Little SAK's and old school tech.

Wild Willie said:
I'm probably a fair bit younger than a lot of fellas here at 32. I've been attempting to find the perfect solution to my needs for some time now. I live in a rural county in Western New York, and own my own business (tree removal, stump grinding, plowing snow in the winter and that ilk) I've found that a larger folder in the 3.5 inch range works best for most of my needs, and a belt knife in about that size when things get really ugly. My favorite primary carry is a Douk Douk. After breaking every Leatherman I've ever owned which is close to a dozen since my days of working on local dairy farms in the early 2000s, I decided to try dedicated pliers and an sak. I experimented with a full sized tinker we gave our son for Christmas, didn't care for the size in my pocket and switched to the small tinker because I liked the toolset. Then I found the rambler which rides in my bag for the scissors and small sd tip. I just got a pioneer last week and I'm thinking I might have hit the jackpot... Along with the aforementioned rambler and my 5 inch knipex pliers most of my short notice repair needs are covered. View attachment 1382834I also tuck a Zippo butane torch lighter in my pocket for dressing rope ends and whatnot, and a Fenix single aa light for getting under the hood of our aging work trucks.
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Just ordered a 5" cobra. Didnt know that they existed an hour ago. Thanks!
 
22-rimfire said:
It certainly helps. I have a Vic Nail Clipper SAK on the way. It's for my pickup.

I looked at the Knipex stuff, but could see no special advantage over some of the other less expensive brands.
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Re: Knipex, quality of build and locking are just two things. I'd rather buy a made in Germany tool than a made in China tool. Who else makes a pair of 5" locking pliers like the Knipex Cobra? I think people who buy this particular tool are thinking it will be superior to multi-tool pliers. I'll find out soon as I own a Leatherman Wave which is in the same glovebox the Knipex will reside in.
 
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CSG said:
Re: Knipex, quality of build and locking are just two things. I'd rather buy a made in Germany tool than a made in China tool. Who else makes a pair of 5" locking pliers like the Knipex Cobra? I think people who buy this particular too are thinking it will be superior to multi-tool pliers. I'll find out soon as I own a Leatherman Wave which is in the same glovebox the Knipex will reside in.
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If I need locking, I have channel locks. The small Knipex tools are not heavy hard use tools for most and other brands work for this. I also prefer US and German made tools, but buy others depending on their intended use. The T-type Hex drivers (allen wrenches) are an example where I seldom use them, but when I need one the added leverage is often welcomed. I would guess I would be lucky if I use one of them twice in 6 months. They mostly get used for tightening my camera tripods.
 
Ah. I use a Gitzo tripod which doesn't seem to need tools to keep properly adjusted.
 
My pliers get used hard, and I couldn't find anything that was as short as the 5 inch cobras that wasn't Chinese. The pocketability was the biggest selling point for me. I've broken the pliers on every Leatherman I've owned, I've only used their warranty once because in all honesty the breaks resulted from what amounted to abuse in my opinion and I couldn't bring myself to do it. The knipex pliers can handle more than a full sized Leatherman and are way lighter in the pocket. Plus if I do manage to break them then I'm only out 30 bucks as opposed to over 100.
 
CSG said:
Ah. I use a Gitzo tripod which doesn't seem to need tools to keep properly adjusted.
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Always preferred the lever type locks over a screw type on Gitzo's. Plus Gitzo's are really expensive.

I have a Crescent and Proto 5" pliers. I've had the Proto (USA) a long time (like 35 years). The Proto has come in handy more than a few times. This was pre-multi-tool days. Now I pretty much just keep multi-tools in my pickup.
 
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Well, I paid $17.50 (including tax) for mine as I had a $10 Amazon credit. But hey, horses for courses.
 
CSG said:
Well, I paid $17.50 (including tax) for mine as I had a $10 Amazon credit. But hey, horses for courses.
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You mean the pliers, right? Most Gitzo tripods are $500+ and then you add in the cost of a head.

I believe the little Crescent was under $10 at Home Depot. I also have a Proto socket set that has been used for years.
 
22-rimfire said:
You mean the pliers, right? Most Gitzo tripods are $500+ and then you add in the cost of a head.

I believe the little Crescent was under $10 at Home Depot. I also have a Proto socket set that has been used for years.
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Yes, the Cobra wrench. I paid $490 for the 1545T that was a BH return and another $280 for an Arca-Swiss Monoball.
As to the Crescent (I have a couple of larger pairs in my tool box), if you clamp them on a pipe, can you stand on them without them budging? Of course not. Apples and oranges compared to the Knipex Cobra design.
 
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Why would you want to stand on a 5" pair of pliers? You must do some pretty heavy duty work. I don't and have no need for such. The little 5" pliers are for little things such as you might use a multi-tool or SAK, but a bit stronger. Anyway, we make our tool choices based on our apparent needs. I am happy that you're happy.

Added: You said "wrench". I have been talking about a pair of pliers. A picture of the 4.5" Crescent pliers is below so we are clear as to what I'm talking about.

4.5 inch crescent pliers.JPG
 
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