show what I mean. These are my personal factory style of snap ring pliers.

STAHLWILLE 6702 4pc CIRCLIP PLIER SET - Waitemata Hydraulics & Engineering Supplies Ltd.

SW96650004: STAHLWILLE 6702 4pc CIRCLIP PLIER SET

www.waihyd.co.nz

Well, that's a ridiculous price for four pliers. Try German Amazon, Amazon.de, and look at the eight piece set of either Knipex or Gedore:
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B002RA7UYK/

https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00ID7DEBO/

 

[William Payne]

Well, that's a ridiculous price for four pliers. Try German Amazon, Amazon.de, and look at the eight piece set of either Knipex or Gedore:
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B002RA7UYK/

https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00ID7DEBO/

Haha welcome to New Zealand pricing. I wouldn’t be paying that price I just want that kind of plier. Without the grips.

 

[matt_i]

Knipex. Finally snap rings are actually a snap instead of a fear-sweat-inducing-step in a project.

 

[KnurledNut]

I have some friends that owned an industrial machine shop.
These pliers were used/abused heavily and repetitively.
They broke every brand they tried, including truck brands, some only lasting a few uses.
In search of the best option, they settled on Knipex.
While they still broke, they were the strongest and provided the longest life.

 

[dnschmidt]

Here's an old quote 1st from the computer industry: NOBODY EVER GOT FIRED FOR BUYING IBM.
2nd) From the autobody industry: NOBODY EVER GOT FIRED FOR BUYING 3M.
3rd) NOBODY EVER GOT FIRED FOR BUYING PLIERS FROM KNIPEX.

These are wise expressions.

 

[paulsomlo]

Not sure if you'll find any without plastic grips. The only one I have with bare handles is made by Elora, but I think their current offerings may only come with the grips.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

Tips on good snap ring pliers are fatter at the end and skinnier towards the body.

I found the tips in the tip replaceable pliers to be fairly interchangeable. It's a good thing because tips wear out.

My boxed ones say Mac on the box, but I've seen that same set in Snap-On , Gray, and Proto boxes. Those German ones that you don't have to change the tips are handy, but you need a dozen or so pairs. I must have used snap ring pliers on a daily basis, from the delicate to the two fisted ones.

 

[William Payne]

from the delicate to the two fisted ones.

Sounds painful. Yeah the set sizes you do need more but it is handy to just grab and go.