Deal: Flushcut pliers $1.80 Precision screwdriver $2.84 delivered

[Shock]

Couple of cheap banggood items.
Use coupon codes e3b813 d41ecf when you are logged in at checkout.

Flushcut pliers
https://www.banggood.com/DANIU-Electrical-Cutting-Plier-Wire-Cable-Cutter-Side-Snips-Flush-Pliers-Tool-p-1046482.html

Precision screwdriver
https://www.banggood.com/DANIU-25-in-1-Multi-purpose-Precision-Screwdriver-Wallet-Set-Repair-Tools-p-940063.html

[wraper]

Single use tools, are not worth time investment to buy them.

[Brumby]

I purchased this to see what it was like...  Similar pricing.



The main problem is that the cutting edge only meets at the tip, with a gap widening to more than half a millimetre closer to the pivot point.  Effective cutting only occurs in about the first 2mm or so at the tip.

Put any sort of pressure on them and they turn into half-assed bypass cutters ... and only use them on soft component leads if you want the edge to maintain any resemblance of straightness.

Good points are: smooth movement, reasonable grips and they look good at a distance - but not really worth the money for the job you would have bought them for ... unless you are that desperate.


Wouldn't mind the same thing with a decent cutting edge.

[plazma]

I have ordered both few months ago. The pliers are ok. The screwdriver set is garbage.

[Shock]

Yeah don't expect miracles they are only a few bucks each delivered to your door.

[gibbled]

I picked up some of the plato knockoffs.  They seem surprisingly good so far.  Blades meet all the way along the cutting edges and they make clean cuts in copper wire and various cured glues.

[Asmyldof]

On AliX I bought three boxes of 10 of those Plato ones. Similar price, maybe tiny bot more expensive, but 9 out of 10 were pretty good. Not quite single use, but not long life either.

The point of the vast number is that when I go to a customer site I only bring stuff I don't mind leaving behind or breaking, as this often happens anyway at some of them.
I prefer going home thinking "Well, another €2 cutter disappeared when getting coffee, oh well" than, as happened in the beginning some times "Damnit, another one of my € 30 good pliers got nicked."

At the personal lab I only use them when I'm cutting something I know I shouldn't, but want the flush cut anyway. Those do often end up being single-use ;-)

[CJay]

I picked up some of the plato knockoffs.  They seem surprisingly good so far.  Blades meet all the way along the cutting edges and they make clean cuts in copper wire and various cured glues.

I got three pairs of those 'plato' ones because I regard the cheap pairs as disposable so I can abuse them when I need to hack something.

They came in at 99p a pair and I've been really surprised at just how good they are, blades meet all the way, clean cuts, I mistreated a pair on purpose by using them to lever and slice open a faulty rotary encoder and they are still good as new, I'd have been happy if I'd paid three or four times as much. Have already ordered five more pairs to put in a cupboard.

[Brumby]

I picked up some of the plato knockoffs.  They seem surprisingly good so far.  Blades meet all the way along the cutting edges and they make clean cuts in copper wire and various cured glues.

I got three pairs of those 'plato' ones because I regard the cheap pairs as disposable so I can abuse them when I need to hack something.

They came in at 99p a pair and I've been really surprised at just how good they are, blades meet all the way, clean cuts, I mistreated a pair on purpose by using them to lever and slice open a faulty rotary encoder and they are still good as new, I'd have been happy if I'd paid three or four times as much. Have already ordered five more pairs to put in a cupboard.

Where from?

The ones I got aren't worth worrying about.

[CJay]

I picked up some of the plato knockoffs.  They seem surprisingly good so far.  Blades meet all the way along the cutting edges and they make clean cuts in copper wire and various cured glues.

I got three pairs of those 'plato' ones because I regard the cheap pairs as disposable so I can abuse them when I need to hack something.

They came in at 99p a pair and I've been really surprised at just how good they are, blades meet all the way, clean cuts, I mistreated a pair on purpose by using them to lever and slice open a faulty rotary encoder and they are still good as new, I'd have been happy if I'd paid three or four times as much. Have already ordered five more pairs to put in a cupboard.

Where from?

The ones I got aren't worth worrying about.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Durable-Electrical-Side-Snips-Flush-Pliers-Wire-Cable-Cutter-Cutting-Plier-Tools/282451260279?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

That's the listing I bought from.

[gibbled]

Mine were from http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Durable-Electrical-Wire-Cable-Cutter-Cutting-Plier-Side-Snips-Flush-Pliers-Tool-/272500619536?var=&hash=item3f724d7910:m:m46bjjqe_lymhq_4YDk84Jw

[tszaboo]

Single use tools, are not worth time investment to buy them.

Pretty much. Nowadays, chinese send the stuff, so it requires a bloody signature to get it from the postman, who arrives in the middle of the day. And leaves you a note, so you go to the post office, wait 20 minutes, get your 1 dollar shit, go home, try it, and trash it after a few uses. So you go and buy the good tool. So you wasted an hour of your life. Not a good investment.

