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Tool Talk => General Tool Discussion => Topic started by: ChopperCharles on June 12, 2018, 05:59:25 AM

Title: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 12, 2018, 05:59:25 AM
I’ve seen these all over eBay. Lots of weird brand names or no brands at all. No clip and all of very similar design. Are any of them any good, and how do I recognize one of the good ones?

Charles.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: gregozedobe on June 12, 2018, 12:24:09 PM
I haven't had any that I liked.  One way of culling out the also-rans might be to look carefully at the file surface - most I've looked at have been quite poor, so if you find one with a functional looking file then maybe the rest of the tools will be better quality too (maybe).
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: Grant Lamontagne on June 12, 2018, 12:28:47 PM
I have had a few of this variety, and sadly this is about the best of them.

(http://gallery.multitool.org/var/resizes/Sheffield/103_4032.JPG?m=1329869477)

It's a hunk of crap compared to the SOG, but for the price (I estimate just over a dollar, as it was a gift pack, I think 9 "tools" for $15 or so) it is functional enough.  And the 80's style puffy stickers really help the ergonomics.   :facepalm:

Bear in mind that these have suffered some rust issues resulting from the hard life of being kept in a drawer and rarely used.

Def
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: cody6268 on June 13, 2018, 01:58:18 AM
All the wrong stuff is sharp on these, and all the wrong stuff is dull.  The pliers are decent, and in a way so are the drivers. The cutters don't cut soft wire at all.  Ergonomics are really bad, and when you're cranking down, the handles are painful.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: Grant Lamontagne on June 13, 2018, 02:23:09 AM
Pretty much agree with Cody.   :tu:

Def
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: Noa Isumi on June 14, 2018, 11:03:13 AM
I found an old one with a Tru-Value hardware store stamp that was close enough I broke out the calipers and started counting file teeth.
It is close enough I initaly questioned it as external licence like the Stanley PPPs are. Unfortunetly it is just a clipless knock-off...better than most, but still a copy.
If you find one of these they are better than the Sheffields; but they arent as common.

Here's my thread of "foolsgold" insanity

https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,76484.0.html
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: temo on June 14, 2018, 11:43:39 AM
Kind of tools when you don't want nothing to get done but like wounds in you hands :)

Sent from my VIE-L09 using Tapatalk

Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 18, 2018, 09:57:19 AM
So, I've been buying a bunch of this type of multi tool, from various brands and configurations, to find a good one. So far, I've found a couple that are passable, a couple that are marginal, one that is utter garbage, and one that's really good.  The Sheffield is not the best one, not by far. It's not bad, it has some features that the others don't, but it's in the passable to okay. Usable, but not great.

The best I've found so far is not currently available. It's the "SwissGear" version, made in Taiwan, with a blade, serrated blade/file combo, and fish scaler. And a really nice phillips screwdriver, actually. The blades all have better snap than any version I've tested so far, they're quite sharp, and they're well machined. The pliers are the shining star. The SwissGear uses a different spring mechanism than all the other copies I've seen, and it feels amazing to use. The wire cutters do cut insulated stranded wire, though mine are well-used and show some dings to the blades, so it doesn't cut 12ga stranded wire cleanly. The sheath -  if you can find one with the original sheath - is of medium quality, but quite usable. The only annoying quirk about this tool is the retention loop is loose and easily knocked off, so the handle pops out. BUT, it's an easily removable part, and one could easily replace it with a slightly thicker wire, or a shorter wire loop, in order to better retain the handle.

Also, there's one on eBay right now for 12.74 plus shipping. Search for "Swiss gear pliers" and it comes right up.

Full review will come later, once all my multi tools arrive and I work out the details of the test.

Charles.

Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: Poncho65 on June 18, 2018, 11:45:03 AM
Can't wait for the writeup Charles :salute: :like:
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: Grant Lamontagne on June 18, 2018, 12:27:31 PM
Kind of tools when you don't want nothing to get done but like wounds in you hands :)

Sent from my VIE-L09 using Tapatalk

That is as great a description of these kinds of tools as I have ever heard!  :D

Def
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 18, 2018, 05:18:21 PM
I'm waiting on a few more copies of this tool, but I just want to say this. There are two versions of this tool available on Amazon right now, which you can buy brand new. The "RUKO 15-Function Stainless Steel Multi-Tool with Nylon Sheath" and the "Grand Way Multifunctional Folding Knife with Pliers and Screwdriver". The Ruko is decent. The Grand Way is absolute, total garbage. Stunningly so.

Edit - There are THREE versions on Amazon right now, not two. I just found a "Kikkerland CD504 Wooden Plier Multi-Tool" as well. It appears to be the same construction as the plastic-handled tools, which I've found to be by and large better than the all-metal bodies (with exception of the Sheffield, which is so far the best of the bare metal bodies). I will snag one of these and test it as well.

Charles.

Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 20, 2018, 07:04:42 AM
I'm using this thread now to rate and review all the various SOG Toolclip knockoffs I've been slowly accumulating (for very little money, mind you). Some are really good. Some are really bad. The results may surprise and awe you. Okay well maybe not that. But mind entertainment? Learnin' stuff? Or just make fun of me for liking these tools and buying so many. I don't care, whatever floats your boat.

I'm grading these tools on an A-F scale in the following categories:


I'm then rounding each review off with some Notes and an Overall recommendation

For the cutter grading, I'm testing the cutters with the following wires:
Note that though I'm testing speaker wire, which usually comes as two strands connected together, I'm only testing the cut of a single wire, not the pair. Also, I don't believe ANY of these tools will be able to cut the 24ga wires. It's not the tools' fault, really. It's a limitation of the shear-type cutter. I also do not expect a shear-type cutter to be able to cut bare stranded wire, so I am not testing that. For that kind of functionality a plier tool with side cutters would be required. (Lineman's Pliers)

In addition, I'm testing with one normal sized zip tie and one small zip tie.

Reviews forthcoming!

Charles.

Title: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip Knockoffs Shootout: Sheffield Review
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 20, 2018, 07:29:43 AM
First off, is the Sheffield. It's been sorta praised and sorta maligned. I have a brand-spanking-new copy of it, so I figured I'd start with it.


Jaws: B

Jaw operation is smooth. It started off a tad tight, but my copy is brand new, so this is to be expected. As I played with the tool these loosened up very quickly, giving me an easy to use, smooth operating tool. The tips of the jaws are flush with each other, but there's a 0.5mm offset to the jaws. The teeth of the jaws also do not mesh with each other. I cannot pull a hair out of my arm with these pliers. This is odd, because the machining elsewhere on this tool is top notch. I'm giving these a B because they're still really good jaws, and they do move very smoothly.


Cutter: B

The cutter easily cuts 12ga and 18ga wire. It for some reason struggles with the 16ga speaker wire with extra thick insulation. The insulation cuts but the wires do not, there are some stragglers left uncut. It does not cut the 24ga wire. It has no problems cutting zip tie big or small. Cut ends go flying as they should. While not perfect, the cutter does work for most applications I've thrown at it.


Tools: A

The Sheffield has a similar, but markedly different tool set than most of these plier tools. The plain blade is bigger, with more belly. The can opener is in the Victorinox style. It's a forward-moving opener, where most of the other copies have Wenger-style backwards operating can openers. It's *quite* sharp too. The can opener includes two different sizes of wire stripper notches, and these notches are sharpened. The serrated blade is larger, with a pointed, sharpened "stabby" end. The file on the back of this blade is double cut and quite sharp. It is good for soft metal. I have not tried it on steel, but it makes short work of aluminum. The phillips screwdriver head is well defined. The small flat head screwdriver has slightly rounded edges, but it is acceptable.


Sharpening: A+

All of the blades are SHARP. The main blade can cut receipt paper, and the serrated blade is razor sharp as well. The can opener is sharpened, and the two different sized wire stripper notches are also sharpened. This is one of the few tools that have those notches sharpened.

Peening: B+

This tool is well-peened. Big round heads everywhere, with nothing looking like it's about to pull through. The handle lock peen is nice and tight, but not so tight as to make the tools difficult to open. There is still a slight bit of side play in the tools, so it could stand to be peened a little more. I'd rather have a stiff lock than blade play, but all in all it's quite acceptable. So far I've only come across one tool with better peening. However this is likely to change, as I have more tools on the way.

Sheath: n/a

This tool didn't come with a sheath.

Other things of note:

The spring is stronger and longer than most other tools, and it opens the jaws almost exactly 50% before you have to manually open them further. This is wider than many other tools, and convenient because the cutters are open. The spring is also notched to match the handle, so the phillips screwdriver will clear it without a problem. The notch in the handle for the lock is well machined. The puffy stickers are easily removable, leaving bare metal with no logos underneath.

Overall: Buy.

This is a good tool, it's definitely one of the better tools of this style. It's machined well, put together well, and the blades are all razor sharp. The cutters work on most wire and on zip ties. It does all the jobs it should do. It is however uncomfortable in the hand. The exposed rivets and the hard edges to the side plates don't make this the nicest tool to use. It's not going to actually injure you to use it, it's just not comfortable in the hand. This is largely due to how narrow it is, I think. There are a lot of Chinese Plier Tools with the same exact toolsets and features, which have plastic scales. These are infinitely more comfortable to hold and use. The 5-blade versions are even wider, and even more comfortable because of that. I may eventually mod this by putting scales on it from a different Chinese Plier Tool.


Charles.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 20, 2018, 07:31:45 AM
Additional pics of the Sheffield drivers.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip Knockoffs: Grand Way Review
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 20, 2018, 09:00:20 AM
Next up is the Grand Way plier tool. I picked this up on Amazon brand new for the paltry sum of $9.99

Jaws: C

The jaws are extremely tight, to the point that the tool is difficult to use. The spring is extremely strong, stronger than the sheffield, likely made so as to overcome the stiffness of the jaws.  The jaws also are not flush on the tips. One side is higher than the other by 0.3mm, and the jaw tips are not square to the sides of the jaws. The teeth of the jaws almost line up, so when squeezing the tool hard they close, and then if I keep squeezing they close a little more, an I can feel a little flex as the jaws move slightly. The jaws do not open as far as the Sheffield tool does. There is no side offset to the jaws, and I can pull out arm hairs easily, but I just can't get past how stiff the jaws are. That, coupled with how strong the spring is makes this tool largely unusable.

Cutter: F-

The cutter on this tool has no edge, and it was not machined. It has casting marks on it, not machine marks. The cutters are too far apart from each other to work at cutting anything. These shear-style cutters require close tolerances, much like scissors, to work. If there's a gap between them, they don't cut. This tool was unable to cut ANY of the wires or zip ties used in my tests.

Tools: C

These all have largely the same tools. These are just your average crappy tools. The blade is different. It's shorter and fatter and has "Grand Way" laser-etched on it. The blade tapers before it comes to an edge, where most of the other tools have a flat blade with an edge and no taper. The serrated blade looks to use the same blank as the Sheffield tool, but with a different serrated grind and a flat screwdriver head instead of a point. Unfortunately they used the same blank as the Sheffield, but not the correct backspring for that blank. Thus the serrated blade sits up far too high in the tool when closed. The phillips driver and small flat driver are both quite rounded and smooth. The phillips is passable, but the flat driver is likely too rounded to be useful. The can opener is the standard reverse-opening style, but it's not even remotely sharp. The file is double cut, but it's not very deep and not very sharp. Good for fingernails and not much else.

Sharpening: D

Nothing in this tool is sharp. The plain blade might take an edge, but it didn't come with one. The serrated blade is not sharp either, and no part of the can opener is sharpened. Not the blade, and not the wire stripper notches. Blade can open packages, so it's not a complete fail. I guess.

Peening: F

The plier pivot pin is peened too hard, making the jaws stiff. The two backspring rivets are barely peened at all (see pic). The layers are not held together securely, and I can squeeze the sides of the tool around the rivets and see gaps close up. One of the rivets is for the phillips screwdriver. Putting torque on the screwdriver causes the layers to start to separate and the rivet pin begins to pull through. The rivet for the tools and handle lock is also badly peened, and will easily pull out of one side if I make any twisting or prying motion with the serrated blade/screwdriver tool. I've attached a pic showing what happens when I gently push the serrated blade to the side. You can see why the tools are all loose with lots of side play. The rivet isn't peened tightly at all. Also the rivet for the small screwdriver is supposed to be ground down flush on the inside of the tool to make clearance for the serrated blade. This was not done, and the serrated blade smacks that rivet every single time. I have to push the blade to the side to get it to drop down fully. (See pics in followup posting)

Sheath: D

It's very, VERY thin nylon. Almost paper thin. But the stitching is not pulled out, so it can't fail completely. It's a very poor sheath, and will not last. It's the absolute cheapest possible thing they could include and still call it a nylon sheath.

Other things of note:

The handle lock loop is too short. The handle has to be really squeezed to get the lock over it, and it's difficult to do. The edges of this tool are not smoothed in any way, and it feels sharper than the Sheffield. The serrated blade tool doesn't retract fully and it makes the tool slightly more awkward - and pointy - to hold. The notch in the handle is cut poorly. Brand new, the tool arrived with nicks and dings and scratches on it, like it was tossed into a box with a bunch of other tools, shaken a bit, and then finally wrapped up and put into boxes. It looks like I've used this tool for a few months, but I've only owned it a few days, ad I've never done more than fiddle with it and try to cut wires with it.

Overall: DO NOT BUY

This tool is junk. It's poorly machined, poorly peened, and completely smurfty in most categories, with no category ever rising above average. As it's a current (as of June 2018) item being sold on Amazon, you may be tempted to get one. This review is here to dissuade you of that. Avoid this piece of crap tool at all costs. This tool gives Grand Way a bad name. I don't know if the rest of their knives are any good, and after buying this POS I'm not about to find out either.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 20, 2018, 09:10:52 AM
Grand Way Pic upload #2:

The first pic shows the rivet head that is in the way of the blade. The second shows the blade contacting the rivet head. I have to push the blade to the side to get it to drop down fully. It still doesn't drop down all the way because the wrong backspring was used. The Sheffield has a different backspring for this extra-big blade, but this Grand Way tool doesn't. The third photo shows the blade down, and smacking the rivet. The last photo shows it after I pushed the blade to the side, and it dropped down just a little bit more. The blade still sticks up more than it should, and it is uncomfortable.

Charles.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 20, 2018, 09:15:38 AM
Last batch of Grand Way pics.

This next photo shows the grand way and sheffield compared, and you can see how much higher the serrated blade sits in the Grand Way than it does in the Sheffield. You can also see how much better the Sheffield is peened. The peened rivet heads are much larger on the Sheffield, and the Grand Way has one visible un-peened rivet. (There's another on the other side).

The second pic shows the poor machining of the notch on the handle, and the last two photos show the rounded and smooth drivers.

Charles.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 12:03:49 AM
Today I have a Kikkerland CD-504 Wooden Plier Multi-Tool, which is also currently available on Amazon for $9.99. Quality-wise, it's better than the Grand Way by a considerable margin, but it's a long way from as good as the Sheffield model.

Jaws: B

Jaw operation is tight. There's obvious wearing on the jaws where they rub on the side plates. This will likely improve with time, but it's significant and a little annoying to have to break in a pair of pliers. It's far worse than the Sheffield, which was just a slight drag which improved with very little use. I've worked these for 10 minutes and have seen only a little improvement so far. It's *almost* a livable amount of drag. The tips are even with each other, and the teeth mesh nicely. I can pull a hair out of my arm with these. However, there's a 0.75mm side offset to the jaws, which is pretty significant.

Cutter: D

The cutter on this tool is a mixed bag. It cannot cut the 12ga wire nor the 16ga with the extra thick insulation. It can cut the 16ga speaker wire. It cuts normal zip ties, but not the small ones. It doesn't cut the normal zip ties well, but it does cut them. So it's better than the Grand Way, but really it's not enough.

Tools: C+

This has the standard compliment of tools. There is side play in all of them, but it's not as bad as the Grand Way. It's still significantly worse than the Sheffield. The serrated blade sits high in the tool, like the Grand Way. The rivet head is low profile and not in the way in this tool, so that's nice. The double-cut file is not cut very deeply, and it appears to be cut unevenly, with one small section smoother and not cut as deeply as the rest. Still, it's passable.

The backsprings are very strong - some of the strongest I've encountered so far, which is nice. The can opener is a real nail breaker though. All the tools have a gritty grinding to them when opening, but some oil and working them hasn't completely cleared that up. The phillips driver is better than some, as it still retains some squared off profile. The small flat driver is rounded, but I've seen worse. The flat driver on this tool is actually pretty sharp, it could be used as a tiny scraper.

Sharpening: B-

The main blade is decently sharp. Good enough to cut paper, but not notably sharp otherwise. The serrated blade still has a burr on the back side, so that's not great. The can opener has an edge, but it's not a very sharp edge. It's good enough for a can, but some other brands sharpen this much more. None of the wire stripper notches are sharpened.

Peening: D

Well, this tool is peened better than the Grand Way, but it's still pretty bad. The rivet with the handle holder, that keeps the tools nice and tight is barely peened over. It's about to pull through one side of the handle lock. That's bad. Removing the scales to get a look underneath shows that some peens are ground down for clearance with the wood scales -- which is unnecessary, as the scales have holes drilled to compensate for the rivet heads. The two backspring rivets - one of which holds the screwdriver - are not peened at all on one side. Elsewhere the peening is sloppy or incomplete.

