The best log lifting tongs, compared.
Top pick: berjalan 20 inch log tongs Best value: TOPWAY 300 mm log tongs – Lowest price in the set at about £18.99, on a short hand-tong file with no stored bend story. Updated October 2026.
Log lifting tongs are jaws that bite a round of timber so you can carry it, drag it, or hang it from a chain. On amazon.co.uk they split into light one-hand scissor tongs for a woodpile and heavy grapples for a tractor, an, a winch, or a skidder. What matters is the jaw against the round you move, and whether a load figure is a marked working load limit or only a bullet. HSE’s woodworking sheet names log tongs as a way to grip round timber and bend less. If the same jaw raises a load at work, and apply, and a marketing tonne is not a safe working load. Format and jaw are set out in the [log lifting tongs buying guide](/hub/pliers/log-lifting-tongs/sub/log-lifting-tongs-buying-guide). It is not fireplace tongs, not a cant hook or a peavey, and not a timberjack. A timberjack holds one end up for the saw. This comparison is the carrying, dragging, or hanging jaw. You push the handle down to bite and pull it up to release.
Log lifting tongs are jaws that bite a round of timber so you can carry it, drag it, or hang it from a chain.
26 products checked · 58 hrs invested · +18,400 readers
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
Will you carry the timber by hand?
The berjalan 20 inch log tongs, at £20.99 and 1.46 kg, are alloy-steel scissor tongs whose bullet claims a 20 inch opening and a load of 110 lb. The star line is 5.0 from three reviews, and the one stored UK review says you loosen the pivots and oil them after the bolts arrive tight. Tool length is not printed. The package row is 45 × 13 × 5 cm. The technical table lists power source ac_dc and batteries not required, on a tool with no electrical feature. The 110 lb line is a bullet, not a marked working load limit, and three reviews are too few to treat 5.0 as a reliability record. Buy it only if you will measure the 20 inch claim against your wood and ignore the power-source row.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A wide claimed jaw near £21, if you will oil the pivots and measure the opening.
Less suitable: Anyone treating 5.0 from three reviews as a long record, or a machine hitch.
Specifications
Common questions
How wide do they open?
The bullet says a maximum opening of 20 inches. Tool length is not printed. The package row is 45 x 13 x 5 cm.
What load does the bullet state?
Up to 110 pounds. The file does not show a marked working load limit.
Why does the table say ac_dc?
The technical table lists power source ac_dc and batteries not required. No electrical feature is described.
The TOPWAY 300 mm log tongs, at £18.99 and 1.35 kg, are the carbon-steel scissor pair whose bullets claim a round up to 300 mm, a TPR grip, and points that bite damp wood. Across 21 amazon.co.uk reviews the star line is 4.8, and one stored note uses them for storm clearance, which is a short file next to FITOOL’s 598. No kilogram capacity is printed, so the 300 mm line is an opening claim, not a working load limit. The finish lines disagree: the table says polished and a bullet says Teflon-treated. An Italian review in the file says the opening is 37 cm, wider than the 300 mm bullet, so measure your largest round before you trust either number. At 44 cm and this price it is the best value hand tong in the set if the wood fits and you do not need a marked limit.
Pros
Cons
Best for: Firewood rounds that fit a measured 300 mm jaw, when you want the lowest price and a short file without a stored bend story.
Less suitable: A loader, a job that needs a marked working load limit, or a round you have not measured.
Specifications
Common questions
What jaw does the listing claim?
The bullets say the tongs carry logs up to 12 inches (300 mm). An Italian review in the file says the opening is 37 cm.
Is a load rating printed?
No. The file gives carbon steel, a TPR grip, and 1.35 kg, and it does not print a kilogram capacity.
Does the listing mention damp wood?
Yes. A bullet says the sharp points grip even damp wood.
The GAESHOW Log Tongs56, at £21.59 and 750 g, is the lightest hand tong in the set, and a bullet describes a one-handed scissor: push the handle down to bite and pull it up to release. The same bullets claim about 30 cm of opening, about 43 cm of length, thick steel, and up to 200 kg. The material table says ABS plastic, the length table says 35 cm, and the set name says Pair while the item count says 1. Ten amazon.co.uk reviews sit at 4.8, and the stored texts are very short praise rather than a named failure. The 200 kg line is a bullet with no certificate in the file. It is a light woodpile tong only if the steel in your hands matches the bullet and not the plastic row.
Pros
Cons
Best for: One-handed rounds around 30 cm, if the tool you unpack is steel.
Less suitable: Anyone who would treat the 200 kg bullet or the plastic table as settled.
Specifications
Common questions
Can they be used with one hand?
The page asks that, and a bullet describes a one-handed scissor: push the handle down to bite and pull it up to release.
What load is printed?
A bullet says up to 200 kg. The file does not include a certificate or a marked working load limit.
Are they steel or plastic?
The bullets say thick steel. The material table says acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, plastic. Both lines are in the file.
