Pliers
Pliers covers binding pliers, compound pliers, fitting pliers, pipe pliers, revolving punch pliers and wire stripper, and the other product types on the cards below. Each comparison says what that product is for, and which checks still apply when the listings change.
The cards are the way in. A comparison holds the current listings, including who makes them and what they cost, because both move.
Pliers
Binding pliers
Nippers, hooks and tying wire
Three binding pliers on amazon.co.uk, from about £7.99 to about £26.99. A proper nipper twists and cuts tying wire. The Zeromall listing is a hook and does not say it cuts. The top pick is the KNIPEX 99 11 300 at about £26.99.
Comparison guides
Bolt cutters
Printed diameter, then length
Twelve hand-powered bolt cutters, from about £6.79 to about £25.99. A jaw opening is not the cut. The top pick is the WORKPRO 14 inch at about £17.02, which prints 5 mm at HRC 42 or below and says locks are not recommended.
Comparison guides
Cable tie pliers
Nylon gun or stainless strap
Eight cable tie pliers, from about £10.99 to about £32.16. A nylon gun and a stainless strap tool use different jaws. The top pick is the Dechengbao CT03 at about £17.99, printed for stainless ties up to 12 mm by 0.3 mm.
Comparison guides
Combination pliers
Jaw, cutter and a VDE mark
Eleven combination pliers, from about £4.25 to about £25.50. A red or yellow grip is not a voltage rating. The top pick is the KNIPEX 03 06 180 at about £25.50, the only row whose listing supports VDE and 1,000 V.
Comparison guides
Compound pliers
Extra pivot, then the head
Six compound pliers, from about £16.79 to about £46. An extra pivot is the point. A 70% cutting claim in this set does not name a wire diameter. The top pick is the DeWalt 200 mm linesman pair at about £18.49. None shows a VDE mark.
Comparison guides
Crimping pliers set
Ferrule die or a ring die
Eleven crimping pliers sets, from about £19.54 to about £42.99. A ferrule jaw, an insulated-terminal jaw and an RJ45 die are different jobs. The top pick is the Preciva ferrule crimper set at about £22.99, for 0.25–10 mm².
Comparison guides
Current clamp
AC jaw or a DC jaw
Twelve current clamps, from about £18.99 to about £123.06. A title that says AC/DC voltage is not a DC current range. The top pick is the KAIWEETS KC604 at about £30.39, with 400 A AC and DC on the bullets.
Comparison guides
Ferrule pliers
Marked dies and the mm²
Twelve ferrule pliers, from about £9.99 to about £85.99, from tool-only ratchets to large kits. The die has to match the bootlace. The top pick is the Knipex 97 72 180 at about £35.96, with marked dies for 0.25–16 mm².
Comparison guides
Fitting pliers
Notch, opening and the face
Five fitting pliers, from about £5.76 to about £25.99, sold in the UK as water pump pliers or plumbers' grips. Serrated V-jaws mark chrome. The top pick is the Blue Spot 250 mm box-joint pair at about £5.76, with a listed 32 mm opening.
Comparison guides
Grip pliers
Mole grips that lock
Three grip pliers, also sold as mole grips, from about £4.95 to about £23.10. They lock after an over-centre toggle. The top pick is the Stanley FatMax 250 mm curved pair at about £23.10. None is marked for live work.
Comparison guides
Hydraulic crimping pliers
Cable dies or pipe jaws
Ten hydraulic crimping pliers. Cable kits run from about £32.29 to about £40.99. The two pipe tools are about £68.88 and about £99.99. A cable hex die will not press a pipe. The top pick is the AMZCNC YKQ-70 at about £39.78.
Comparison guides
Log lifting tongs
Hand tongs or a grapple
Seven log lifting tongs, from about £18.99 to about £111.45. Light scissor tongs suit a woodpile. Heavy grapples suit a hitch. The top pick is the FITOOL 300 mm log tongs at about £21.99. A marketing tonne is not a marked working load.
Comparison guides
Pipe pliers
Opening, then the joint
Eight pipe pliers, from about £5.76 to about £24.99. These are tongue-and-groove water pump pliers. Similar 10 inch tools here print openings of 25 mm, 32 mm, 42 mm or 60 mm. The top pick is the Blue Spot 250 mm box-joint pair at about £5.76.
Comparison guides
Pliers set
Trio, or water-pump only
Twelve pliers sets, from about £7.88 to about £83.95. The everyday kit is combination pliers, long-nose pliers and side cutters. The Knipex Cobra listing in this set is three water-pump pliers. The top pick is the Bosch Professional 3-piece set at about £42.11.
Comparison guides
Pliers wrench
Smooth jaws and opening
Five pliers wrenches, from about £14.99 to about £29.99. The jaw has to be smooth and parallel. Water-pump teeth mark chrome. The top pick is the WORKPRO 180 mm at about £16.99, with a 40 mm opening claim.
Comparison guides
Punch pliers
Tube size for a belt
Eight punch pliers, from about £5.47 to about £14.23, for a hole in a belt or strap. A mixed-shape head will not feed a belt-length oval. The top pick is the Draper Expert 63637 at about £14.23, with round tubes from 2 mm to 4.8 mm.
Comparison guides
Revolving punch pliers
Named diameters and a lock
Ten revolving punch pliers, from about £5.47 to about £17.52. A useful listing names each diameter. The top pick is the S&R 274.100.240 at about £13.48, with a 5 mm tube, an opening spring and a lock. Eyelet pliers are a different tool.
Comparison guides
Rivet gun
Nosepiece, rivets and hands
Eleven rivet guns, from about £5.98 to about £34.99, for a blind rivet set from one side. Kit rivets are aluminium. The top pick is the Libraton hand rivet gun 900913 at about £14.99. A rivet nut setter is a different tool.
Comparison guides
Rivet nut pliers
Mandrel size and lever
Eight rivet nut pliers, from about £24.02 to about £65.99. The mandrel has to match the thread. Titles that say M3 to M12 sometimes stop at M10. The top pick is the Proster 14 inch tool at about £35.99.
Comparison guides
Wire fixing pliers
Ring family and the nose
Five wire fixing pliers, from about £10.99 to about £35.71. They close a ring. They do not cut high-tensile line wire. The top pick is the Rapid FP222 with 200 VR22 rings at about £35.71. C-type rings and M clips are a different family.
Comparison guides
Wire stripper
Range, jaw and the cable
Eight wire strippers, from about £4.49 to about £21.61, for twin and earth, flex and thinner cores. House wiring is sized in mm². The top pick is the Stanley FatMax FMHT0-96230 at about £21.61. There was no laboratory strip test.
Comparison guides
Pliers blog
View all articles →Guides for the pliers in a UK site box: what concreters' nippers cost, why a cheap rebar twister fails, how you turn tying-wire tails inward, what high leverage means, what PUWER asks of hand tools, how to oil a pair, when a wire tie is not the connection, how many intersections to tie, black or stainless wire, and how to read a binding-plier listing.
Stainless tying wire UK: black, galvanised, or specified
Three coils on the counter all say tying wire. One is black. One is galvanised. One is marked 1.2 mm. The shed base will disappear under the pour. The
rebar wire twister broke: the hook and the missing cut
The mesh is down, the coil of black annealed tying wire is open, and the hook in your hand has just left the shaft. The parcel was £7.99. If your reba
High leverage concreters nippers: joint versus length
You are lacing a sheet of mesh, and the dearer listing says high leverage while the cheaper one is a short end cutter for knots. High leverage concret