Sheath: n/a

This tool doesn't come with a sheath. Unfortunate, but not a deal killer.

Other Things of Note:

The spring on this tool is rather weak, and only opens the jaws about 45% of their travel. It would open it about 50% if the jaws weren't so tight. The notch in the handle is cut poorly, and the serrated blade sticks up too high, making it slightly less comfortable to hold. The handle itself has sharper edges than other tools. The spring doesn't have a cutout, so it has to be pushed to the side when opening the phillips screwdriver. The wooden scales make the tool more comfortable to hold than a bare tool like the Sheffield or Grand Way. The wood is unfinished and would take well to a stain. The screws that hold the wooden scales on look to come pre-stripped though. They look terrible. Also, the side plates on this tool are not mounted symetrically. They're higher on one side than the other. This indicates both poor manufacturing and poor quality control.


Overall: Do not buy

While the wood scales are a nice touch, they don't make up for what this tool lacks. And what it lacks is a reliable cutter head and decent peening. The tools are okay quality, sharpening is just okay, the side plates aren't on straight and the jaws are tight. Really the only reason to buy this tool would be to use the wooden scales on a different brand of multitool. These scales on the Sheffield tool would be a win, for instance. (although that would require drilling and tapping the screw holes)
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 08:07:29 AM
Does anyone care about this? Should I even bother to continue?

Charles.
Title: Re: The ubiquitous Chinese SOG toolclip knockoffs. Any good?
Post by: Don Pablo on June 21, 2018, 09:38:25 AM
I’ve been reading along. :popcorn:
As for continuing;
Since you’ve already got the tools, why not?  :)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on June 21, 2018, 11:53:06 AM
Yes please do continue :cheers: There are some who just read the reviews and others might be along in a day or 2 to comment :tu: Remember forum speed isn't as fast as some types of social media but when it gets here it stays :salute: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: magentus on June 21, 2018, 12:00:28 PM
Yes! Keep going please Charles - very interesting. Thanks for posting the reviews  :salute:  :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on June 21, 2018, 02:40:33 PM
Yes keep going Please  :popcorn: :like: :like:
Excellent reviews  :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: jcs0001 on June 21, 2018, 04:12:09 PM
Charles:

Please do continue.  A very interesting and useful thread.

Thanks,

John.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 08:48:50 PM
Well then, I will continue! Today I have a VERY different version of this tool. It's a Swissgear, and from what I gather from Google searches, it's mid to late 90s, likely sold in K-Mart stores (but also possibly sold elsewhere, I just don't know). In a way, this is a completely different tool from every other Toolclip clone I've come across. There's a long laundry list of changes. The most distinctive changes are the handle spring and the handle lock. The spring curls forward and dips under the handle near the jaws. All other toolclip clones I've seen have the spring pointing rearward and up, to contact the handle and open it between 30 and 50%. This spring design opens the jaws 83%. The handle lock is no longer on the same rivet that holds the tools in place, instead it's a small wire fitted into the plastic scales.  This tool is also made in Taiwan, not China. Judging by the logo and the time period this was released, Wenger likely had absolutely nothing to do with it. The logo is a red octagon with a white cross. Similar to the Wenger logo, but it's not Wenger.

Jaws: A+

The jaws on this swissgear are like no other Toolclip clone. First off, they're not scissor jaws. Top fixed jaw is held in place by two rivets, and the entire bottom jaw pivots. No scissor pivot. Next, the jaws themselves are much narrower and pointier. They're a fine needle nose, and they're very well machined. The tips are even and there is no side offset. What's more, the jaw operation is completely smooth, almost loose. There's not even a hint of tightness. The spring opens the jaws up almost all the way, making this tool FAR more comfortable and easy to use than any other clone so far. I can pull out arm hairs with this tool, even though it's obviously been used. It's retained that capability, which says something about its robustness. The teeth also all mesh perfectly when the jaws are closed.

Cutter: A-

The cutter easily cuts 12ga and 18ga wire. Like the others, this tool has an issue with the extra thick insulation on the 16ga wire. It does a slightly better job, but it's still not getting through in one cut. However, it does get through with a second cut. Sheffield doesn't manage that. Small and large zip ties are cut with forceful flying of the cut end. Cutter performance is roughly identical to the Sheffield, but it can cut the thick insulation wire in two tries... and the cutter jaws are always open a lot wider. So that bumps the score up a bit.

Tools: A

Again continuing with oddities. This multitool has a different tool load than any other I've come across thus far. The main blade is there, but it's bigger and longer than in any other tool so far. The serrated blade is also there, and it has a very similar serraded pattern to the other tools, with a scraper or flat screwdriver on the end. The file on the back of the serrated blade is cut finer than I've seen on any other Chinese Plier Tool. Normally the saw would be the center tool, between the main blade and the can opener. Not on the Swissgear. For the Swissgear the serrated blade is on the end, and the center tool is a fish scaler with a fish hook remover, and both inch and metric measurements printed on it. Unlike the other two blades, the fish scaler doesn't open completely flat. The backsprings on this tool are the BEST of any tool I've come across to date. They're nice and strong. There's also not even a hint of side-to-side play in the blades. I attribute this to the pin for the blades not having to share double duty as the pivot for the handle lock. Finally, the phillips driver is actually much beefier than any other model. It's larger in diameter and longer than on any other Chinese plier tool. It's actually ground flat on one side to clearance the handle.

Sharpening: A+

Hot damn these blades are sharp! The main blade can cut receipt paper. While I see that the pliers have a life of semi-regular use, I don't see any evidence of that on the blades. They look largely unused. The serrated blade is also super sharp, and there is a sharpened cutout for stripping wire on the serrated blade as well.

Peening: A+

The peening on this tool is the best I have EVER seen. A whole lot more care went into manufacturing this tool than into any other Chinese Plier tool I've seen. These peens weren't made by kids with hammers and anvils, they are obviously machine-made. There is a much higher degree of manufacturing work into this tool than into any other clone I've come across to date. (although I have several on the way, including another with jaws of this style, so that may change).

Sheath: A-

The sheath is pretty nice. It's got a nicely stitched Swissgear logo in red and white, and the seams are double stitched and perfectly straight, with no threads coming loose. It's a bit on the thin side, but it's still robust enough to have lasted this long. It's got loops for both horizontal and vertical carry.

Other Things of Note:

The notch in the handle for the lock is not machined very deep. The wire loop that locks the handle also does not have a lot of resistance to moving on its own. This means the handle likes to pop open easily. I gave my wire a bit of a bend so it makes some friction, and that helped things, but it's still a lot easier to bump the handle free on this tool than on any other. That's really the only gripe about this Swissgear.  My copy is slightly worn and obviously used, but taken good care of. It's got a little gunk in the crevasses, wear showing on the jaws where they rub the side plates, and some tiny rust spots here and there. And yet it still has a very good cutter, the peening is still magnificent, and it's still performing very well.

Overall: Don't hesitate, BUY IT!

This is easily the best copy of the ToolClip I've ever found. It feels really good in my hand, the scales are nicely patterned and comfortable to hold. The handle has the edges smoothed so they don't cut into hands. The jaws open almost all the way via the spring, which honeslty makes these pliers so SO much nicer to use than any other Chinese Plier Tool. There is a lot more quality and precision put into this tool than any other I've seen. This is not just a good tool, it's a great tool. I just lament the fish scaler. I'm far more likely to want to pop open a beer than to scale a fish. The best recommendation I can give about a tool is the "I want another one" rating. And I do, I want one to stay permanently in my motorcycle bag, and one to EDC or at least keep in the garage for regular use. I almost didn't post this review, because I don't want competition when another one of these comes on eBay! If you come across one of these gems, it's really quite worth the purchase.




Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 08:52:05 PM
More photos of the Swissgear:



Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on June 21, 2018, 08:57:13 PM
The Swissgear looks nice quality  :tu: :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 09:00:09 PM
Finally, here are the pics of the peening, as well as a photo showing the difference in how far the jaws are opened between the Swissgear and the Sheffield

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on June 21, 2018, 09:03:01 PM
I like the idea that the scales can be removed
That way you could make your
own out of wood or aluminium  :tu:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 09:13:29 PM
Well, the scales can be removed on the other tools as well. You just have to remove the rivet that holds the blades in place, and then replace it. On most of the cheesy tools this would be easy, because that rivet is normally badly peened in the first place. I'm seriously considering keeping the Kikkerland just for the wooden scales, sanding them down, staining them, hitting them up with some tung oil, and then drilling and tapping the sheffield side plates for screws to mount the scales. That would make the Sheffield a LOT more comfortable in the hand.


NOTE: There is a Swissgear on ebay right now, but the spring is broken. So if you're thinking about pulling the trigger, keep that in mind. The best part is the spring action for the jaws, and you'll be missing out on that. It's a high quality tool nonetheless, so you may want it anyhow, but I passed on it because of the broken spring.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on June 21, 2018, 10:00:03 PM
Sorry what I mean is that you
only have to remove the screws
To remove the scales  :tu:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 21, 2018, 10:17:06 PM
You get a two-for-one thursday today, as I post a quickie about the Ka-Bar version of this multitool. First off, if you're not careful you'll miss the fact that this isn't a full-sized tool! It's the size of a micro toolclip, and yet it looks VERY similar to the Ubiquitous Chinese Plier Tool. According to Ka-Bar this was produced from 1996-2006, and is part number 02-1307. The tools are sharp, the jaws are machined very well, the file is good for fingernails and not much else. There's a wire stripper cutout that I've sharpened on mine, but it didn't come that way. (and it doesn't work so great even sharpened. Using the serrated blade for a wire stripper works loads better). It has a clip, as you can see, which makes it nice to carry inside a jeans coin pocket.  The cutter is pretty bad. It manages 16ga insulated wire, but fails on everything else, including regular zip ties. It's peened very well, and it feels nice in the hand. It feels like a quality micro tool. It's about the same as a Micro Toolclip, but without the annoying self-opening in my pants. The cutters on the SOG are probably a hair better... but only a hair. Overall  I like the little thing, I just wish the cutters were better. They're machined well, with close tolerances, but not sharpened.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 22, 2018, 10:17:52 AM
Note: I've gone back and taken a file to the Kabar tool's cutters, and now it will cut small zip ties, 18ga and 12ga wire easily. The extra-thick 16ga still gives it problems though.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on June 22, 2018, 11:47:58 AM
So far I am liking the Swissgear pliers :like: Lots of great pics Charles and great write ups :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 22, 2018, 07:02:20 PM
Today's test subject is a "Bench Pro" branded black-scaled model. While the Swissgear is the first black-scaled model I reviewed, it's a special mode.  I've actually come across many regular models that have black plastic scales. I like the black-scaled models. They feel good in the hand, there is more to hold on to and the scales feel good. But, feeling good in the hand doesn't necessarially mean it's a good tool, as we shall see.


Jaws: C

The tips of the jaws do not line up. What's more, they're not at right angles to the tool. They're angled and not very precise at all. The teeth sorta line up, but not really. The tips of the jaws don't come together, so there will be no arm defoliation with these pliers. The one thing they have going for them is the smoooooooth jaw operation. They're worn and loose and feel quite nice to use. There is also no side offset to speak of

Cutter: C-

The cutter appears to have been hit with a file in the past. It didn't help. Out of all the test objects, the only thing the cutters cut was the large zip tie. Since the cutters had evidence of past sharpening, I had a go with a file. And now they'll cut 18ga insulated wire as well, but they fail on other soft wire.

Tools: D

This pair of pliers has the normal complement of tools... or so it seems. The main blade is normal, and the rest of the tools have the same *shape* as the tools from other Chinese Plier Tools... but they're chrome plated. Why are they chrome plated? Some of the plating is scratched from the tool opener I use, and it's pink underneath. I'm guessing the copper layer under the chrome. Since the can opener wasn't sharpened, I went ahead and took my file and filed the can opener to put an edge on it. It appears to be stainless underneath, but I'm not 100% sure of that. What I am sure of is it should NOT have been that easy to file. It was like filing mild steel. What's more, I started with the file from the sheffield tool, and it took metal away quite easily. I switched to a real file to do the rest of the job, though.

So, if they are stainless underneath (and I'm not sure of that, but if they are) then I'm wondering why they'd plate the tools instead of just leaving them stainless. Looking at the serrated blade, the plating was done AFTER the blade was sharpened and file was cut. Attempting to file anything except my nails with this file was an exercise in futility. The file first turns pink, and then becomes smooth and visibly damaged. Phillips driver and small flat driver are noticeably rounded.

Sharpening: D
The main blade has an edge, but not a very good one. It appears to be the same blade in all the other Chinese plier tools, so it should sharpen up nicely... but it's not sharp as-is. The other tools are not sharp at all. The serrated blade was plated after the initial sharpening, and it's laugably dull. The same with the can opener. It had no edge to speak of. And of course none of the wire stripper notches were sharpened.

Peening: C
It's a mixed bag. The tool holding/handle lock rivet needed to be peened, it was very very loose. So I did that, and the tool feels good and seems solid. After removing the scales, I see that peening is decent on the major spots, but the backsprings and screwdriver rivets are not peened very well. They're peened on one side and barely touched on the other. But the major structural peens, while ugly, are there and strong.

Sheath: B
The sheath is of average quality and thickness. It has two rows of stitching around all the edges, and a "Bench Pro" logo printed in white on a pleather panel. It's a thicker sheath than some, not as thick as others. The Swissgear sheath was made better and of thicker material.

Other Things of Note:
There are things that were done right with this tool. The jaws move freely and open and close very nicely. Not all the Chinese plier tools can say that. The spring has a cutout for the screwdriver, and is quite springy. It opens the jaws as much as the Sheffield spring does, but it's a much ligher spring and it takes less force to use the pliers. So the pliers are actually really comfortable to use. The edges of the plier handle has also been smoothed slightly, so they don't feel sharp in the hand. These are things that this plier tool does really right. It's a shame the cutters don't work, the jaws are jacked up, and the tools are chrome-plated. Note that the side plates under the scales are also chrome plated. On other tools they are bare stainless. The notch in the handle for the lock is haphazardly cut, at an angle no less.

Overall: Well, don't buy this one, that's for sure.
When buying a company-branded multitool, it's a good idea to look at the tools carefully and see if they're chrome plated or not. If they're chrome plated, don't buy the tool. There's really not a lot I can recommend here, as I'm still waiting on several corporate-branded tools to arrive. With enough samples I should be able to see if there's a trend, or if it's just a crapshoot. The best you can do is scour photos and look for precise jaws and a nicely machined cut on the handle for the lock.

I must say I really hate that this copy is so bad. It feels really good in my hand, and the jaws operate nice and freely, with a good spring and a decent sheath.

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 22, 2018, 07:16:30 PM
More pics of the Bench Pro.

So, I went ahead and sharpened all the tools, including the serrated blade. I knocked down the round edges on both flat head screwdrivers. I sharpened the can opener and... admittedly crudely... sharpened a notch for stripping wire. Which doesn't work as well as using the serrated blade, honestly. In doing all of this, I also went ahead and peened both the backspring rivets. And then noticed something. There is no good reason for not peening the screwdriver rivet. You want that one to be strong, and the screwdriver tool is actually thinner than the backspring, so you can't over-tighten this. BUT, the rivet closer to the jaws is touchy. Peen it too much, and it tightens the jaws. It's not terribly structural, so leaving it lightly peened isn't going to hurt anything, I think. Learned something today!

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 22, 2018, 09:07:43 PM
More of these coming in. Some really good, some really bad! Plus an entirely new TYPE, with some of the features of the Swiss Gear but with a different tool set.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on June 22, 2018, 09:29:58 PM
 :popcorn: :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on June 23, 2018, 11:38:34 AM
2 more in the books Charles :tu: Good grading system as well :cheers: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 23, 2018, 06:49:55 PM
Today I received a "new" tool from eBay. It was sold as new, but I quickly got my money back, and you can see why. This is an excellent show of what happens when a tool is heavily used, and the peening fails. Honestly, I'm not sure what happened to this thing. The scales are in good shape, but it looks to me like it was run over or used as a pry bar. The whole tool has a curve to it. It seems heavily abused... but I'm not sure how this could have happened, and the exterior of the tool be in such decent condition. It was so bad the spring popped out on one side of the liner. So fixing it was not as simple as clamping it in a vice and re-peening it.

The thing is, this would be one of the better tools. The peening on the rest of the tool, except the part that pulled out, is really good. In fact, the peens are holding the structure together well beyond what I think they were designed for. The side plates are bent, and yet the larger plier peens are holding 100%. I really think this thing must have been run over, because the quality of peening is actually pretty good. Even the tool pivot peen is decent.  The blades also have the wire stripper cutout sharpened.  One interesting thing here: This tool has two rivets on the top jaw. Most have one rivet there, unless they're the two-piece jaw type. This is still a scissor jaw, but with two rivets. I was hoping that two rivets in the jaw would be enough to determine the jaw type from eBay listings, but that's apparently not the case. Damn. That makes it harder to find the better SOG-type jaw.  (More on that later)

I'm going to try and repair this, but I think with the bent metal side plates it's probably destined for the junk pile.