[BMack]

The best cheap cutters in the US are the Hakko's for under $5: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FZPDG1K/


They're made in Italy by Piergiacomi. I use mostly Knipex and Lindstrom but the Hakkos are my beater pair that I cut larger diode legs and plastic zip ties with. Still sharp, no damage to the blades after two years of abuse. They actually cut as nice as Knipex super knips.

[nanofrog]

FWIW, Schmitz are top quality IME, yet they come in at ~20EUR for the most common pliers, and ~20 - 25EUR for most cutters. In fact, they're the OEM/ODM for other well known brands such as CK Tools, Bernstein, and NWS for example. Possibly even for Wiha.

For disclosure, I'm only a customer, so no financial ties whatsoever.

[YU7C]

Recently I acquired a pair EREM cutters on the local HAM swap. Paid €20 each.
Brand new.

[BMack]

FWIW, Schmitz are top quality IME, yet they come in at ~20EUR for the most common pliers, and ~20 - 25EUR for most cutters. In fact, they're the OEM/ODM for other well known brands such as CK Tools, Bernstein, and NWS for example. Possibly even for Wiha.

For disclosure, I'm only a customer, so no financial ties whatsoever.

Wiha's pliers/cutters are now made in Vietnam, I hear they're still good quality. 

[nanofrog]

Wiha's pliers/cutters are now made in Vietnam, I hear they're still good quality. 

A lot of their standard pliers & cutter lines are, such as 6" or 8" needle nose. But their electronics pliers and cutters are still German (example; note the COO listed in the text to the right of the photo  ). Some of the insulated versions are from Switzerland, and are easy to spot as the business ends (metal) is polished rather than matte finished (example). And they still make some of their own in Germany as well, such as some water pump pliers (example), though I suspect they'll shift production of currently made German models to Vietnam.

Regarding the Vietnamese made versions, I've a pair of needle nose and they're quite nice. The joint isn't sloppy nor too stiff, and the serrations are well formed. They're comparable to well made Taiwanese products and should be priced accordingly IMHO, not sold at Made in Germany prices. 

Seems Gedore is using Schmitz as their ODM as well (here).

[BMack]

Wiha's pliers/cutters are now made in Vietnam, I hear they're still good quality. 

A lot of their standard pliers & cutter lines are, such as 6" or 8" needle nose. But their electronics pliers and cutters are still German (example; note the COO listed in the text to the right of the photo  ). Some of the insulated versions are from Switzerland, and are easy to spot as the business ends (metal) is polished rather than matte finished (example). And they still make some of their own in Germany as well, such as some water pump pliers (example), though I suspect they'll shift production of currently made German models to Vietnam.

Regarding the Vietnamese made versions, I've a pair of needle nose and they're quite nice. The joint isn't sloppy nor too stiff, and the serrations are well formed. They're comparable to well made Taiwanese products and should be priced accordingly IMHO, not sold at Made in Germany prices. 

Seems Gedore is using Schmitz as their ODM as well (here).

Not all of them. https://www.kctoolco.com/wiha-45823-133mm-21-degree-flush-cut-cutters-esd-safe-proturn/

Maybe they're transitioning to Asia and have old stock, I imagine the precision moves inventory slower. They also have some listed as made in Italy.

It's pretty easy to tell by looking at the pictures: https://www.kctoolco.com/precision-cutters/?_bc_fsnf=1&brand=35

I talk to Ryan from KCTool semi-regularly, I'll ask him if he knows for sure if they are still producing the German and Italian made line of precision pliers/cutters.

[nanofrog]

Not all of them. https://www.kctoolco.com/wiha-45823-133mm-21-degree-flush-cut-cutters-esd-safe-proturn/

Maybe they're transitioning to Asia and have old stock, I imagine the precision moves inventory slower. They also have some listed as made in Italy.

It's pretty easy to tell by looking at the pictures: https://www.kctoolco.com/precision-cutters/?_bc_fsnf=1&brand=35

I talk to Ryan from KCTool semi-regularly, I'll ask him if he knows for sure if they are still producing the German and Italian made line of precision pliers/cutters.

I was ignoring the stamped type and focusing solely on the premium models so I do apologize for that (box joint + polished metal). The Proturn models are new to me (was only aware of Proturn version products in 4mm bit & blade type screwdriver sets). No idea who's making the Proturn cutters, as last I checked, they don't own a facility in Taiwan (I'd think it would be easier and more cost effective to make them in Vietnam if they're produced in-house).  As per the premium stamped, they're still made by Piergiacomi in Italy AFAIK.

It would certainly be interesting as to what insight Ryan might have, so please report back. 

[edavid]

In case anyone is curious, attached are photos of the imitation Platos vs. the real thing.

The last photo shows the business end of a couple of the "Piatc" cutters... one is sort of OK, the other has a broken tip and a gap between the blades.

[CJay]

In case anyone is curious, attached are photos of the imitation Platos vs. the real thing.
Interesting, they're different to mine, the ones that arrived here have the same stencil as the lower pair on your pictures and have proved to be a bargain as they're excellent, they cut straight, even lines in a sheet of paper with no fibres left uncut.

I'm very pleased with them indeed.