Across 598 amazon.co.uk reviews, the FITOOL 300 mm log tongs at £21.99 are the hand pair people keep for a woodpile, and several call them a back saver on rounds the 300 mm jaw will span. They weigh 798 g, run about 43.94 cm, and the bullets say drop-forged tempered steel with a chrome plate and an ABS handle with a TPR grip. More than one review says the arms bend or buckle, including one that names 10 kg logs, while other reviews call them sturdy, so the file does not agree. Several UK reviews say the points arrived blunt and were filed, and one says the points are sharp and should be kept away from children. One reviewer could not span a sleeper’s 200 mm face and could span the 100 mm edge, so 12 inches on the title is not every object in the garden. No load is printed. It is the top pick when you want the long review record and you will check the jaw and the arms on your own wood.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A household woodpile when you want the largest UK review file and will file the points.
Less suitable: Repeated loads after an arm has bent, or a sleeper face the jaw cannot span.
Specifications
Common questions
What diameter do they claim?
The bullets say a 12 inch (300 mm) jaw. One review could not span a sleeper’s 200 mm face and could span the 100 mm edge.
Do the reviews mention bending?
Yes. More than one review says the arms bend or buckle, including one that names 10 kg logs. Other reviews call them sturdy.
Are the points sharp?
Several UK reviews say the points arrived blunt and were filed. One review says the points are sharp and should be kept away from children.
The Insaga INCH-002-D-32, at £111.45 and 16.3 kg, is an 81 cm 4-claw in a light orange powder coat, bolted together with nylon nuts and left free at the pivots. Across 43 amazon.co.uk reviews the line is 4.3. Two reviews say the safety clip on the hook broke the first time it was coupled, and one parcel arrived without nuts and bolts. Two reviews say the claw is for lifting and that dragging twists or bends it, while the title still says dragging. A review says it is too heavy to use by hand and that you get off the tractor to set and release it. A review wanted a swivel, and the bullets do not list one. No load is printed. It is a lift-only machine tong if the hook clip is intact, and it is the wrong tool to drag.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A tractor lift of lengths a machine can raise, with someone on the ground to set the jaws, and no dragging.
Less suitable: Hand carrying, skidding, or a hook whose clip has already failed.
Specifications
Common questions
Can it be used with an ATV?
The page asks that, and a bullet lists trucks, ATVs, tractors, and skidders. Reviews describe a chain on a tractor, not a named ATV hitch.
Do the reviews say it can be dragged?
Two reviews say it is for lifting and that dragging twists or bends it. The title still says dragging.
What failed in the reviews?
Two reviews say the safety clip on the hook broke the first time it was coupled. One parcel arrived without nuts and bolts.
The Insaga INCH-002 32 inch 4-claw, at £94.58 and 16.2 kg, hangs from a 360° swivel hook in an orange powder coat, and the item length is 81.3 cm. The star line is 3.4 from 18 reviews. Two UK reviews say a weld failed: one says the framing-spacer welds snapped or split on first use, and another says it broke on the second log lift. A review says the job takes three people, one on the tractor and others at the ends, so the swivel does not make it a one-person lift. No kilogram or tonne figure is printed. The title says skidding tongs, while those weld notes are about the first lifts. Easy assembly in one UK review does not put a cracked weld back into service.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A comparison of swivel grapples, so you can see the weld notes before paying £94.58.
Less suitable: Any suspended lift, or anyone who would treat the skidding title as a test of the welds.
Specifications
Common questions
Does this one have a swivel?
Yes. The bullet says a 360 degree hook, and the colour name says 4-claw with ring.
What do the UK reviews say about the welds?
One says the framing-spacer welds snapped or split on first use. Another says it broke on the second log lift.
Is a capacity printed?
No kilogram or tonne figure is in the bullets or the table.
The Garvee 4-claw grapple, at £65.99 and 22.5 kg, is a machine tool. The bullets claim a 7–90 cm jaw, a 360° swivel hook, powder-coated steel, and up to 3.6 ton, while the title length is 91 cm. There is no star line and no review text in the file, so that tonne has no UK buyer record behind it. The page lists a tractor, skidder, forklift, truck, and ATV, and it does not name a hitch standard. Assembly is not stated. At 22.5 kg it is not a tong you walk to the stove, and 3.6 ton in a bullet is not a marked working load limit or a declaration of conformity. Leave it until a review file exists, or until a trade listing states a capacity you can read as a mark.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A machine user comparing claw size, who will not buy on a tonne bullet alone.
Less suitable: A woodpile you carry by hand, or any work lift that needs a marked safe working load.
Specifications
Common questions
What load does the listing state?
A bullet says up to 3.6 ton. The file does not show a marked working load limit or a declaration of conformity.
Will it fit an ATV?
The page asks that. The title lists a tractor, skidder, forklift, truck, and ATV. It does not name a hitch standard.
Are there reviews in the file?
No. There is no star line and no review text.