Charles
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 23, 2018, 06:51:54 PM
Last pic of the trashed tool showing the two rivets that have pulled through.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 25, 2018, 08:20:49 PM
Today I have a "Deluxe Multi-Purpose Plier" that was apparently a promotional item from a New Jersey "TransAction" Transportation Conference. There is no year on the tool, and it's an annual conference that's been going on since 1976, so it could be 2 years old or 40 years old, no clue. This is one of the best-made pliers I've reviewed since the Swiss Gera

Jaws: A

These jaws are amazing. I like the blunt nose design, and the operation is extremely smooth. There is not even the slightest hint of tightness. These are two-piece jaws, with the top jaw held in place by two rivets. This is a superior jaw to the scissor type, and in my experience these are the smoothest-operating jaws. The jaw precision is very good. There's just enough sideways offset to grab with a fingernail, but no more than that. Very acceptable. The tips are precisely ground, and I can easily grab arm hairs and pull them out. There is a very slight side-play in the jaws. More of a rocking motion, really. This indicates either some wear on the pivot pin, or that the pivot is drilled too large for the pin used. It's very minor, only 0.5mm of play at the plier tips. The spring is excellent. Very light feeling, and yet opens the jaws almost all the way.

Cutter: A

The cutter is very good. On most of the Chinese Plier Tools, the cutter blades meet at the back of the tool first. This could force the wire to slide out of the cutter. I've not had it happen, but it could for a heavier gauge or a hard copper wire. These cutters meet at the front of the tool first, and would force any wire deeper into the cutter. The SwissGear also shares this design, and I'm thinking that any of these tools with the two-piece jaw may be this way. That may be one way to determine the jaw type. The cutter on this tool is obviously machined and sharpened as well. These jaws can cut the 18ga speaker wire, the 16ga wire with extra thick insulation, and zip ties both big and small with ease. It often cuts 12ga with one cut, but sometimes takes 2 cuts. I attribute this to the play in the jaws.

Tools: B-

While the jaws and cutter on this tool are excellent, the tools are just average. It's the standard complement of tools. Blade, serrated blade/file, and can opener. None of the wire stripper notches are sharpened. The serrated blade sits low in the tool, partially obscuring the nail nick. The backspring for the plain blade is very strong. The backspring for the can opener is just right (not too strong to extract the tool easily). The backspring for the serrated blade is strong when extended, but weak such that the blade doesn't snap down when closing. The mini flat head driver has slightly rounded edges, but not bad at all. However, the flat head is missing the washer, and has a bend to make clearance for the can opener. This is the first I've come across with such a blatant corner cutting. This version of the tool, like the SwissGear, does not have a phillips screwdriver on the backspring.

Design difference: There is an additional rivet in this tool, which acts as a stop for the tools. On all other tools (including the SwissGear), the tools are stopped by the design of the backspring. Those tools can be pushed in a little more, and you can feel the backspring bend some. These tools have a hard stop against the additional rivet near the tool pivot. This is very much like the SOG ToolClip design. Unfortunately with lots of closing the tools and with force applied to the jaws through the tools, that rivet bends and wears. This allows the tools to sink further into the tool, obscuring the nail nick. This is the reason the center serrated blade tool has the nail nick partially obscured.

Sharpening: B-

The main blade is not very sharp. It's not dull, but it's not super sharp either. This is a used tool, so I'm not going to ding it much for that. Especially considering that the serrated blade is quite sharp. The can opener has an edge on it, but it's not a sharp edge by any means. But again, no wire stripper notches are sharpened.

Peening: A-

The peening on this tool is pretty good. All the main rivets have big-headed peens on both sides. The tools are well secured with minimal side play The two backspring peens near the pivot however aren't peened as well as I would like. I don't think they'll be an issue because the peening is so good elsewhere. I don't see them pulling out, but I'd rather they were peened better. The additional rivet that's used as a tool stop is pulling in slightly. The rivet has been bent slightly, and it could stand to be re-peened to prevent further bending.

Sheath: A

This is a different sheath design from the others. It's a nice vinyl sheath and more heavy-duty than most of the nylon sheaths. I prefer the nylon sheath to be honest, but this is still a good quality sheath. It's vertical-carry only, however.

Other Things of Note:

This is the closest design I've found to the actual SOG ToolClip. There's no clip, obviously, but the jaw design, the side plate shape, the lack of a notch in the end of the handle, and the extra tool-stop rivet are straight from the SOG ToolClip. It's comfortable in the hand. The sharp edges have all been knocked off this tool. However, it's still not as comfortable to hold as one of the multitools with black plastic handles. If this thing had the tools from the Sheffield and some plastic handles, it would be the perfect multitool.

Overall: Buy It

I paid $20 for my copy, with the original box and sheath in very good condition. The tool was used, with some wear on the "Stainless China" lettering on the main blade and bending of the tool stop rivet, but outwardly it appears to be a new tool. No marks on the sheath, no marks on the tool itself, and jaws with very minimal tooth wear. This is the closest I have come to a SOG ToolClip so far, and for $130 less than they go for on eBay. And I get spring-loaded jaws, which is something I really want in a plier-based multitool. I love the SwissGear for the needle nose pliers, but the fish scaler is useless to me. For blunt-nose pliers, this is the way to go, and with more useful tools than the SwissGear. It is however equally hard to find this style. All of this style I've seen so far have had non-sharpened wire stripper notches and are missing the washer on the screwdriver. (Granted, it's only been three, but they're all identical so far)
 

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 25, 2018, 08:22:34 PM
More pics of the TransAction Conference pliers:

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on June 26, 2018, 03:45:14 AM
Very nice reviews again Charles  :like: On my phone and it isn't wanting to show pics ATM but I will check back in on my PC and look at the pics in a while :tu: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on June 26, 2018, 06:26:13 AM
Awesome write-ups, CC! Thank you! :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on June 26, 2018, 01:56:42 PM
Now that I see the pics it makes the review even better :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 26, 2018, 06:02:57 PM
Today I have one of these tools with the strange metal and rubber scales. It looks rather like a space shuttle, and not really in a good way. The metal scales are easily removed, and held on by little clips. Under that the rubber part is secured by a screw near the tool pivot. These scales will not mount to another tool, because there are notches in the rear of the side plates for the tabs on the scales to notch into, so they don't get in the way of the tools opening. The tool feels good in the hand, but the metal scales are just very thin sheet metal, and my hand can tell they're not really very solid. And they're really goofy-looking.

Jaws: B-
The jaw operation is smooth, and the tips are machined okay. They come together at a raised section at the tip, which can easily pull out arm hairs. The small jaw teeth don't mesh because of the raised tip, but they would if that tip wasn't present. The large teeth however, are cut weirdly and don't match from side to side. The tip of the top jaw is larger than the tip of the bottom jaw as well. The spring is strong and keeps the pliers open just enough to slide a wire into the cutter. There is not significant side-play in the jaws.

Cutter: F-
It seriously cuts nothing. None of the wires in my tests, none of the zip ties, nothing. The cutters are cast with no machining or filing done at all. I might be able to improve the cutters with a file, but honestly this tool doesn't have enough redeemable qualities to even bother trying.

Tools: C
Standard complement of tools. The file is fine cut, but not deeply cut, and it doesn't feel agressive at all. The small flat driver is actually less rounded than most tools, but it's really tight and difficult to open. Plus the stop notch is cut too short, so the tool opens far more than 90 degrees. The can opener is a nightmare to actually open. I cannot open it without a nail opening tool, or a bottle opener blade from a SAK. However, there is no side play in the tools at all. The tool pivot rivet is peened very strongly*. There are rust spots on the blade. The 90 degree phillips driver has the oddest cut I've seen. It's sharply cut and has the tip flattened. I'd call it a good looking driver. 

Sharpening: B
The blade is well used, with significant wear marks and rust spots, but it still has a decent edge. The can opener has from-the-factory sharpening on it, and it's actually sharp enough to be considered a second blade. The serrated blade is razor sharp. The wire stripper notches aren't sharpened though, so this is still a B.

Peening: D+
It's starting to come apart, so it can't get much higher. The peens on one side look fine, but on the other side they're peened and then ground down, and often they're not peened enough before that grinding. The two backspring rivets in particular are not peened enough, and are starting to pull through. The tool rivet is peened rather well, but looking at the marks on each side of the rivet, I'm wondering if the previous owner didn't open the tool up and peen it himself.

Sheath: n/a

This tool didn't come with a sheath.

Other Things of Note:

The notch in the handle is evenly cut, but it's not precisely machined by any means. It has a rough surface, and it's not quite deep enough. The handle lock is very tight, and not quite long enough. The handle has to be pushed in with significant force to get the lock to slide over. The edges of the side plates are sharp and unfinished. Since normally the tool has the dopey space shuttle scales on it this isn't really a problem, but it doesn't speak to quality.


Overall: Don't Buy

The overall feeling of the tool in my hands is that it's of middling quality. The tools are sharp, but one is impossible to open and another opens too far. The peening is substandard, and the large jaw teeth misshapen. The handles are weird (though comfy), and the cutter is abysmal. There aren't enough redeeming qualities to warrant buying this version of the Chinese Plier Tool.


Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 26, 2018, 06:04:58 PM
Here's how the side plates attach. The last photo shows the poor peening on the backspring rivets.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 26, 2018, 09:01:21 PM
So, I decided today I was going to make a burrito. I grabbed one of these multitools and a can of black beans, then quickly realized that they don't have can openers. The profile is completely wrong for that blade to be a can opener. It's far too long, and the tip hits the rim of the can before the  lower point of the blade touches down. I think it's meant to be a bottle opener with an auxiliary blade. Only the Sheffield has a real can opener, the rest of these have a glorified bottle opener. They do open bottles rather well, but not cans at all. To work as a can opener, the blade would have to come down significantly below the notch which keeps it on the rim. The SOG uses this same style tool, and I'm guessing it too is useless for cans.

FYI, the Sheffield can opener is really, really good. Faster than either a Wenger or Victorinox can opener. Largely because it's freaking huge in comparison. It cuts nicely and cleanly and makes big cuts without getting stuck.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 28, 2018, 10:38:33 PM
Today I have another interesting variation. It's a standard  plier tool with a Swissgear type spring, and Barlow branding on it.

Jaws: A

Well, the jaws are really nice. They're precisely machined. The ends are square, there's no side offset, and all the teeth precisely fit into each other. The jaws are loose with no hint of tightness whatsoever. The spring doesn't open the pliers are far as the spring on the SwissGear does, but it opens them far enough that the cutters are open quite a bit. The pliers feel good in my hand, they're a pleasure to use for pliering tasks!

Cutter: C-

The cutter works well for zip ties, cutting them with a solid snip. It works on 18ga speaker wire, but the cut is not complete. Some insulation is still attached. The 16ga with the extra thick insulation (lamp cord) is not cut at all, just mangled and bent. The 12ga is equally uncut, though usually a second try on the mangled wires will result in a complete, if ragged, cut.

Tools: D

This tool has the standard complement of tools. Some things are really decently good. The phillips and the small flat head driver have sharp corners and no rounding. All the tools can be opened easily. But then things get wonky. First off, on every other of these plier tools, the small flat head driver can only be opened after first opening the bottle opener. On this tool, the flat head opens right up. This is accomplished by a small washer, which was added to the side of the serrated blade. This, plus an extra washer on the small flat driver, gives clearance for the driver to open without contacting the bottle opener.

However, they didn't increase the thickness of the backspring for the serrated blade when they added the washer. Let that sink in for a moment. The serrated blade + washer is thicker than the backspring for the serrated blade. This means the tool is wider at the back than it is at the front, and it looks like it's coming apart because there is space between the backsprings. The side plates aren't parallel! They accomplished this by basically not peening the two backspring rivets at ALL. If they had, there'd be a perceptible bend in the tool side plates, as they formed a "Y".  There is also some side play to the tools. Not as bad as some models, but still significant.

Sharpening: C-

The main blade and serrated blade are averagely sharp. The main blade can cut paper, but not receipt paper. None of the wire stripper notches are sharpened, and the bottle opener doesn't have much of an edge on it

Peening: F
It's pretty bad. The backspring rivets aren't peened at all, the tool rivet is peened well, but that's the only one. Even the plier head rivets aren't peened well. The top jaw rivet is barely peened on one side. The pivot rivet just looks okay.

Sheath: B+

The sheath is nicer than some. It's middle quality fabric, and it has a little nylon loop with a ring on it, which no other sheath has so far. Not sure what I'd use that for, but it's there.

Other Things of Note:

Nothing really to post here, that covered it.

Overall: Don't buy it.
Pass on this one. The spring is nice and the jaw action pleasant, but the poor peening, poor cutters, and the extra washer causing the backsprings to be uneven makes this tool a bad choice. UNLESS you're looking for a cheap base to start modding, I'd pass on this version.



Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 28, 2018, 10:43:55 PM
First photo shows the washer. From left to right you're looking at the side plate, bottle opener, liner, washer, serrated blade, liner, plain blade, side plate.

The second and third photo shows how the backsprings are splayed apart. The third photo also shows the lack of any significant peening for the backspring rivets.

The final photo shows the back side of the pouch/sheath.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 28, 2018, 11:37:10 PM
Another twofer today, as I review REALLY interesting model! It's a souvenir tool from Monarch Crest, Colorado. Likely sold at the Monarch Crest Scenic Tramway and Gift Shop many years ago. This tool is very different than the other plier tools. It has a completely different tool load with a longer, thicker, and deeper blade, a combination tool, and a really slick wood saw. The handle is right around a quarter inch longer, to accomodate the extra length of these tools.

Jaws: B-

The jaws are longer than most other plier tools, and are precisely machined. The tips meet almost flush (just enough space to grab with a fingernail), and there is no side offset or side play.  They're more of a needle nose than the Sheffield. The teeth are cut cleanly, although they don't mesh. They're not designed to, as there's a little extra material on the tips that comes together first. They can easily pull out arm hairs because of that.  There is a very slight drag on the pliers, which feels good. They're not tight or stiff in any way, but they're not loose and floppy either. However, the spring is very stiff, giving the pliers a heavy-feeling action.  The spring is attached to the handle, and can get in the way and feel odd if you're trying to open the pliers more than the spring does, but flicking the handle open more with a finger on the inside. The finger hits the spring instead of the handle, and this is uncomfortable. The jaws also don't open as far as some of the better tools, so there's that to consider as well.

The spring is replaceable, it's attached with a single screw, so that is something worth considering as well.

Cutter: A-

It cuts zip ties with ease, 12ga wire with ease, 18ga speaker wire with no problems. It only has trouble with the 16ga lamp cord with the extra thick insulation. Well, and the 24ga of course. None of these tools can cut that... yet.

Tools: A+

The main blade in this tool is a whopper! The sharpened portion of this blade is the same length as the Sheffield tool: 2.4 inches. However, the blade has a large half-moon cutout (not sure what this is for) on the tang. The total length from pivot to tip of the blade in this tool is 3.41". That's a a full .40" inches longer than the Sheffield blade, which measures in at at 3.01" from tip to pivot.

Many of the 5-blade plier multitools (Ruko, Alltrade, etc) have a saw. But none have a saw with this design! There is a cutout that facilitates deeper cuts. It keeps the blade from jamming as much, and it works really well. I tested this saw and it cuts better than the saw on my Swiss Champ. There are two files cut into the saw, one fine and one coarse. Both are quite aggressive and deeply cut.  There is a flat head screwdriver tool on the end of this saw which is not machined or cut so that it fits screws. This is because the combination tool has the same screwdriver head, and it IS machined on that tool. My intention is to file this down to make a scraper tool on the end of the saw blade.

Fianally we get to the awesome combination tool. This tool has a can opener, a bottle opener, a serrated blade, a flat-head screwdriver, and a wrench that fits four bolt sizes - 5.5mm, 7mm, 8mm, and 10mm. This little tool rocks my socks.

There is no backspring driver on this plier tool. That's fine with me, the backspring phillips is largely useless.

Sharpening: A+

The main blade on this came sharp enough to cut receipt paper. The half-circle cutout is also razor sharp, the can opener is quite sharp, and the serrated blade is sharp too. No complaints at all here, they've done a great job.

Peening: D-

This is where things go south. The plier head is poorly peened, but at least it's tight, as evidenced by the slight drag of the handle and the lack of any play in the plier head. The top jaw rivet doesn't look great either. The tool pivot rivet is peened well. The backspring rivets are completely un-peened, and are pulling out of both sides. Damn, so close. The manufacturing is good, the assembly poor.

Sheath: B

The sheath is longer by half an inch, to account for the longer and thicker tool. It's the same middle grade nylon as most of the rest, and it has dual carry (horizontal & vertical) like many other sheaths do.

Other Things of Note:

The wooden scales are held on with both screws and with some contact cement. The design of the scales match the side plates, which have a different shape at the front of the tool than side plates from the normal models. Because of the extra length of the handle, the tool lock loop does not line up with the plier handle. The handle really should be longer to accomodate. This means the tool is a lot easier to pop open accidentially than other plier tools.

Overall: Buy this!
If you find one that has been lightly used, I say buy it, pop off the scales, and peen it yourself. The tool selection is great and the pliers and cutter good. I like this tool!


