10 inch knipex

[Billy Bob Bob]

yes as per title,i know the knips are the best pliers,my code blues knackerd and the bacho version i have is tat,so where can i get the best price on one? i know the roths are good as well but IMHO the knipex are king

 

[kennedy1978mark]

ebay mate , got some 12" knippex for £21 delivered in 48hrs..brand new with packaging (obviously) hope this helps pal

 

[Puddle]

agree bacho are rubbish but I would not pay £70 odd for a pair of grips,to many go walkies

I find channel lock good and roths for thinness

imho

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

yes channel lock are good tbf had the code blues for a year and half but slipping now they have done well but knipex are the best ,agree would not pay 70 quid £21 will do me

 

[tamz]

Use the 10" alligators mainly although i also have a 300 set and 180 set of cobras (and a 5??mm set for big stuff). You can get them for under £15.
They brought out a different version a year or so ago that have 2 extra positions on them and when i first used them i hated them as i had used the 7 position ones for 25???? odd years and could flick them to the exact setting without looking. Persevered with them and now love them. They open up near as wide as my 300's, wide enough for pump nuts, so the 300's are now relegated to the wheel arch box!
Alligators will last you around 5 years no problem and will withstand any abuse you give them including hitting them with a hammer and they will NEVER slip. The jaw teeth eventually wear down and the orange handles become paper thin. When you get a new set you think you have cushion grips.

Talking about cushion grips, i bought a set of insulated alligators a couple of years ago because i thought the yellow stripe made them look pretty neat. Big mistake. The insulated handles get in the way of everything and i eventually took the junior saw to the insulated stops.

Also have a 250 set of chromed or nickle? smooth faced ones that work something like cobras for using on polished nuts (they were around £35 or so).

Bought a box of 12 250's from ebay a year past at christmas for just over £100 thinking they would last me until i rap it. Down to my last set now as i have either left them lying somewhere (i blame the boy for not doing his job and checking my box) or they have been spirited away

Anyway. What i am saying, as anyone who has ever used them will know. If Heiniken did grips they would be stamped Knipex

Btw i bought a set of Bacho a few years back as everyone was raving about them. Sh...........you know what. Gave them to the boy and even he binned them.
Worst ever grips!!!!!
Those pink things rothenberg brought out years back. The self adjusting things. Awe jeez. A set of gordens were better. Waste of £15 quid or what ever as they were heaved out someones back door a week after i bought them, never to be seen again (you might guess i have a low tolerance level when i'm working)

 

[kennedy1978mark]

just looked on ebay and i think i paid to much now haha !!..loads on there ... i get a lot of tools off threre but ive also bought a lot of rubbish ...

 

[tamz]

just looked on ebay and i think i paid to much now haha !!..loads on there ... i get a lot of tools off threre but ive also bought a lot of crap ...

Word to the wise (as i keep saying).
Buy the best you can afford at the time THEN buy the best.
Cheap tools are false economy. They barely do the job and sometimes inflict injuries. Good tools will last for years and take any abuse you give them.

Perhaps we should do a list of what we consider the best brand hand tools for the particular job.

I'll start with (and I base this on years of experience and having tried most brands at sometime or another)
Grips and pliars...... Knipex
Screwdrivers..........Wera laser tips but i like the CK ones too
Feather spliter, some cold chisels, and junior saw........Eclipse (I get big cold chisels made for me from the blacksmith)
Claw hammer.........Estwing (but i notice the claw on the newer ones are not as sharp?? but still best balanced)
Adjustables..........Bacho
Spanners, ratchets.........Kasma or Britool
Wood chisels.........marples splitproof (yellow and red handles)
Crawfoot........Monument as most other general plumbing tools inc footprints
Adjustable cutters........Rigid
Pipeslices.....?? Now here is a thing. Both Kopex and Rothys seem to have gone down the junk line and they don't last long until they start threading or 1000 turns for a cut because the spring is not catchingI still use them but i am fed up stripping them down.
Stilsons.......Stilson (as the name implies) or rigid alloys but even the cheapies are passable.

Missed out lots of stuff here but throw in what you like.