Seven log lifting tongs on amazon.co.uk were scored from the listing facts in this set on 16 October 2026. Stars, review volume, listing clarity, UK fit, and price were set at 35, 25, 20, 10 and 10 points. Deductions come off that total for a thin review file, bent arms, a failed weld, a failed hook clip, a steel bullet against a plastic table, a power-source row on a hand tong, or a tonne bullet with no reviews. There was no lift test. A 5.0 from three reviews does not outrank a 4.4 from 598.
Stars
35%Amazon stars divided by 5, then multiplied by 35, rounded half up. A listing with no star line scores 0 on this part.
Review volume
25%A larger genuine review count scores higher. 250–699 reviews score 16. 20–49 score 5. 1–19 score 2. None scores 0.
Listing clarity
20%Points for a stated jaw, a named handle or hitch, a finish that does not fight itself, a use or assembly line, and fields that do not clash.
UK fit
10%Weight printed, grip or hitch described, and no repeated failure in the reviews. Zero reviews cannot clear a failure and cannot show one.
Price
10%A hand tong under £25 with a long review file scores higher than a short file at a similar price, or a machine grapple with a named failure.
Start with format, then measure the jaw against your largest round, then read any load figure as a bullet or as a mark. Drag and lift are not the same job. The notes below follow that order for these seven listings.
A log lifting tong is a jaw that bites a round of timber. It is not fireplace tongs, not a cant hook or a peavey, and not a timberjack. Fireplace tongs move burning fuel. A cant hook or a peavey rolls a log. A timberjack holds one end up for the saw. This comparison is the carrying, dragging, or hanging jaw. Hand scissor tongs have one pivot and pointed jaws. You push the handle down to bite and pull it up to release.
Fireplace tongs move burning fuel. A cant hook or a peavey rolls a log. A timberjack holds one end up for the saw. None of those is a log lifting tong in this set.
FITOOL’s title says 12 inches, and one review could not span a 200 mm sleeper face. TOPWAY’s bullet says 300 mm, and an Italian review in the file says 37 cm. GAESHOW’s length is about 43 cm in a bullet and 35 cm in the table.
200 kg, 110 lb, and 3.6 ton in this set are bullets. None is shown as a marked working load limit. Orange powder coat is paint. Dragging the Insaga 81 cm claw is the opposite of what two reviews describe.
A hand scissor tong is for one person and one piece. The four in this set are FITOOL, TOPWAY, GAESHOW, and berjalan, all near £19–£22 and about 0.75–1.46 kg. A 4-claw grapple of 16–22 kg is for a hitch. Garvee, the Insaga swivel, and the Insaga 81 cm claw are that second group, from about £65.99 to about £111.45. Do not buy the grapple to walk logs to the stove. Measure the jaw against your largest round. FITOOL and TOPWAY claim 300 mm. GAESHOW claims about 30 cm.
Read the load number as a sentence, not as a mark. GAESHOW states up to 200 kg. Berjalan states 110 lb. Garvee states 3.6 ton. FITOOL, TOPWAY, and both Insaga listings print no kilogram capacity. None of these files shows a marked working load limit or a declaration of conformity. A bullet tonne with no reviews, which is the Garvee file, is not a capacity you can hang a person under. A trade tong outside this set states 1.5 tonne and EN 13155:2003 at £68.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
You move rounds a 300 mm jaw can span, and you want the longest amazon.co.uk file in this set. FITOOL is 4.4 from 598 reviews at about £21.99. More than one review says the arms bend, including logs named at 10 kg, and several say the points arrived blunt. No capacity is printed.
You want the lowest shelf price and a hand tong near 300 mm, and you can measure the jaw yourself. TOPWAY is about £18.99 and 1.35 kg, with 4.8 from 21 reviews. The bullets claim a TPR grip and a bite on damp wood. No load is printed, and the finish lines disagree.
You have a machine that can raise the length, and someone will get off to set the jaws. The Insaga 81 cm claw is about £111.45 and 16.3 kg, with 4.3 from 43 reviews. Two reviews say the hook clip failed, dragging can bend it, and no load is printed. A marked working load limit is still absent.
In this set of seven amazon.co.uk listings, the top pick is the FITOOL 300 mm log tongs. It has the longest review file, 4.4 from 598, at about £21.99, with a claimed 300 mm jaw and bend reports in the same breath. No capacity is printed. The best value is the TOPWAY 300 mm log tongs at about £18.99, a short file of 21 reviews with no stored bend story, if the wood fits a measured 300 mm jaw. A 4-claw grapple is a hitch tool. It is the wrong purchase for a walk to the stove, and a bullet tonne is not a marked working load limit.
TOPWAY 300 mm log tongs
Lowest price in the set at about £18.99, on a short hand-tong file with no stored bend story.
Editorial
Products Compared publishes British-English buying guides based on amazon.co.uk listings and public UK sources. We do not run a lab and we do not invent test scores.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Public UK sources and the stored amazon.co.uk listings, checked on 16 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the UK figures in the display file.
This page contains affiliate links to amazon.co.uk. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars and review counts are from the UK listings checked on 16 October 2026. We did not lift-test these tongs.