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 28, 2018, 11:38:53 PM
Here's the downright bad peening for the Monarch Crest souvenir tool.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on June 29, 2018, 01:55:35 AM
It is like they said "lets make this MT stand out" and 3/4 the way into it, the bean counters said "hold up on the quality and just peen it with a big rock". :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on June 29, 2018, 11:39:53 AM
It is like they said "lets make this MT stand out" and 3/4 the way into it, the bean counters said "hold up on the quality and just peen it with a big rock". :ahhh

Thats what I am getting from it as well :ahhh :D

Some more great reviews CC :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Don Pablo on June 29, 2018, 03:02:04 PM
It is like they said "lets make this MT stand out" and 3/4 the way into it, the bean counters said "hold up on the quality and just peen it with a big rock". :ahhh
I dunno, more like they DID use a hammer, but got someone with my skill level to bash away at it. :facepalm:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 29, 2018, 05:05:12 PM
Anyone know what that half circle cutout would be for? It kinda lines up, but not really, with the hole in the combination tool. Maybe used for wire stripping? Or for something else entirely?

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on June 30, 2018, 04:17:11 AM
I have no idea. :think:
Maybe a half-smurfed attempt at a finger choil?

Also, the Bench-Pro arrived as stated and quickly. Thank you!
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on June 30, 2018, 04:38:15 PM
Well, this link appears to indicate the round one is for stripping, the v-notch for cutting wire. https://catalogue.facom.com/se-en/categorie/sawing-drilling-cutting/knives/produit/electricians-knife-with-wire-stripper-with-wood-handle  I can see the big round notch working well for cutting the sheath off or romex or coax, so that makes sense.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 03, 2018, 08:44:27 AM
Although I've alluded to the 5-tool pliers previously, this is the first review I'm writing for one of them. This is the "RUKO 15-Function Stainless Steel Multi-Tool with Nylon Sheath", sold brand new on Amazon for around $21. I've owned this one for a while, and I really *want* to be able to recommend it... but I can't. Because these are available new, I purchased two of them from Amazon to see what kind of variation there is between copies, and it's not good. The tools are all the same, but the jaw precision and cutter usability is quite variable between the new tools.

Jaws: C
One copy I have has precise jaws with no offset, and they can pull out an arm hair easily. However, they were extremely tight. One of the spacer plates is deformed slightly and is rubbing the jaw, making it a drag quite badly. The spring is weak and even if the jaw was properly loose, the spring doesn't open the pliers very far.  On the second copy, there was 0.6mm offset at the tips of the pliers. They looked okay otherwise, and still pulled out arm hairs. The side plates aren't deformed on this tool, but there is still some drag to the jaws. Neither copy is a smooth opener.

Cutter: C
Both tools manage zip ties (regular and small) without problems. The first copy will cut the 18ga speaker wire, but not the 16ga with the extra-thick insulation. It will cut 12ga wire in one stroke if I make sure the wire is all the way at the back of the cutter. Otherwise it will not completely cut the wire.

On the second copy, it cannot cut any stranded wire of any gauge.

Tools: B

The tool selection is SO much better than the 3-tool model. The thin models have a plain blade, a serrated blade w/file, and a small plain blade on the end of a bottle opener. That's three blades and a bottle opener, plus two dinky screwdrivers. This model has five main tools: A plain blade, a bottle opener with a small blade, a serrated blade with file, a wood saw, and a pair of scissors. While I still think there are too many blades, the saw and scissors make the tool a lot more useful.

The tools are located oddly, though. The nail nick for the serrated blade is blocked by the scissors. To open the serrated blade, the scissors have to be opened first. On other tools, and indeed on the older Ruko tool, the scissors are on the outermost position and have the nail nick on the other side. They sit below the nick of the main blade, and everything is accessable without opening other tools.

The Phillips driver is oddly pointed and sharp. The small screwdriver is VERY rounded. the nail nick for the saw blade is difficult to get to because of the metal tab for the small flat screwdriver.

The new scissors are very oddly shaped. They look like child's scissors. They do work well enough on paper, even several layers of paper, but they're useless for opening blisterpack packaging.

The tools all have significant side-play, due to peening (seperate issue)

Sharpening: B-

The main blade is just barely sharp enough to cut paper. The bottle opener blade has an edge on it, but it is not sharp enough to cut paper.  The serrated blade seems pretty sharp, and the file is deeply cut and feels aggressive. None of the wire stripper notches are sharpened. The saw is quite sharp, and works well. The scissors aren't particularly sharp, but they manage paper fine.

Peening: C

The main pliers are peened well, but the backsprings are peened poorly, as is the tool rivet. 

Sheath: B

Same style of middle-quality nylon sheath they all have. Somewhat larger to accomodate the extra thickness of the tool over the 3-tool models.

Other Things of Note:

The second copy of this tool was assembled differently. The new copy also has a washer added to the bottle opener tool, which is supposed to allow the small screwdriver to open without having to open the bottle opener first. Unfortunately this wasn't thought through, as there is also a washer on the screwdriver. It makes the tools jam up, and the bottle opener blade hits the screwdriver tool, causing a little nick in the blade.

I really like the thickness and weight of this tool.The extra two tools plus the plastic scales make this a nice and heavy tool that feels good in the hand. I fixed the peening of my first copy, and I worked and worked and worked the jaws so they're a little looser, but they'll likely never be completely loose. The tool selection is great, but as pliers they kinda stink. Even the one with the cutters that mostly work... the pliers just aren't easy to operate. On a tool that is all about the pliers, having the main function not work so great is grounds for skipping it.

Overall: Pass on this

Although the tool selection is great and you can buy the tool brand new, the quality control is severely lacking. The two versions I have were constructed differently, with different washers and spacers, and the product variation is just unacceptable.


All that being said, I also acquired an OLD version of the Ruko tool. This older version has more streamlined scissors, which don't look like children's scissors. These scissors are located on the outside, with an exposed nail nick. None of the tools are blocked by any other tools. The wood saw has fewer teeth, and they're not as aggressively cut. The later-model tool has a far better saw. The cutters are machined shorter. My copy is well-used, and the cutters were pretty beat up, with big dings and divots in them. They still cut about the same as the first new cutter. 12ga wire will cut at the back of the cutter, 18ga with thick insulation doesn't cut. 16 ga speaker wire cuts mostly cleanly, but sometimes there are stragglers.  The older model has less tool play, but is peened about the same otherwise.


The third pic below shows the wear to the jaw. The fourth photo shows the spacer that is malformed, and is causing the drag on the jaws.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 03, 2018, 08:46:00 AM
Here are pics of the drivers, as well as two shots showing how the scissors block the serrated blade.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 03, 2018, 08:48:08 AM
Finally, here is a comparison with the old version of the Roku tool. I'm not sure why they changed to child scissors or moved the scissors from a thoughtful, intelligent spot to a retarded one. Your guess is as good as mine on that. In these shots the new model from Amazon is on the top, and the old model I picked up off of eBay is on the bottom.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on July 03, 2018, 11:53:36 AM
I never knew that there were this many different vatiations of this type of tool :o :ahhh Have you picked any of the better brands up of these yet :think: I would love to see how a real Toolclip stacked up or one made by CRKT  :cheers: :like:

All great stuff CC :tu: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 03, 2018, 08:28:09 PM
I'll get a ToolClip eventually, but honestly that's the tool I want the least. The ToolClip and the close copies of it have three cutting blades, a bottle opener, and a file stuffed into three tools. That tool combination isn't really very useful. There are more useful tool combinations in the copies... but the scissor-type plier jaws are just sub-par. I've only gotten a few of these tools with really good plier heads: The Swissgear and the "Deluxe Multi-Purpose Plier." Everything else is middling in comparison.

I'm interested in the Al-Mar tool, but it's really pricey. Really beautiful as well, but you know, it doesn't have a great tool load either. I don't know of any CRKT fixed-head plier multitool like these. The one I'm currently interested in is the Russian Ratnik 6E6 multitool. Two saws, big blade, one hand opening blades, awl, pocket clip, barbed-wire/hard wire cutter, liner locks (I think), and an actual useful length T-handle phillips driver.  It's more of a camping/hiking/wilderness based multitool, instead of an emergency roadside repair type multitool.

That said, I have about 6 more plier tools in my possession, and a few more on the way. There's another new type that I'll be reviewing soon, which has a completely different plier head and is of considerably higher quality.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 03, 2018, 08:54:34 PM
Oh, one other thing. The Mountain Crest tool with the interesting combination tool? That looks like a copy of the Aitor combo tool. The Aitor appears to have a small wood saw instead of a serrated edge, but otherwise it appears  very similar.  I wonder how big the tool is on the Aitor.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 05, 2018, 11:48:43 PM
Well, the fourth was fun, and now it's back to "work" :)  Today I have an iMounTEK 13-in-1 Multi-Tool. This comes as a set with a pocket knife and aluminum flashlight, and is currently in production and available for sale on Amazon for $17.29 and and eBay for $12.99.  (sale links posted below, and are valid as of July 2018). This comes with a sheath for all three tools, and it's not bad.

Product links:
https://www.amazon.com/iMounTEK-Stainless-Flashlight-Screwdriver-Corkscrew/dp/B00W2GE64G/
https://www.ebay.com/itm/331912770672

Jaws: B

The jaws operate SMOOOTHLY. The spring opens the jaws almost all the way, and leaves the cutters open very far. There is no side offset either. Things aren't perfect though. The teeth almost line up, but not quite, and the back of the jaw meets first. This means the the tips don't come together, and the pliers cannot pull out arm hairs.  The tips are also not square with the sides of the pliers, and are filed at an angle. Not a huge big deal, but points are dinged for this.

Cutter: A-

HO-LEE-SHEET! These cutters actually cut. They cut the 24 gauge wire, the 18 gauge speaker wire, the 16 gauge with the extra-thick insulation, and the 12 gauge. All stranded wire, all cuts. Zip ties are cut easily as well. They get a few marks off, however. The cutters are machined, and they come to a nice point. That's good. There was a burr on the cutters that I had to take off with a file. That was bad. They cut everything fine as long as I didn't use the area with the burr. (The burr area wouldn't cut the 24ga). After filing the burr off, the I could cut 24ga anywhere in the cutter. BUT, after cutting the 12ga wire 10 or 15 times, the cutters were dulled and wouldn't reliably cut the 24ga super-thin wire. Maybe one out of three tries would be a clean cut. However, all other wires and zip ties still cut fine. I'd say these are good cutters. 24ga is difficult for this style of cutter and this level of precision.

Tools: C+

Standard complement of tools. However, there were burrs on the screwdriver tip of the serrated blade. There is significant play in the tools, especially the main blade. That's more of a peening problem though. The drivers are decent - the phillips bordering on good, the small flat head less rounded than others. But also a little thicker than it should be.

Sharpening: C

The main and serrated blades aren't sharp at all. The blade on the bottle opener is. One of the two notches is sharpened, but only a thin sliver. Suitable to cut or strip very thin wire. Almost useless, but not completely.

Peening: C

The plier rivets are peened well, and not too tightly. The backspring rivets aren't peened at all on one side, and one is already pulling through. The tool pivot rivet has about 1mm of space between the bottom of the peen, and the body of the tool. It desperately needs to be peened more, to keep the tools from having side-play.

Sheath: B+

I like the sheath, more or less. I'd prefer a small sheath just for the tool, as this is rather big and bulky. It is however constructed well, and of thicker than average nylon. If you want to carry a plier tool, pocket knife, and flashlight, this is the sheath for you. It fits a 3 or 4 layer wenger, a 3 layer Victorinox, and a small 2-AA maglite if you don't prefer the light that comes with it.

Other Things of Note:

The laser-etched metric ruler is a really nice touch. The notch for the handle latch isn't machined well, but it's deep enough that it works fine at least. Now on to the other tools.

The pocket knife is absolute garbage. It's so poorly peened that the tool isn't straight when you look at it from the end. It's a parallelagram. Absolutely the cheapest, lowest quality China army knife I've seen. I thought the Sheffield version was bad, but this takes the cake. Every blade super thin, so much side play in the tools that I could easily pry enough to pop the rivets. The knife blade is sharp, that's the only good thing I can say about it.

The flashlight is a poor copy of a Maglight. It takes 2 AA batteries and uses a standard wheat bulb. If you drill the reflector out carefully, you can fit a standard Maglight LED conversion kit in there. You only need the LED bulb part. The copy doesn't have a replaceable reflector, which is why you have to drill it. The conversion kit button made for the maglight does fit this flashlight, but it comes with a button so you can choose whether to keep the original or not. I would replace the O-ring at the top -- it's too thin to provide much resistance to the reflector housing, and it may easily come off otherwise.

With a LED upgrade and a new O-ring, it works well enough. It won't ever "feel" like a quality item, but it's free and good enough to stash somewhere for emergency use.

Overall: Sorta "meh" tentative buy for the DIY-er

Yeah, the peening isn't good and the blades aren't sharp. The jaws aren't perfect... but they open smoothly and easily, the spring opens them almost all the way, and the cutters actually cut. If you want to take the time to peen the tool properly, and then take even more time to sharpen the blades, then sure. It's cheap and it comes with a free flashlight and a free hunk of worthless metal in the shape of a pocket knife. The cutter is better than the sheffield, and it has a ruler. The tools are worse than the sheffield. Jaws are about the same. Honestly I'd hold out for something better, but if you're a DIYer and want one this wouldn't be a bad pick. It's WAY better than the Grand Way. That said, I wouldn't buy it again.


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 06, 2018, 12:08:47 AM
Note, I went ahead and peened my copy. You can whale away on the phillips pivot rivet and the tool pivot. Just work the tools as you peen the rivet to check the play and tightness. Use the serrated blade to check for side play. The main blade will always have a hint of side play, as the tang is a few thou thinner than the backspring. If you peen it too much, the main blade backspring will jam and the bottle opener will be impossible to extract. You can just hold the serrated blade in a vise and wiggle it until the pivot loosens up a bit.

DON'T over-peen the front backspring rivet, closest to the jaws. Peen it until it is good enough to hold the tool together, and no more .Peen this one too much and the plier jaws will tighten up. After a proper peening and lubing the tool feels a lot better to use. Still needs to be sharpened though as the main blade just kinda tears paper instead of cutting it.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 06, 2018, 01:05:39 AM
Another Two-fer thursday. Why don't I do these on Tuesdays? It rolls off the tongue so much better... but Thursday is when I have the free time. So you'll have to live with it!

This second review is of a tool that looks like it may have lineage from the Ubiquitous Chinese Plier Tool, but it actually doesn't. It's the Fury Tactical Spike, currently sold on Amazon for under $15. This tool is actually smaller than the Chinese Plier tools, with a completely different plier head, and it's a singly layer with two liner locks. At first glance it looks like it may share lineage, but it doesn't at all.  Because of this, I'm posting my review in a separate thread in Cheap and Cheerful, and posting the link here: https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,77919.0.html

I've also attached a pic comparing it to the Sheffield tool, so you get an idea of scale.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 06, 2018, 02:40:38 AM
Great reviews, Charles! I have thoroughly enjoyed reading them so far.

I would like to see you review one of those monstrously silly hammer-plier tools though(if you don't mind, of course). :D
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 06, 2018, 08:07:11 PM
So, today I'm playing with my Lansky sharpening system, and I set the thing up with one of these multi tools. The serrated blade on most of these tools cannot be sharpened on the lansky system. Neither can the scraper blade on the bottle opener. The angle of attack for the serrated edge is far greater than 30 degrees, and the angle on the bottle opener scraper blade is 45 degrees. I checked all of them, and the one with the narrowest angle is the Swiss Gear. They're all larger than 30 degrees, most of them appear to be 45 degrees.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 06, 2018, 08:34:00 PM
You'll find that to be a common thing with softer(cheaper) blades.  The edges of those cutting implements would roll too easily if they were the same angles as some of the more expensive tools.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 06, 2018, 09:13:12 PM
Well, it's interesting you say that. Some of these tools do appear to have pretty soft, poor blades. But some of them are made out of pretty good metal as well. This is pretty easy to tell by judging the file on the back of the serrated blade. If it's deeply cut and aggressive, and works to file down mild steel, then it's a pretty good bet that the tool is made out of a good metal that was properly heat-treated.

I'm checking my tools now. The Coast  (yet to be reviewed) and SwissGear have the best files, followed by the Sheffield, the NJ Transportation multi-purpose plier, and the Ruko. The worst of the bunch are the Barlow, Alltrade (yet to be reviewed), and Bench Pro (from memory).  Everything else appears to be in the middle. Not too good, but not too bad either.


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 07, 2018, 02:00:46 AM
Hey now! Don't diss the Bench Pro. I bought that from you.  :rofl:

Looking forward to a list of tools ranked on their tested metal quality. You make a good point that the file is a great indicator of a tool's metal hardness. But, with that said, I can't ever tell if the cut depth of the file indicates the hardening process. Just recently, we reviewed the SOG PowerAccess Deluxe and the cut of the file was poor, yet the metal was tempered properly. :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 07, 2018, 02:53:47 AM
Right, but it's pretty easy to see. If I file some mild steel or cast iron with the file, and there is visible damage to the file afterwards, then the metal is not properly hardened. Same deal with the blade or the saw. Sharpen the blade until it can cut receipt paper, then cut up a bunch of cardboard. If it can still cut receipt paper afterwards, it's of good quality. If it can only cut regular paper, it's acceptable. If it can't cut either, it's a poor quality blade. And the wood saw... if I can't cut all the way through a 2" stick before the teeth are worn so the kerf is no longer wider than the blade, then the saw is junk. (For models with a saw blade)

That said, there is no sense to test each and every one. I'm only going to test the ones that are otherwise keepers, and  made decent scores in my reviews.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 09, 2018, 08:54:50 PM

Today I have an Alltrade Model 170079 for review. This is one of the best examples of this tool I've come across to date. Good riveting, good toolset, good sharpening, good jaws, and decent cutter.

