Gerber MP600 Cable Cutter.

[Chako]

I was pumped when I finally scored me a pair. I have been on the lookout for this tool for some time now on eBay.

But enough of that, it is photography time...

[Pacu]

nice.  those seem to be hard to find.

does it say what gauge you can cut up to?

[Chako]

No statement on the max gauge that can be cut.

Maybe Bob might know?

Looking at these however, I can't imagine too many things that can give this cutter much grief.

[Benner]

It is only for copper wire otherwise the cutters will be damaged.

[MultiMat]

It is only for copper wire otherwise the cutters will be damaged.

I concur , speaking from experience  .

 

Small nick that should be easy enough to remedy.

[J-sews]

Congrats on finding a Cable Cutter Chako


I can't help but think this design would have been more practical had they made the cutter head from a hardened tool steel, instead of (relatively) soft stainless steel.

Same problem that plagued the SOG PowerCut really

[Chako]

I thought it would be hardened. Talk about a missed opportunity on their part to make a fantastic cable cutter.

Point well taken. I won't be shopping anything other than some copper wire...if that.

[gafftapegreenia]

The problem lies in the style of cutter. The very steep and sharp grind of the cutting blades is in its very nature intended only for softer cables - copper, some aluminum, etc. Even hardened material wouldn't make a difference - the thin cutting edges would easily be damaged. Since I handle 12/3 SOOW cable on a daily basis , I've always had an eye on these. For the hardest wires, aircraft cable, etc, you need a cutter designed to SHEAR the material being cut, not slice it. Think of what a hard wire notch does, its not cutting through material by driving an object through it, but rather pushing with great force in two opposite directions at a very concentrated spot. These opposing forces shear the material apart.  Some day I need to do a whole thing on cutting heads, styles and intended uses.

The Powercut used a diagonal cutter head. Even the best Knipex Diagonal cutters have their limits and intended uses. In the end, no matter what material they used, the Powercut would have had a failure point. As we know cast stainless steel has a much lower failure point that forged tool steel. That said, I still think they gave up too soon.

[J-sews]

The problem lies in the style of cutter. The very steep and sharp grind of the cutting blades is in its very nature intended only for softer cables - copper, some aluminum, etc. Even hardened material wouldn't make a difference - the thin cutting edges would easily be damaged. Since I handle 12/3 SOOW cable on a daily basis , I've always had an eye on these. For the hardest wires, aircraft cable, etc, you need a cutter designed to SHEAR the material being cut, not slice it. Think of what a hard wire notch does, its not cutting through material by driving an object through it, but rather pushing with great force in two opposite directions at a very concentrated spot. These opposing forces shear the material apart.  Some day I need to do a whole thing on cutting heads, styles and intended uses.

The Powercut used a diagonal cutter head. Even the best Knipex Diagonal cutters have their limits and intended uses. In the end, no matter what material they used, the Powercut would have had a failure point. As we know cast stainless steel has a much lower failure point that forged tool steel. That said, I still think they gave up too soon.

Well said gtg, I agree completely. That being said, the Cable Cutter does a fine job on soft wire, as well as cord and rope and such.

Almost certainly we are asking to much when we expect one single set of cutters to work equally well and all types of wire. What works best for soft material fails miserably when used on harder stuff. Yet when carrying a MULTItool, one hopes to be prepared for any unexpected task that comes along. So what to do?

Perhaps if Gerber would have equipped the Cable Cutter with a set of hard wire cutters on the backside of the pivot.....?

[gafftapegreenia]

J-sews, I had that thought on the Powercut as well. It would take a bit more effort to design, but it should be possible to incorporate a hard wire notch. Leatherman has a 1/16" aircraft cutter using the same principle on the Core/Surge/ST300 heads just below the pivot that works quite well.

[Magnus]

It would be great to have a MT with jaws like a felco C7, those things seem to be able to cut anything.

[ACHË]

Weak cutters or not...that's a great looking tool.

Maybe that head could be re-profiled by a sharpening pro to reduce the chances of it getting knicked like that.

[ryan1835]

would this be able to cut twin and earth though?

[gafftapegreenia]

I was putting connectors on 12/3 S cable all day yesterday, reminded me I still want one of these.

[J-sews]

I was putting connectors on 12/3 S cable all day yesterday, reminded me I still want one of these.

Well then...

[gafftapegreenia]

I was putting connectors on 12/3 S cable all day yesterday, reminded me I still want one of these.

Well then...

Yea, yea...I know, I know. It's been moved up on the list. I need to get something in the 600 series anyway.