Jaws: A

The jaws open extremely smoothly, and the spring opens them almost all the way. The needle-nosed tips are rounded and thiner at the ends, like a good needle-nose should be. The tips are precise, angled correctly, and can pull out arm hairs easily. The pliers feel and work really well. That said, there is evidence the pliers were tighter in the past, as there is wear on one of the jaws from the side plates.

Cutter: A-

These pliers are used and though everything appears to be in very good shape, the cutters have seen better days. There are chips and nicks on the blades. However... they still cut wire. They cut the 12ga wire like it's made of butter. The 18ga speaker wire is also cut easily. The only thing that gives these pliers pause is the 16ga with the extra thick insulation. I wonder if this tool was new and the cutters not so abused, if it would manage the thick insulation as well. These cutters make short work of zip ties, cutting both normal and small sized ties with a good snap.

Tools: A

This is one of the 5-blade multis, and it's the best one of this type I've found so far. The backsprings are very powerful, and lock the tools open with a solid snap. There is no chance a tool is going to close on you. The exception are the scissors, which has a relatively weak backspring. It still works well, and the scissors aren't a tool that one needs to worry about folding up. There was a little side play in the tools, but it was far better than most of these plier tools I've reviewed. The main blade has a half-stop, which has already saved me once from trying to close it with my finger in the way. The file is not particularly aggressive or deeply cut, but it can file mild steel without being damaged. So tool hardening is quite acceptable. The small flat head has rounded corners and is a little too thick. A quick touch up with a file, however, turned into a much longer project, because the tool is so hard. It took a lot longer to file the corners and the profile correctly because it's harder metal than I expected. This is good!

Sharpening: A+

The blades in this tool, with the exception of the scraper blade on the bottle opener, all look unused. The main blade and serrated blade can both cut paper very easily, with no hint of tearing. The scraper blade has some nicks and damage to it, and is not sharp enough to cut paper. The angle of the single-sided scraper blade is 25 degrees, which is far better than the 45 degrees on most of these tools. Because it's 25 degrees it was easy to touch up on my Lansky. There are two wire stripping notches sharpened - one on the bottle opener and one on the serrated blade.

Peening: A

Peening on this tool is very good. The tool pivot rivet needed a little extra peening, but everything else was done right. And even the tool pivot didn't *need* it, the tool play was quite acceptable as it was, I just wanted it a little tighter, so I hit it a couple of times with a hammer.

Sheath: A

I prefer a nylong sheath, but this faux-leather sheath is actually pretty nice. It's not as abrasion-reistant as a nylon sheath and my fear is it will not like being worn on a belt regularly, but it's thick and protective the ultimate duty is to protect the tool, and it will do all of that well. It is only suitable for vertical carry though, unlike the nylon sheaths which can also be worn horizontally.

Other Things of Note:

I bought another Alltrade tool which appeared to have been run over by a vehicle. It was bent and in bad shape, but most of the rivets still held. The tool quality was still there, but the plier jaws and cutters were different. The jaws are narrower and the cutters don't work as well either. However, that may be due to the tool being run over and having most parts flex and bend. That said, you can tell the difference in photos, because the good jaws have a machined landing at the tips, so that the tips come togehter first, and the teeth don't mesh completely. The lesser jaws don't have that, and the teeth just mesh together. If you see the comparison photos later on, the good jaws are always on the right. On the run-over tool the serrations are cut weirdly (yet are still sharp), and the file is not as good. It's not aggressive at all, and it does get damaged when filing mild steel.

Overall: Buy this tool

This is the best five-blade Ubiquitous Chinese Plier Multi Tool I've tested so far, and I do believe it's the best of the scissor jaw type. The pliers are good, the cutters are good, the tools are good, the metal is good. This is an excellent version of the Chinese tool, and easily worth $10 or $15 if you can find it on the 'bay. The problem is, they're hard to find.

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 09, 2018, 08:57:30 PM
The last two pics show the two versions of the Alltrade tool I've acquired. Both are good tools, but the style on the right is the better one (and it's the one I reviewed)

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 09, 2018, 09:07:14 PM
Thanks for the reviews, Charles!
Nice to see another one of those types of tools that can cut the mustard. :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 09, 2018, 10:16:48 PM
A couple more things to note.

First, the SwissGear... sad to say, but the spring broke yesterday. I only used it a couple of times, never beat on it or anything, and the spring failed. The jaws are still amazing, and I still like the tool, but the spring-loaded jaws were the best part and now it's not as usable. So I'm sad about that.


Second, I'm pretty sure the SwissGear was actually made by COAST. I have two of their Pocket Mechanic tools now, and the similarities are striking. I'll review the Coast model later, but the short of it is Coast is also made in Taiwan, the Coast has two-piece jaws, the Coast has the thicker, bigger phillips driver, the Coast has a two-screw scale arrangement, Coast has the same higher-quality screws, and finally, Coast made a "Sport Mechanic" multi tool which had a fish scaling tool. I have no proof, but my guess is that Coast made it under the SwissGear name for K-Mart stores.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 09, 2018, 11:22:37 PM
Third, I've figured out why the jaws on many of these tools are too tight. If the thickness of the tools and backsprings are not exactly the width of the the plier head (plus spacers if so equipped), then the jaws will be pinched if all of the rivets are peened tightly. This puts excessive drag on the jaws.

Now, many of the badly manufactured tools simply don't peen the two backspring rivets at all. This works well if the backsprings are narrower than the plier head. It allows the pliers to operate freely, and not bind. But at the expense of a tool that slowly works itself apart. Not good. If the backsprings are thicker than the plier head, the tool almost always has a binding or dragging, as the plier head has to be peened tightly in order to work.

For the 5-layer tools, there is often another problem. There are spacers on either side of the jaws because the 5 layers are far wider than the jaws. These spacers on most tools are just a piece of flat steel punched out on a die. They're not even machined to be flat. Many of these spacers have an upturn at the corners where they were punched out, and this can drag on the jaws even if the spacers + jaws are the same width as the tool layers.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on July 10, 2018, 11:55:15 AM
More great reviews :like: :like: Sorry to hear about the spring on the Swissgear :-\ and glad another of them is worth looking into getting :salute: :tu: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 10, 2018, 03:22:57 PM
^What Poncho said.  :)

Charles,
Does Swiss-Gear or Coast still make those tools? Perhaps contacting their "customer service" to ask for a replacement would work?
Sorry if that was covered already. I would like to see you get another one to replace it with. :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 10, 2018, 04:48:32 PM
I did contact Coast about the history of these tools. I don't know what warranty Coast has, but I do know they don't currently make any tool like this. :/

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ThePeacent on July 10, 2018, 06:22:09 PM
I did contact Coast about the history of these tools. I don't know what warranty Coast has, but I do know they don't currently make any tool like this. :/

Charles.

because making a tool like this would Coast them a lot of money  :D
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 10, 2018, 06:41:51 PM
Ugh. There should be a perma-ban rule for bad puns! :D

(not that there's any other kind)

Charles
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 10, 2018, 06:58:25 PM
I just got an email from Coast. They did make the tool for the company that owned the rights to the SwissGear name back in the 90s.

I'll be posting coast reviews soon. I'm waiting for a brand-new in the packaging Pocket Mechanic so I can give a new tool a review. I also have the Pro Pocket Mechanics to add, as they're a completely different style.

Someone asked if I'd review hammer tools. Well... I'm going to be taking a couple of these tools apart and putting them back together with my own tool configuration, and posts with nuts instead of rivets. I plan to buy one or two hammer multis to get some interesting tools that are only available on the hammer multitools. I could review whatever I get before I take it apart. Otherwise, I'll review a hammer if you mail it to me. I don't want to be spending my money on those things if I can avoid it :)


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 10, 2018, 08:23:32 PM
I was the one who asked. :rofl:

If  can remember, I will pick up a Sheffield hammer tool at Walmart and send it your way. :tu:
The Sheffield is the best quality one I have seen. They have a hammer plier model and one with a solid hatchet hammer. The hammer-plier one seem more useful. Would make an o.k. fencing tool if you had nothing else to use.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ThePeacent on July 10, 2018, 08:59:23 PM
Would make an o.k. fencing tool if you had nothing else to use.

 :mn: :duel: :D
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 10, 2018, 10:22:46 PM
 :rofl:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 12, 2018, 11:59:10 PM
Today I am reviewing the Coast Pocket Mechanic . There are two versions of this tool. A spring-loaded version, and a non-spring-loaded version. The spring-loaded version has a spring identical to the one in a SwissGear. The scales, screws, and handle lock wire are also very very similar to the SwissGear. This tool is the reason I inquired with Coast as to whether they made the SwissGear tool (The answer was YES, of course!). The non-spring-loaded version has a slightly longer handle, and the handle has less of an arc. It sits closer to the body when the jaws are completely closed.

The spring-loaded version I purchased as a brand new, NOS copy in blister packaging. The non-spring version I actually have two of, purchased for very little money on eBay. (One was $7, the other 99 cents)

Jaws: A-

The jaws on both versions of this tool operate freely. The spring-loaded tool has a little bind at the very end, and the non-spring tool has wear indicating dragging in the past. These are two-piece jaws, which are stronger than the scissor style jaws. The nose is halway between a blunt-nose and a needle nose, with an extra-large inner area for gripping bolts. I very much like this nose design. It gives more gripping surface for bolts, which is awesome. I like the spring-loaded version of this best, but do be aware the spring has a limited lifespan and once it breaks it's gone forever.

The jaws on the new spring-loaded plier have some unacceptable play/wiggle to them.

Cutter: C+

The cutters on the Swissgear were great. The cutters on this tool, unfortunately, are not the same design at all. The cutters are completely blunt. They're machined, but they don't meet at an angle. The brand-new spring-loaded copy can only cut the 16ga speaker wire, small zip ties, and large zip ties. The 24, 18 with extra-thick insulation, and 12 gauge wires are not cuttable. One of the non-spring versions can cut ALL of the wires and zip ties in the test. The other non-spring version can cut everything except the 24ga.

That said, these cutters smash the wire as they cut it. This is true with most of the bypass-style cutters, but as these are very blunt they crush it more than most.

For the two-piece jaws, proper peening is critical to operation. There is too much play in the jaws of hte spring-loaded plier, which I believe is why the wire cutters don't work as well as the other two tools, which have no play at all.

Tools: B

These tools all come with a plain blade, a serrated blade with file, flat blade, and wire stripper notch, a wood saw, a bottle opener with small flat blade and wire stripper notch, and a big beefy phillips driver on the backspring. The file on these tools are all A+. They're deeply cut, the metal is properly hardened, and they can file steel without damaging the teeth of the file.

The wood saws, on the other hand, are not very good. The teeth do not extend out to either side of the blade. This means the kerf is exactly as wide as the blade, and the blade gets stuck in the cut. The Ruko has a different style of saw, and it cuts much faster with a nice wide kerf. The backsprings are all good for these tools, except the backspring for the blade. OEM packaging has the backspring screwdriver partially extended in the blisterpack, which weakens the backspring for the blade. The main blade will snap closed, but will not resist closing as well as the other blades, or other similar tools.

Sharpening: A

The blades are adequately sharp. The main blade easily cuts paper. There are two wire stripper notches that are sharpened - one on the bottle opener and one on the serrated blade.

Peening: A

Even though one of these tools has play in the jaw, the peening of all three is excellent. Same quality peen as the SwissGear. Everything is peened tightly, nothing is half-assed.

Sheath: A+

This is a VERY nice heavy-duty sheath. It's much thicker cordura, all double-stitched. "Beefy" is the word I'd use. I have three sheaths and one has been worn heavily and obviously abused, and except for some fuzzing of the nylon, is still completely structurally sound. This is a VERY good sheath.

Other Things of Note:

With all of these tools, it seems that sample variation can make or break the cutters. Even if they're machined properly, any kind of play in the jaws can cause issues with cutter operation.

Overall: A solid buy for the most part.

This really is a good tool. It's not a great tool, but it's a good tool. The saw could use improvement. The file and other blades are excellent. The jaws are great, the spring mechanism is great, and tool is assembled and constructed with a high level of quality. Just be aware that the spring in this style of tool won't last forever. If cutters are super important to you, this style is not the best for wire cutting. Two of the three worked well, though strangely not the brand-new one.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 13, 2018, 12:00:50 AM
Pics of the two models with the nice peening.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 13, 2018, 12:33:14 AM
Another two-for-Thursday today, as I review a no-name pair that I purchased off of eBay, brand new, for $14 plus shipping from Australia. The link is here:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Stainless-Steel-MULTI-Function-TOOL-Pocket-Plier-Knife-Long-Nose-or-Flat-Nose/111654788670  These come in a plain bag and bubble packaging, sealed, with no branding or other information on them. The seller is selling both blunt and needle nose style pliers. My needle nose are still on the way, so for now here's a review of the blunt nose. I'm calling them the "Aussie Special"

Jaws: A

While I do like the Coast jaws above, this style of jaws tends to be the best made. The gripping area for bolts is encroached on by the wire cutters, and the jaws don't open as wide, but the spring and the action feels sublime. They're very light, easy feeling jaws. There is an ever so slight drag to the jaws, but it's not coming from the jaws themselves, but rather from the cutters. Everything is machined well, with no offset or play to speak of. They easily pull out arm hairs.

Cutter: A+

The cutters are VERY precise. They drag on each other slightly. As they break in, they'll be perfectly sliding against each other, with no gap. It's the gap that causes wires to be bent instead of cut, and any play in the jaws exaserbates that. These cutters cut EVERYTHING in my test. 24 gauge to 12 gauge, zip ties, everything. And it's all cut with a very sharp SNAP. 

Tools: C

The tools are the standard three, but modified with a round machined cutout which acts as a stop on the extra rivet you see near the pivot. The file is not very deeply cut, so it's not the most aggressive. It does file mild steel without being damaged, however. The small flat driver has no washer on it, which means when the tools are all closed the bottle opener hits it and pries it away from the side a little. Most of the blunt nose type tools like this are missing that washer, where most of the other tools have it. Strange. The backsprings are very powerful and lend the tools a nice snap - both open and closed. There is minor blade play.

Sharpening: B

The main blade is sharp enough to cut receipt paper! That was a pleasant surprise. It brings up the rest of the score, because the serrated blade isn't particularly sharp, the wire stripper notches are not sharpened, and the blade on the bottle opener is not sharp either.

Peening: C+

The jaws are peened well, but that's it. The three backspring rivets are only peened well on one side, leaving the backsprings with air gaps between them. The tool peen is actually pretty good though, big and well peened on both sides. There's a little blade play, but not too bad. The tools still open and close smoothly. Good compromise there.

Sheath: B-

I don't really like the pleather sheaths very much, and this one feels cheaper than most. (Sorry no pic)

Other Things of Note:

There's no backspring driver, no notch in the handle for the retention loop, and the handle is full width - not narrowed to make space for the phillips driver.

Overall: Buy 'em!

They're still available brand new at the link above. At least for a short while. So if you want one, now is the time. I like these, and the jaws and cutters are excellent. The tool load isn't my favorite, but the jaws make up for it I think.

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 13, 2018, 12:34:43 AM
Here you can see the cutters rubbing against each other and polishing the machining marks off. The lack of gap here is why these are so effective.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 13, 2018, 08:38:59 PM
So, I've been in contact with Coast, and I've found some interesting information.

The first Coast Pocket Mechanic was first sold in 1983.  The line of Pocket Mechanic and Pro Pocket Mechanic tools were made and sold until 2002. Originally they were all made in Taiwan. At least some, if not all of the Coast Pro Pocket Mechanic tools were made in China. The SOG ToolClip was patented and sold starting in 1991. What this means is that the SOG ToolClip is actually the knock-off..

What's interesting though is that I can't find ANY patents for the Coast Cutlery Company before 1996. David C. Brands invented the Pocket Mechanic, and is listed on many patents for Coast... but I can't find anything back further than 1996. When I inquired about the patent number on the blade of the original Pocket Mechanic ("PAT 39994"), I was told by Coast that it is confidential information.  Not sure what to make of that. The number doesn't show up in any search engines I've tried -- even a Taiwan patent search.

It's interesting that the pocket mechanics sold for almost exactly 20 years. That's the length of a patent, isn't it?

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 13, 2018, 11:17:02 PM

Today is Friday, and I have for your enjoyment a True Value knockoff of the SOG ToolClip. I purchased this new in the blisterpack off of eBay (the seller still has a few left). The packaging is dated 1994. Brazen, only 3 years after the ToolClip was released. This is overall a good tool with a laughably bad peening job.

Jaws: C

I like this type of jaw, but unfortunately this is a poor example. The tips do not line up perfectly. The top jaw is thicker than the bottom jaw. The teeth do not mesh. The jaws have noticeable side offset. The big kicker is there are casting defects - actual voids - present in the jaws, which were exposed during the machining process. And those jaws made it past QC and into this tool. There is no spring to this tool, though the jaws do operate very smoothly and are not tight at all.

Cutter: C/A+

The cutters are actually rounded inwards on this tool. Instead of presenting an angled or even flat surface to wire, the cutters have a bevel in the wrong direction, essentially helping the wire bend instead of cut. But, that's not really the root of the problem. I sharpened the cutters with a file, and the problem was still just as bad. The issue is the gap between the cutters. They're just not close enough together. They'll cut 16 gauge speaker wire, small zip ties, and large zip ties. They fail on 12ga wire and the 18ga wire with the extra thick insulation. Also they fail the 24ga wire, but most do.

EDIT - The cutters are upgraded to an A+ if you peen the center rivet. If you read the peening section below, you'll see that the tool is assembled pretty abysmally. I went through and re-peened the entire tool, and the cutters work very well now.


Tools:

The tools are better than average! The standard three ToolClip blades are here. Bottle opener with sharpened triangle awl and wire stripper, serrated blade with wire stripper and file, and main blade. Plus the little dinky flat screwdriver. The small flat screwdriver sits on a washer in this model, and it is precisely ground with very clean, sharp edges. No rounding at all. The tool itself is not polished, that is why. It's also a little loose on the pivot pin. The file is not very aggressive, but it does cut through steel without being damaged. It files steel very, very slowly. This tool comes with a little metal shield to place over the serrated blade, when using the tool as a screwdriver or stowing it

Sharpening: A

The main blade is sharp enough to cut paper but not receipt paper. The serrated blade is sharp enough to cut paper as well, and this is a big surprise! But an even bigger surprise is the bottle opener blade is sharp enough to cut paper. There are also two sharpened wire stripping notches.

Peening: D

The peening is bad. On one side of the tool, the rivets look great. On the other... damn. The backspring rivets are barely peened at all. The plier pivot rivet is not just poorly peened, but it's starting to push through. There's about 1mm of space between the rivet head and the body on one side of the tool. (note: Peening this properly may fix the cutters). The upper jaw rivets don't fair any better. One is peened adequately, and the other was mis-peened off center. There are tool marks on the side plate from where the tool missed. That rivet head is also about 1mm from fully seated. The only rivet that appears to be peened adequately is the tool pivot rivet. And even that could stand to be peened more, as there is significant side-play in the serrated blade.

Sheath: B+

This is a completely different style of nylon sheath. It's thin material with an inner liner. Not particularly robust in any way, but it's nice enough. I like the two layers of material and the shape. It is, however, only designed for vertical carry.

Other Things of Note:

This tool is brand spanking new, and yet it looks heavily used. It's covered in nicks and scratches, as if it was in a big bin that was shaken and then it fell down a large industrial pachinko machine before finally making its way into packaging. Basically, it's a new tool that looks like the TSA had a crack at it.  The peening was so remarkably bad that I decided to peen it correctly, and then comment on it here. Peening the jaws fixed the cutter issue completely. However, I peened too much, and now the cutters drag against each other. That wouldn't be so bad if the tool had a spring, but it doesn't. So it's difficult to use now. I'm debating replacing the rivet with a screw and nut. Locktite the threads, turn it until it's at the correct torque that the cutters work and the jaws don't drag, and then let it dry. That would also be easy to adjust in the future if need be.

Overall: Your call here. But mostly pass unless you want a small project to tinker with.

The tools are good quality. The jaws are barely adequate. The casting voids do concern me, but they're mostly cosmetic. You'll not be able to put enough force on the tool to cause them to be a problem, I think. The sharpening is top notch. I could go either way on this tool. If you have the desire to peen it yourself, and you don't need wire cutters, this is closest to the SOG. The tools are sharp and well made and the wire stripper notches are sharp, which is not the case with any of hte other SOG type tools I've tested so far. But for a new tool, it looks like total crap. I bought it solely because I'm nostalgic for the True Value that used to be in my neighborhood, before they were bought out by Ace Hardware.


Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 13, 2018, 11:23:07 PM
First photo shows:

1. The jaws don't line up
2. Casting void on the side of the lower jaw, and also on the bottom of the lower jaw. (discolored area)
3. Peening machine (or person?) completely missed one of the rivets, and dented the rivet and side plate.
4. More casting voids (dark areas) on the side of the upper jaw, particularly around (and under) the side plate attachment point at the top of the tool

Second photo shows

1. Line of casting voids on the top of the jaw (dark dots)
2.  Three rivets that are so loose there is 1mm of space beneath the heads

Third photo shows the general state of scratch/ding damage to a new tool. And the sheath in the closed position.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 14, 2018, 05:12:57 AM
Thank you, Charles. I hadn't realized that design was so early. I always thought early 80s fixed plier tools were more like the MultiMaster. I guess SOG just stepped up the fixed plier MT game with the phenomenal quality of the OG ToolClip and didn't actually invent the design. :like:

And that True Value, after reading your review and seeing the photos, wasn't much of a 'true value'. :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 14, 2018, 07:01:54 AM
Hey Charles,
Digging around, I cannot find an example, of the Pocket Mechanic, made before the ToolClip, that has the same design as the ToolClip.
Here is a vague thread with a photo of a pocket mechanic. The thread eludes to the Seki-inspired design, like the ToolClip, being the inspiration for the later Coasts. And that some may have been Seki-made. Possibly?
https://forum.multitool.org/index.php?topic=36726.0#_

Is it possible that the Pocket Mechanic wasn't copied by SOG? And that the Coast, you have, could be Seki-style inspired? :think:

Not saying the SOG was the first, but I would like some kind of finality in regards to the possibility of SOG not being the original designer of that style tool (being the unique pliers as the main feature).
I know the type of tool (fixed plier) has been around since the early 1980s, but I question whether the Seki design came about much earlier than 1991, when SOG used it. :think:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ThePeacent on July 14, 2018, 12:15:11 PM
obviously they can say what they want  :ahhh and the answer might not be the truth but why not ask SOG directly?  :think:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 16, 2018, 08:13:46 PM
What is this "Seiki Design" and "Japan Seiki" that you guys have alluded to? I'm unable to find any information on Google, and nothing on eBay, concerning Japanese fixed plier multi tools that may have influenced SOG or Coast. Can you point me to links, photos, or other information that will help me learn more about the history of this tool type? Thanks.

Also, so far from what I can find, original manufacturers of quality plier tools (not just the poor copies that abound everywhere) include:

LMK if I'm missing any!


It seems most of the copies are based off the Coast, actually. There are some ToolClip copies, those have the ToolClip style plier heads. These include the Australian tool, NJ Transportation tool, and the True Value tool that I've reviewed. The rest seem to use Coast as the basis. I base this largely on the backspring screwdriver. The screwdriver on the Coast is well made, big, beefy, and the plier handle is clearanced to the side to give just enough space for the driver to extend.  The copies have a small, dinky driver, but the same clearanced handle -- which has far more clearance than is necessary with such a small diameter driver. It's obvious the handle clearance was made specifically for the Coast large driver. The design of the coast driver requires machining, and the cheap copies are able to cast the part as it is and not machine it, saving time, effort, and money. (The coast driver is round stock with a flat machined down the side where it would hit the handle otherwise. The pivot is also machined out of the round stock. The copies have a small diameter driver cast on a large tab). The copies also have a plier head far more similar to the Coast than to the ToolClip.

The question is why do the copies have a bottle opener with the awl blade from the ToolClip, instead of the far more useful flat screwdriver on the Coast?

I've contacted SOG for more info on the ToolClip history, and whether it was based at least in part on the Coast model. I'm curious to hear what they'll say.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ThePeacent on July 16, 2018, 09:27:21 PM
What is this "Seiki Design" and "Japan Seiki" that you guys have alluded to?

you got no info because it's not "SEIKI" but "SEKI"

 :D :ahhh

Seki is the cutlery capital of Japan, the city with the oldest, most famous and important knife and tool manufacturers in the country,  :tu:
like Solingen is to Germanny,
Sheffield to England,
Portland to the US,
or Toledo to Spain

Major capital cities where the famous bladesmiths, cutlery companies and edged tools manufacturers were/are and where they worked  :salute:

Spyderco, Cold Steel, SOG and others made and still make their knives (or some of them) in Seki city due to the high quality and excellent craftsmanship of their factories  ;)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 16, 2018, 10:06:08 PM
Okay. Makes sense. But I still don't see any plier tools other than Al-Mar and AG Russell, and neither of those are anything remotely like the SOG or Coast tools.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 16, 2018, 11:02:30 PM
The unfortunate things about this are:
1. A lot of the very knowledgeable collectors aren't active anymore (it seems).
2. Before MT.o, it seems not many cared about documenting the MT world(with exception of a few) Even big companies like Gerber and SOG cannot give accurate historical information. LM has a decent history log though.
3. The "cheaper" MTs were produced 'willy-nilly'. Swapping manufacturers and facilities all the time. Parts were sourced from many companies and nobody seemed to keep the records.

I'll keep looking into the fixed-plier stuff, but I'm not sure I'll even get close to as much as you know, Charles. It seems to be a very limited focus in an obscure hobby. :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on July 17, 2018, 11:51:11 AM
Some interesting stuff in here for sure :salute: :like: I would like Bob (J-sews) to see this thread :ahhh If anyone has history on tools of this nature he would :cheers: but he isn't very active anymore :-\

This is what MTO is about and I have meant to keep up with this thread better :salute:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 17, 2018, 03:10:02 PM
Thank you, Poncho!

Indded, J-sews is, one of the members whom I was referring to. Maybe you could shoot hin an email, Poncho? If you don't mond of course. :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 17, 2018, 09:49:51 PM
Okay, so I've done a bit of research.  I'm reasonably sure that the Pocket Mechanic was not sold before 1993. That's when the trademark was first used, and I'm finding plenty of newspaper ads for the pocket mechanic in early 1994 -- but nothing before that. I've found ads for a Coast folding "Pliers Plus" multi tool, very much like a leatherman, as early as 1990. Micro Pliers and Micro Toolbox show up in 1992 advertisements.

It's feasible that Coast called the Pocket Mechanic something else before 1993, if it indeed existed before that time.  But I'm considering this unlikely.

I've found copy on a Leatherman website saying that Leatherman faced stiff competition, in the early 1990s, and that Coast released the Pocket Mechanic at that time.

The really interesting thing is that shortly after releasing the Pocket Mechanic, Coast completely re-designed the tool, and released a similar tool with an entirely new plier head as early as 1996. Possibly as early as 1995. I will be reviewing this new plier type next!

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 17, 2018, 10:04:20 PM
Thank you for finding that out, Charles! :)

The history of fixed-plier tools is very spotty and a company, like Coast for example, wouldn't likely know or care about accurate time-lines for their products. Like TP said, in response to my questions earlier in the thread, they could basically say anything they want. Like saying they started making the pocket mechanic in the early 80s(not true at all). :ahhh

I am looking forward to your review on the newer plier-type Coast PM!
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 17, 2018, 10:22:59 PM
I'm going to do a basic review for the *two* new jaw types from Coast, and then make a brand new thread with as much of the history of the Coast plier-based multitools as I can piece together.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 17, 2018, 10:30:25 PM
Excellent! :like:

I have a pro pocket mechanic on the way this week. Will take some photos when it arrives. :tu:
I am sure you have the same one, but it never hurts to check. :tu:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 17, 2018, 10:49:06 PM
There are three versions of the Pro Pocket Mechanic, plus variants sold with other companies' names on them. (Sharper Image, Endeavor/Gator Grip, etc). I have two of them here and the third (older) type on the way. Post a pic, I'll tell ya if I've got that version! :)

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 17, 2018, 11:09:30 PM
Thank you, Charles!
The seller only had one image(attached). I only bought it without more photos, because it was sold as "mint".
I did want one that was branded as Coast. :)

You know, ChopperCharles, you got me into these fixed-plier tools. Shame on you. :twak: :rofl:

Seriously, I have really enjoyed these fixed plier tools. And when the Rebar challenge is over, I am doing a fixed-plier challenge. Hopefully you can join in. :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 17, 2018, 11:43:27 PM
Cool, that's the Type 2 needle nose. That's actually my favorite plier tool.  While you're ordering stuff, order a CR1220 battery for the LED scale. Only place I could find them locally was Batteries Plus.  I'm curious as to the  scissor design, and would love to see some pics when you get the tool in. Also want to know if there is a "Coast" logo on the blade, and if there are markings to indicate whether it's made in Taiwan or China.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 17, 2018, 11:51:50 PM
Here's an older Pro Pocket Mechanic, with the original (I call them type 1) jaws. This particular one has Sharper Image branding. I'm hoping there are some weirdos people out there who collect sharper image catalogs, and can give me some dates when it was sold.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 17, 2018, 11:53:46 PM
Thank you for the info, Charles! :cheers:

I'll take some decent photos when it arrives. And I did not even know about the LED scale. That should be cool! And I'll order a 1220 tonight. Afyer reading your thoughts, I am pretty excited about the Coast tool. :woohoo:

Edit: that is pretty cool looking! I remember when Circuit City carried Sharper Image. But, the Coast made tool was before my time (the years I went to CC).
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 18, 2018, 12:01:05 AM
Heh, don't get your hopes up on the LED scale. It's a very dim red LED from the 1990s. But it's easy to replace if you want white (or any other color). Also, I have a really high quality version of this tool, and it has different parts in the LED lighting system than the other two. So if you're having a bit of trouble getting the LED to work properly, wait for my pics. You can bend your leads like mine and then add a little RTV if you're missing the rubber grommet that is supposed to hold the LED in place.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 18, 2018, 12:08:39 AM
Noted. Thank you for the info! But, that shouldn't be an issue.  :salute:
I wouldn't use the LED as a primary light to be honest. I always carry an LED maglite (1xAAA/45lm, 2xAAA/111lm, or 2xAA/245lm), so the Coast integrated LED would be for novelty more than anything. Much like the red LED in my older SAK MiniChamp. Basically made for finding a door's keyhole.  :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 18, 2018, 12:15:37 AM
It does work for that. It's so pathetically dim it won't work for anything but that. I've got a 50-pack of high intensity 3mm white LEDs on order, and will give them a try in the tool when they arrive. I'll have 47 extras, so for the cost of a stamp I'll send one your way if it works and you want one.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 18, 2018, 12:57:46 AM
I cannot turn down an offer to make an obsolete MT viable as an EDC. :cheers:

Count me in. I'll send some extra $ with the money I am sending  on Saturday. Will that be o.k.?
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 18, 2018, 01:04:11 AM
LEDs should be here by then, so I can just put one in the box that I'm sending the tough tool in. No need to add anything extra!

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 18, 2018, 01:31:12 AM
Awesome. Thank you, Charles! :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gregozedobe on July 18, 2018, 03:30:30 AM
Just a bit of info re replacing red LEDS wth white ones.  Most white LEDs I've come across require a higher voltage than red ones, and as a result don't work very well (if at all) on a single 3V LED (eg CR1220), unless there are some electronics that increase the voltage (this is not common on cheaper setups).  Often you will get better illumination with a red LED (or an amber one in some cases) with simple single battery straight to LED setups.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gregozedobe on July 18, 2018, 03:36:56 AM

Also, so far from what I can find, original manufacturers of quality plier tools (not just the poor copies that abound everywhere) include:
  • Coast (Pocket Mechanic, Pro Pocket Mechanic, Sport Mechanic)
  • SOG (ToolClip)
  • Al-Mar (4x4 and QuickPlier/Quicksilver/QuickClip)
  • Russian military (6e6 Ratnik multitool)
  • Wenger (SwissGrip and MiniGrip/PocketGrip)
  • AG Russell (Pocket Tool Box)
  • Marble's (Fishing pliers)

LMK if I'm missing any!


I've come across several older MTs that are a similar design (but not identical) to the Marble's Fishing Plier.  I'm not sure exactly where they were made, but seem to be marked as German (mostly Solingen), Japan, France or Italy.  There are minor variations in design & tool sets.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gregozedobe on July 18, 2018, 07:54:39 AM
I've come across several older MTs that are a similar design (but not identical) to the Marble's Fishing Plier.  I'm not sure exactly where they were made, but seem to be marked as German (mostly Solingen), Japan, France or Italy.  There are minor variations in design & tool sets.

Here is an example of a German one currently for sale on the bay of thieves (possibly priced a bit high IMO):
https://www.ebay.com/itm/283061653384
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 18, 2018, 08:17:05 AM
Thank you, gregozedobe!

You know, at some point, we'll need to start archiving the photos we take and have found, to begin work on a fixed plier MT timeline/database. This will make updating the MT.o wiki more efficient. I don't know if it has been done already, but I sure as heck couldn't find any. :ahhh

Heck.  I'd love to contribute to the MT.o wiki. The data and photos are a bit lacking with obscure, new and rare stuff.. I have copious photos and a fair collection(230+) to work with.  Particularly the stuff that isn't OG LM, Vic, and Gerber MTs.  But, I sent a wiki edit request and didn't get a reply. Guess someone doesn't care to kicj for me. ::)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on July 18, 2018, 11:51:18 AM
Thank you, gregozedobe!

You know, at some point, we'll need to start archiving the photos we take and have found, to begin work on a fixed plier MT timeline/database. This will make updating the MT.o wiki more efficient. I don't know if it has been done already, but I sure as heck couldn't find any. :ahhh

Heck.  I'd love to contribute to the MT.o wiki. The data and photos are a bit lacking with obscure, new and rare stuff.. I have copious photos and a fair collection(230+) to work with.  Particularly the stuff that isn't OG LM, Vic, and Gerber MTs.  But, I sent a wiki edit request and didn't get a reply. Guess someone doesn't care to kicj for me. ::)

I am an editor but don't have admin rights :ahhh

Throw sLaughtermed a PM and that should do a bit better in getting editing rights ;) We can always use editors :salute: :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 18, 2018, 02:35:16 PM
Thank you, Poncho! :cheers:

I'd like to put my excessive collection to use at some point. :)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 18, 2018, 06:34:54 PM
I'm about at the end of my findings for the copies, and switching gears to pulling together info about  the Coast plier tools. I plan to make a big post with all the dates and information I have, which could in turn be used to feed the Wiki :)

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 18, 2018, 08:13:14 PM
Excellent! Thank you, Charles! :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 09:27:55 AM
Today I'm reviewing what I consider to be the pinnacle of this type of plier tool: The Coast Pro Pocket Mechanic (Type 2). Around 1995, Coast designed an entirely new scissor-type plier head, and upgraded the Sport Mechanic and Pro Pocket Mechanic tools to this new head. The Pro Pocket Mechanics received an entirely new lineup of tools, as well as a red LED and activator button in the handle scales. There are blunt nose and needle nose versions of this plier head. The blunt nose is the beefiest, with a nose that is 11.7mm wide and approx 4.6cm long from the leading edge of the scale to the tips. The jaws open a maximum of 2.9cm at the tips. The handle starts out the same width as the jaws, and then is cut back on the side to make clearance for the backspring driver.

The needle nose pliers are a much narrower 9.1mm wide at the pivot, and taper down 4.3mm wide at the tips. They measure a considerably longer 6.1cm long from scale to tip, and open to a maximum of 3.7cm at the tips. The handle also has a cutout for the backspring driver, but it is a very shallow cutout.

To put this in perspective, the original Pocket Mechanic has a two piece jaw that is 7.8mm wide, and all the copies have scissor jaws that are 7.8mm wide. The blunt nose are 3.9mm wider than the original type head, and the needle nose 1.3mm wider. However, this isn't the whole story. Both the original Pocket Mechanic and the scissor-jawed Chinese copies pivot on a 4mm rivet. The pivot for the new plier head is 9mm wide, and the pivot area itself is more than 2cm wide. What this means is that the new plier heads are extremely robust and beefy, and they resist twisting far more than the earlier Coast design. Since the pivot is separate and self-contained, the tool peening has zero effect on jaw operation. Putting a lot of force on the tool cannot loosen the jaws or otherwise effect the operation of the pliers.

This is really good news! I wanted to spell all of this out here before reviewing the operation and quality of the jaws, so you'd get a good understanding of just how different these tools are. But before I do, I want to mention that only Coast produced tools of this type. There were no copies. Any tool that appears similar was made by Coast and re-branded.  There was a version of the Sport Mechanic sold in 1996 under the "Nature Company" brand, two different Brookstone versions that have entirely different plier heads (one with plastic scales, one with metal scales, neither of which have a spring or a handle lock), and a slightly modified Pro Pocket Mechanic with rubberized scales and "Endeavor" branding on the side. (Endeavor was the company that made the Gator Grip). There was also a version made for Chrysler, for their 1997 Master Tech Gold Tool Award, which was given to Chrysler employees who passed all of the monthly training courses in an entire year.


So there are multiple different tools with this new "Type 2" head. I'm reviewing both the needle nose and blunt nose Coast Pro Pocket Mechanic, as those are the only tools I've been able to locate. I have four copies of this tool, two blunt-nosed, and two needle nosed. One of the blunt-nosed has the Endeavor branding. There are minor differences in each tool, likely due to upgrades and changes from year-to-year. There is however VERY little difference in the overall quality, and in the jaws. Which is great!

Jaws: A+

As I said, I have four copies of this tool, two blunt-nose and two needle nose. All four have extremely smooth jaw operation. The Endeavor has the thickest and stiffest spring, and that spring also opens the jaws less wide than do any of the other springs. The needle nose pliers have thinner, weaker springs with lighter action, which also open handles slightly wider. The jaws are all precisely machined with perfectly aligned tips, perfectly meshed teeth, no side offset, and side-to-side play measured less than the thickness of a sheet of paper. The handles have deep lock grooves cut in them, and the wire ring that holds the handle closed snaps in with a solid click. However, on all but one of these, if I squeeze the handle the spring rotates down from gravity, and the pliers open one-handed. This is really useful when removing them from the belt sheath. I don't need my other hand to open them and have them ready to use. This is a very well-thought-out design.

Cutter: A-

Every single one of these cuts 18 gauge speaker wire, 16 gauge with extra-thick insulation, and 12 gauge stranded wire. The blunt nose also cut 24 gauge stranded wire, but neither of the needle nose could manage that. All four cut various sizes of zip ties with a satisfying SNAP. The only real complaint is the cutters are blunt and meet at a flat 180 degrees. Most of the copies have an angle filed to the cutters, so they don't crush the wire as they cut it. These definitely crush the wire as they cut it. It's not a huge big deal but 12ga wire does show a distinct crush at the end of a freshly cut wire. Because they're perfectly flat, these do not work well on hard wire at all.

Tools: B+

The tool combination in the Pro Pocket Mechanic is excellent. You get

The backspring scissors are very nice, very easy to use, and they don't pop open too far when my thumb slips off the handle. They work similarly to Wenger scissors. They're not nearly as good as Wenger scissors, though. They won't cut through blisterpack, they're pretty much good for paper, bandages, or thin cardboard. One of the needle nose pliers has a very good pair of spring type scissors, with a large pivot screw. (This is the one with the bad driver). These scissors have a divot under the handle for the spring to ride in, a very high quality victorinox-style spring, and large scissors that open quite widely. All four pairs of scissors can cut 8 sheets of paper at once. The springless scissors cannot manage 16 sheets at all, and the spring style only fair slightly better, managing short, difficult cuts. Only the spring-type scissors could cut paracord, the springless need the rivets tightened.

On three of the four tools, the backsprings are very strong and snap the blades shut solidly. They also require significant force to close an open blade. One of the copies has very weak backsprings It also has a significantly thinner main blade and bottle opener tool. I don't know if it's an early model or a later model. It has the best scissors of the bunch, but also a misshapen driver. The misshapen driver is the only QC issue I've found on these tools, and I've either purchased or seen actual pictures/video of at least 20 different copies. So it's not something I think you have to worry about.

The backspring flat driver locks into position on the two blunt-nosed models, but on the needle nosed versions the tang is rounded so it doesn't engage the backspring. This means the small driver is only held up by friction on the needle nosed versions.

The scales on these models have a LED "flashlight" and a button to operate it. This makes the scales extra-thick on one side, and adds some extra beefiness to the tool. The flashlight is just a single 3mm red LED, and is quite dim. It's a useful little feature though. There are other models of this tool (Sport Mechanic, or one of the models made for other companies) which do not have the LED, and thus are slightly thinner.

The bottle opener varies in thickness on these tools. Both the Endeavor and the matte-scaled needle nose have thin bottle openers. As a bottle opener alone, it's not a big deal. But the bottle opener has a flat driver on the end, so the beefier the better. On these two tools, using the flat driver to screw in a tough screw resulted in the driver twisting with very minimal force. On the other two tools, the driver did not bend even a slight bit when applying significant force to a screw.

The play in the tools is nonexistent in three of the tools, and just barely there in the one that I mentioned as being not up to the same standard of quality as the others.

Sharpening: B-

The main blade isn't very sharp. It will cut paper, but just barely. The needle nose both have wire stripper notches that are sharpened, and this is really nice. The scissors seem sharp enough to work as scissors, but they're nothing especially awesome. The file is wonderfully aggressive.


Peening: A+

All of these tools are peened very well, even the lesser-quality version. The peening does not in any way effect the jaws, only the integrity of the handle and tools. There's far less force put on the rivets when operating the tool as well. It's a far better design and far more durable.

Sheath: A+

The sheaths are very nice for these tools. They're thick, heavy duty nylon with double-stitched seams, loops for horizontal or vertical carry, and a small front pocket for extra items. The Endeavor sheath has two internal compartments. A large, deep one at the back, and a thin one at the front. There is also a small front pocket like the other sheaths. It has TWO loops on either side. Both fit either an AA Maglite or a ratchet. You can carry quite a bit with this pouch. Ratchet, flashlight, pliers, extension, bits, and a Gator Grip universal socket all fit within the pouch easily. (Although it weighs a ton on the belt like that)

Other Things of Note:

The lesser-quality needle nosed tool can be recognized in eBay auctions by the distinctive 90 degree bend to the end of the spring, the thinner blade, and the matte black scales. The better version of the needle nose has a robustly thick blade and semi-gloss scales.

There are variants of this with other companies' branding on them. These plier heads were also used on the Sport Mechanic model.

Overall: Buy One

The Coast Pocket Mechanic that I reviewed a couple pages ago is a really good SOG clone, with nice scales, a nice spring, and a better tool selection. This tool is far, far better. It's more like an approximation of a Wenger SwissGrip, except that it came out at the same time as the SwissGrip, or perhaps even a year before. It's a big beefy tool with a good (soft) wire cutter, good blade, good file, good drivers, decent scissors, and a bottle opener. This is the pinnacle of affordable fixed plier tool design. I'd say this is better than the Kutmaster by FAR, better than the SOG ToolClip, and the plier part is better than that on most of the folding multi-tools out there. It can't hold a candle to the SwissGrip... but then what can, really? This tool is around $20 on eBay. The SwissGrip goes for $200. This is an absolute STELLAR buy.


Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 09:31:51 AM
Pics showing needle nose version, and the LED flashlight in the scale.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 09:35:39 AM
Scissor details. The scissors on the very bottom are the best version. Unfortunately, that tool is of slightly lesser quality than the others. Distinctive matte scales and sharp curl to the end of the spring point this one out.

NOTE: Spring style scissors seem to change from copy to copy. The springless scissors are always the same.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 09:38:52 AM
The very bottom and very top bottle openers are the thin, easily-bent versions. The two in the middle are the beefier, better versions. The "Endeavor" branded model has the longest, best formed phillips driver.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 09:46:10 AM
The Endeavor-branded case actually goes to the blunt nosed pliers with the black LED scales. The yellow Endeavor-branded pliers came to me without a case.  With this Coast-branded blunt-nosed plier tool and Endeavor-branded case came a gator grip and an adapter specifically made for these pliers. Pretty neat. The yellow Endeavor-branded model should come with the same setup, but a different black and yellow case with an alligator "Gator Grip" logo on it.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on July 20, 2018, 05:11:52 PM
More great pics and write-ups CC :like: :like: I really like that socket adapter as well :o :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 05:52:12 PM
Some comparison shots.

Left most plier is a very good SOG-knockoff.
Next is a 1st gen Coast Pocket Mechanic.
Then the robust, blunt nosed 2nd gen Pro Pocket Mechanic, which came in the PMG2500CP kit with a Gator grip and over-sized sheath.
Finally the rightmost plier is the lower-quality needle-nosed Pro Pocket Mechanic. You can see the difference in the blade thickness quite easily.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 05:56:06 PM
Here are the last two pics showing the size in my hand.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 05:56:53 PM
And here's a video showing the one-handed opening (and closing) for the pliers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdJqRADkRLg


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 20, 2018, 08:35:03 PM
I went ahead and sharpened the Endeavor branded blade until it could cut receipt paper. Then I went and made 30 slices through a cardboard box, each slice minimum 12 inches long. This heated the blade up quite a bit. I then tested it, and it was able to just barely cut receipt paper. It tore it a bit, whereas before it cut almost perfectly cleanly.  Not sure what that really says about the blade quality.


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 21, 2018, 07:22:26 AM
More fantastic information, observations and commentary, Charles! Thank you. :salute:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 21, 2018, 09:42:53 AM
Just an FYI, the white LED conversion on the Type 2 Coast scales works really well. The LED *is* a lot brighter with two cells, but it works fine with one cell, and is a thousand times better than the red LED that it comes with. Unfortunately the LEDs I purchased have pretty short leads, so some soldering is required to extend one lead to fit the scale.

There is room in the scale to add a second battery, but that would require building up a housing with JB Weld to hold the second battery, and some wiring, and it all just doesn't seem worth it when just replacing the LED makes it so much better.


Also, if you haven't figured it out by now, after all my many reviews, my conclusions are thus:

While there are a few stand-out models here and there, there's not an easy way to tell when you're just looking at photos on eBay. Many of the name brands have QC issues, and the quality of the tool varies wildly from copy to copy. Most of the cutters are rubbish either because the cutter is malformed, or because the rivets are not adequately peened.  Almost all of the copies have very poorly peened rivets, and some are about to come apart before you even use the tool.

The only tools with consistent quality are those made by Coast Cutlery. They have good plier heads and good tools. The type 2 jaws are exceptional in both needle nosed and blunt nosed, but the type 1 jaws are very good as well. And the type 1 pliers are far thinner and lighter, which makes them MUCH easier to pocket carry.  They're all peened very well. Sure, every now and then you might find a Coast with an issue, but I'm finding them to have very consistent quality. I can't say the same thing with the other brands.

After the Coast tools, I'd recommend the Sheffield just because it's put together so well. It's no SOG, but it's riveted well and the tools are quality-made and beefy. The tool is sharpened well to boot. I like the Australian SOG copy. The jaws are good on that one, and the cutters work well, but the tools are not as good as the Coast or the Sheffield. There is also a limited supply, and no brand name or any identifying information on them. So long as the eBay auction is going, they're worth snagging. But even those need some work, they're not riveted very well.

Beyond that, the Alltrade versions are decent. But not easy to find in unabused shape.

One last thing of note. Peening the plier pivot is a horribly bad idea. It's cheap, but it's not precise. Coast manages it because they obviously have invested in production machines that can peen a rivet just tight enough so that the pliers don't have side-to-side play, but loose enough so as not to cause binding. Some of the poorly cutting pliers could be remedied by replacing the rivet with screw pivot, which can be tightened by hand until the perfect balance between drag and play is achieved, and then locktited in place. This won't fix poorly machined cutters, though.If the cutters don't meet or are at an angle from each other, they'll never cut anything.

Anyhow, go for Coast. They're the tools most worth getting. I'm going to mod a couple of these plier tools and then sell everything except the modded tools and the Coast tools.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 25, 2018, 06:58:55 PM
Today I'm going to back-pedal a bit and review one of the type 1 pliers made by Coast. This is the Sharper Image Pro Pocket Mechanic. It has the type 1 pliers, and it's an early model without the spring-loaded jaws. It has "Sharper Image" branding on it, and this was useful in helping me definitively date it. I know for fact this was sold in 1997, and likely 1996. It was mentioned in a February 1997 Popular Mechanics article. That would make this one of the last springless type 1 multitools sold by Coast. (Coast switched to making spring loaded pliers in late 97).

As I said this has Sharper Image branding, and is so far the only "Pro" Pocket Mechanic I've come across with a type 1 jaw. It also has gray scales instead of black, but otherwise is obviously a Coast tool. (The "Coast Port. USA" stamped on the bottle opener confirms this.) I received it brand new in the box! This is made in Taiwan and is model number CM150 from Sharper Image.

Jaws: A-

The Coast type 1 jaws are excellent jaws. Every model I've come across has had precision tips that can pull out arm hairs, a large gripping area far better than that of the copies, zero play and zero offset. These are no exception. However, this is a brand new tool, and there is some drag on the pliers. It was significant drag fresh from the box, but they are wearing in nicely and have already loosened up quite a bit. The culprit is the ever present ding on the end of the bar stock that makes the spacers around the head. I'm guessing these parts are stamped out, and the corners are deformed slightly during that stamping process. If the parts were machined or sanded after that stamping this wouldn't be an issue.

I've not encountered this particular drag issue on any other Coast-made pliers. It will work itself out eventually, or you can help it along with a punch and a hammer, to knock down the burr on the edge that is causing the drag.  (This is what I will probably do).

Being a springless jaw is not a big deal with this tool, because it is quite easy to get a finger under the handle and open it. Plus it's a very comfortable tool to hold in the hand. Still, I prefer the spring loaded jaws, and these *are* tight right from the factory, so they can't get an A+ from me, regardless of how well machined and tightly toleranced they are.

Cutter: A+

These cutters made short work of everything I threw at them. 24gauge cut difinitively. 12gauge cut with snap that shot the end of the wire across the room. It handled the extra-thick insulated wire with just as much aplomb. Zip ties are no problem for it either. These are the blunt cutters that meet at 180 degrees to each other, which can crush thick wire as it cuts it... but these do an absolutely stellar job of cutting wire regardless.

Tools: A

While I prefer the toolset of the Type 2 Pro Pocket Mechanic, I can't fault this toolset at all. This has a nice thick blade (2.5mm at the tang), a serrated blade with a very aggressive, properly treated file, and a well-formed large flat head, a saw blade, a 1.5mm thick bottle opener with a small flat screwdriver, and a VERY nice backspring phillips driver. The shining star are the scissors on this model though. They can cut through paracord with relative ease. They're on par with older Wenger scissors, better than 85mm Evolution scissors, but not anywhere near the "single-snip" of 91mm Victorinox scissors. They have a nice spring action and open quite wide, and have a screw pivot.

All the backsprings snap open and closed nicely. The scissors and main blade backspring are weaker than the backsprings for the other three tools. This is fine for the scissors, but for the main blade I'd prefer a strong backspring to keep the blade from folding up during use. The phillips driver snaps open strongly on its backspring, and resists folding about the same as a SAK backspring driver. The driver is almost identical in shape and size to a Wenger backspring phillips, but it has a bit more length. That doesn't translate to more reach though, because of the plier handle in the way. It's a very good toolset. If the blade backspring was strong this would be an A+.

Sharpening: A+

The main blade appears to be sharpened to about 20 degrees. Somewhere between 20 and 25, but closer to 20. That's really good! Fresh out of the box it cuts receipt paper with ease. The serrated blade can't cut receipt paper, but it can easily manage to cut plain paper, and it goes through paracord like it's butter. The file is sharp and aggressive, and the two wire stripping notches (one on the serrated blade and one on the bottle opener) are sharp and useful.

Peening: A

There is some slight side-play to the tools, but it's not bad at all. The tool is peened very well, with each rivet having big round heads that are ground down flush with the sides of the tool. Every rivet is peened well.

Sheath: A+

The sheath is made from heavy duty ballistic nylon, just like the other Coast sheaths. It's double-stitched and embroidered well. It can be horizontally or vertically carried. This is how a sheath should be made.

Other Things of Note:

I really like this tool and this toolset. I'm not missing the spring-loaded jaws as much as I thought I would. I also really enjoy how this tool fits in my hand. The Type 2 pliers have better jaws and are bigger and beefier and an overall better tool, but these smaller tools with the type 1 jaws fit in my hand better, weigh less, and are just really nice to carry and use.

Overall: Buy one!

I don't know how rare a Pro Pocket Mechanic with type 1 jaws actually is. This is the first I've seen on eBay or in photos. The toolset is really great, the feel in my hands is great, and the pliers and wire cutters are excellent. You really can't go wrong with one of these.


Note: In the photos below, the last photo shows the beautiful plier head... and the small scar that's forming as the jaw wears on the edge of the spacer that's poking into it and causing drag.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 27, 2018, 09:33:12 AM
Today I'm reviewing a Coast Sport Mechanic with the type-2 needle nose jaws. After handling many of these tools, and scouring the internet and newspaper archives to see pictures of early model Coast plier tools, I believe that this is a later model. The earliest models did not have a hard wire notch. I am not sure when that was added. The quality of the screws that hold on the scales was very good in the 90s, throughout the period when the type 1 jaws were made. The screws on this tool are zinc plated and badly formed. The cross is not in the dead center of the screw, and they're often not completely round.  This is typical of the Chinese copies, not of actual Coast models. There is no "Coast" stamping on any of the blades. This is not atypical for this mode, but it has me wondering if this might be a Chinese-made version. The scales on this version do not have an LED, and are thus thinner than the Pro Pocket Mechanic tools. That, coupled with the fact it's one tool thinner than the Pro Pocket Mechanic means this feels a lot smaller in my hand. It's still a massive tool, but it doesn't feel as massive.

Jaws: A+

I love these jaws, and every pair I come across is well made with precision tolerances and smooth action. This is no exception. The spring is nice and light, the retention clip works well and falls away when the handle is squeezed, there's no side offset, minimal side play, and they pull out arm hairs with gusto.

Cutter: D

Woah, what happened here?! This is the first of the type 2 pliers I've found where the cutters are actually BAD. 12ga wire cannot be cut, neither can zip ties, they're just bent and stretched. Smaller wires are cut with stragglers left, or insulation left uncut. These can be cut a second time and they'll cut completely, but damn. I've got 5 of the type 2 pliers now, and this is the first one I've come across that wasn't perfect in the cutter department. Looking at the cutters I can't see anything obviously wrong. There is a very little play in the pivot, but not enough to cause a problem. (Not anything I'd call abnormal or out of tolerance). I'm not sure why these are bad.

Tools: C+

Well first and foremost, this Sport Mechanic has one of the tools I've been waiting for in a Coast. The early drawings on the Coast website show all of the Pro Pocket Mechanics having a can opener, but every one I've seen in the flesh and in photos has the bottle opener with screwdriver tip. The Sport Mechanic with type 2 jaws is the only one that I've found so far that actually has the can opener. And it's a monster of a can opener too! It's different than the opener on the Sheffield, and much like a massively scaled-up Victorinox opener. It's 1.8mm thick with a blade portion that's sharpened on both sides. The wire notch is not sharpened. It is beveled, but I wouldn't call that sharpening. All this is well and good and had me really excited... at least, until I tried to open a can. It can't do it. It doesn't latch on to a lid, and the sharpened blade doesn't reach down far enough to pierce a normal can. It could be made to work on a large can, but it still doesn't latch on.  I don't understand how this tool got past development or quality control. The Sheffield design lacks a screwdriver tip, but it works, and it works well. I don't even think this tool can be filed and modified to latch on to a lid, because there's so little material left to work with.

The remainder of the tools consist of a pair of scissors, a combination edged blade, a woodsaw, and a backspring phillips driver.  The main blade has the nail nick on the opposite side from all the other type 2 tools, and it nestles in between the scissors and the saw. The blade sits low in the tool, making extraction difficult. It is 2.5mm wide. The saw blade is the typical middle-quality saw that does a decent, but not great job. This scissors are pretty terrible. They cannot cut paracord and struggle to cut through 12 sheets of paper. The moving scissor blade is shorter and smaller than the fixed blade, which has me wondering if this is a factory second assembled from crap parts. Still, the scissors do cut paper well, and are acceptable for light usage. They're about the same quality as the scissors on the copies. They also sit higher in the handle than the scissors in any of the other type 2 tools.

The backspring phillips is the same thickness and quality as that of other tools, and it is retained by a backspring in the extended position. But it has a lot of friction in the movement, even after oiling, and it doesn't appear to be held down by anything other than that friction.

Because of the useless can opener and the mismatched scissors this can't get too great of a rating... that said, the blade and phillips driver are of great quality. The backsprings open and close each tool with a solid snap. They're the same tools as the other Pocket Mechanics, but the design, fitm and finish is not quite as thought-out as the other models. Again, this leads me to belive this might be a Chinese-made version.

Sharpening: B

The blade and the serrations will easily slice through regular paper. The plain edged part of the blade will bite into receipt paper and may cut it a little bit, but it then tears it. The wire notches are not sharpened. The saw is sufficiently sharp for light-duty use. The blade is good, some points taken off for the wire notches.

Peening: C

I'd like to say "no surprises" here, but unfortunately there are. All the other models of the type 2 pliers I've encountered had recessed rivets that were peened and then ground flush with the body of the tool. This tool is different. The side plates don't have the recessed holes for the rivets, and the rivet heads are domed on one side. In fact, the side plates appear to be chrome-plated steel instead of stainless steel. The rivets are poorly peened. They appear to be clipped by hand and hammered by hand. The large rivets that hold the handle to the plier head appear to be peened well enough, but the rest are done poorly. I'm surprised there is no play in the tools, looking at that tool pivot rivet. Still, the tool appears to be held together tightly regardless, with no gaps and no problems, so what was done is holding. Likely due to the lesser stress on the tool itself from having the plier head be a robust entity not dependent on the handle rivets for structural integrity.

Sheath: n/a

This tool did not come to me with a sheath, so I cannot evaluate it.

Other Things of Note:

After seeing the rivet job, I'm convinced this is a Chinese-made version of the tool. Corners have been cut and the tool has gone from perfect machine-made rivets to poorly-done hand-hammered rivets.

Overall: It's still better than the copies.

This is the worst quality Coast tool I've come across. The cutters don't work and the rivets are poorly done... but honestly, it's still above the quality of almost all of the chinese-made copies of the type1 plier. The excellent plier jaws make up for a lot, and the tool blades are good. Sure, the can opener doesn't work, but it works as a caplifter, and that makes it no different than the other Coast tools, and still one-ups the caplifter/blade on all of the copies. The scissors are Chinese quality, but still usable... and so yeah, the tool is still better than the copies. But as far as Coast tools go, it's the worst I've come across so far.

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 27, 2018, 09:37:03 AM
Here's a comparison between the Coast can opener, which does not work, and the Sheffield can opener, which works most excellently. You can see the fundamental difference is the hook that is present on the Sheffield. On the Coast there is no hook, just a lonely piece of metal stabbing out into the void.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 27, 2018, 06:34:00 PM
Also, wanted to make something clear that I've noticed as I've been messing with the Coast tools, and haven't made obvious yet.

The SOG ToolClip was released in 1991. The Pocket Mechanic in 1993. All of the Coast tools with the original style of jaws are obvious copies of the SOG. All of the side plates have the hole for the flat driver. Coast didn't put the little flat driver in, and rightly so, as it interferes with extraction of the saw tool, has no lock, and is just dinky. But the hole is still there. The side plates are shaped differently for Coast's different style head, but they left that hole.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on July 27, 2018, 06:37:32 PM
Excellent reviews ChopperCharles :cheers: :like: :like:
This is very interesting information  :tu:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 27, 2018, 07:57:47 PM
I'm putting together a timeline for the Coast plier tools, later to be expanded to their other multi tool offerings. Some of it is conjecture, but I have a lot of actual facts and evidence as well. It's all coming together slowly though.

Charles
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on July 27, 2018, 08:34:06 PM
 :popcorn: :tu:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 30, 2018, 07:34:00 PM
So I just received an actual SOG ToolClip, and will be posting a review of it here. You may be surprised at my opinions of it. :)

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 30, 2018, 09:22:23 PM
I think I know the outcome.  :pok:  :D

Collectors like them as a SOG first. But, I can't remember anyone actually using one recently. They aren't practical. :-\
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ThePeacent on July 31, 2018, 01:56:30 PM
I think I know the outcome.  :pok:  :D

Collectors like them as a SOG first. But, I can't remember anyone actually using one recently. They aren't practical. :-\

Well, jimislash does carry one, but he's the only one so far and he's a weird guy  :D
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 31, 2018, 02:33:44 PM
I think I know the outcome.  :pok:  :D

Collectors like them as a SOG first. But, I can't remember anyone actually using one recently. They aren't practical. :-\

Well, jimislash does carry one, but he's the only one so far and he's a weird guy  :D
Cool that someone enjoys the ToolClip! :)
Which sub-boards does he frequent? I don't remember seeing that username.  :think:
Of course, I can barely remember my own name, so you can't take me too seriously. :rofl:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ThePeacent on July 31, 2018, 02:47:22 PM
I think I know the outcome.  :pok:  :D

Collectors like them as a SOG first. But, I can't remember anyone actually using one recently. They aren't practical. :-\

Well, jimislash does carry one, but he's the only one so far and he's a weird guy  :D
Cool that someone enjoys the ToolClip! :)
Which sub-boards does he frequent? I don't remember seeing that username.  :think:
Of course, I can barely remember my own name, so you can't take me too seriously. :rofl:

d'Oh, sorry for the confusion  :facepalm:
He's a youtuber, not a member here  :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on July 31, 2018, 03:01:55 PM
 :rofl:
That username(or lack thereof) makes sense now.  :cheers:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on July 31, 2018, 10:30:41 PM
while I suppose I should have done it first, today is a review of the Type 1 version of the Coast Sport Mechanic. This is a spring-type plier, which dates it as 1997 or later. Unfortunately the spring in this copy is broken.

Jaws: A

The jaws in this tool are identical to the SwissGear tool. It is obvious the SwissGear was based on the Sport mechanic -- it's essentially a Sport Mehanic without scissors. These jaws are excellent. They have smooth action with only a hint of drag. There is some wear present on the jaw indicating that there was more drag in the past. It wouldn't have been noticable because of the spring, however. At any rate, these are needle nosed with very fine tips. They can easily pull out arm hairs and they're very precisely machined with no offset.

Cutter: A+

The cutters on this tool are shaped differently than the Pocket Mechanic series. They're more like the SOG cutters, in that they come together first at the front and then as they close they force the wire backwards in the cutter. These cutters manage to cut every single wire in my tests, from the 24 gauge on up to the 12 gauge, and all zip ties, without any problems whatsoever. What's more, they cut bare stranded 24ga wire, and left only a few stragglers. They cut bare stranded 12 gauge wire completely. These are absolutely excellent cutters. The only cutters I've tried that are better are the actual SOG ToolClip cutters.

Tools: A

The tool selection is more limited than the Pocket Mechanic. This tool drops the saw and the bottle opener, and gets a fish scaler with a metric and inch ruler etched into it. It is the same fish scaler from the SwissGear tool. It has a nice thick plain edged blade and a very nice pair of scissors, which can cut paracord in a few cuts. Slightly worse than vintage Wenger scissors, about on par with the more modern Evo scissors.  The serrated blade has a nice aggressive file, but the serrations are not as nice as on some of the other tools.

Sharpening: A

The main blade has the factory edge on it still, and it still easily cuts receipt paper. The serrated blade is cut at a steeper angle than other tools (the SwissGear for instance), and this makes it difficult to sharpen on a lansky and is less desireable overall. It cannot cut paper without tearing it. That said, it still slices through paracord like butter. There is a wire stripping notch in the serrated blade that is nicely sharpened as well.

Peening: A+

The rivets in this tool are peened perfectly, ground down, and are every bit as good as the SwissGear's. This is how peening should be done.

Sheath: A+

Coast really does a great job with their heavy-duty ballistic nylon sheaths, and this tool is no exception. It's the same sheath as the Pocket Mechanic but with a different logo sewn on. Vertical and horizontal carry, double stitched, with quality velcro. I wish the sheaths for all the mutltiools I have were this nice.

Other Things of Note:

This tool and its sheath appear to be virtually unused. Likely the spring broke early on and it was shelved because of that. I do not know if all Sport Mechanics were like this, but on my copy the spring is on the backspring for the serrated blade. The serrated blade is an outside tool, and on the Sport Mechanic there is a plate to either side of the plier head. This means the spring was not directly in-line with the handle, and had to be bent slightly to the side to clear the plate and contact the handle. It appears to have broken at this bend.

Overall: Buy it!

If you don't mind having a fish scaler and losing the wood saw and bottle opener, this is a good buy. I especially like the needle-nosed pliers, they come to a pretty fine tip and they're good for delicate work. The addition of the scissors makes this far more useful than the SwissGear tool.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on August 01, 2018, 12:10:44 AM
Very interesting, Charles! :like:

Is there anyway to drill/tap a hole for a piece of spring steel under the pliers handle? I know the hole for the tap would need to be drilled at an angle, but I think you could compensate the angle by bending the spring-steel piece into alignment with the pliers handle. I was thinking about a rivet, but getting a pop rivet in at an angle is sketchy at best.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on August 01, 2018, 05:45:37 AM
I plan to disassemble the tool and replace the spring!

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Yadda on August 01, 2018, 05:48:31 AM
There is a Husky version.  It comes with a nice set of bits and sockets.  I have one if I can find it.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on August 01, 2018, 05:54:11 AM
I plan to disassemble the tool and replace the spring!

Charles.
Please post a thread in the mod section, if you possibly can. I don't think anyone has done a fixed-plier rebuild there yet. :salute:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on August 01, 2018, 09:12:41 AM
Today I'm reviewing the SOG ToolClip. This is the tool everyone is trying to copy. So how does it stack up? Well first I'll do a regular review, and then I'll compare it to actual SOG copies as well as the Coast Pocket Mechanic.

Jaws: C

Surprisingly, the jaws on the SOG Toolclip are not the best. Not even close, actually. The action is extremely stiff. The jaws drag between the side plates, and the cutters drag on each other big time. This makes the jaws difficult to open and close. When the jaws are closed, the handle lies very, very close to the tool. So close that it is impossible to get a finger under it. It takes two or three tries with pinky or ring finger to push the handle out, because it has to be done from the side of the handle instead of from underneath. This tool is difficult to use with bare hands, and absolutely impossible to use with gloves on. All of the copies excepting the True Value have more space under the handle when the jaws are closed.  But it doesn't stop there. The  jaws look precise enough, but they cannot pull out an arm hair. Most of the copies can. They are big and beefy jaws, and quite solid. There's little side offset and zero play. So that's good. But looking at the jaws and the handle, they're covered in tiny pockmarks. These are all tiny voids in the casting. While there are no BIG voids present, I honestly expected better.

Cutter: A+

The super tight cutters do have one benefit. They cut EVERYTHING. Absolutely everything. Not just 24 gauge, but bare stranded 24 gauge, on up to 12 gauge. Everything is cut with a very solid snap.

Tools: C

The main blade is pretty great. It's 2.5mm thick at the tang, and has a nice belly and appears to be good material. The serrated blade is 2mm thick, and is disappointing. It has very sharp serrations, which make cutting rope and paracord difficult. The file is not aggressive at all, and it's very poorly cut. It can barely manage to file fingernails. The bottle opener blade is 1.5mm thick. The small flat screwdriver is loose and flops about. The bottle opener contacts the screwdriver blade and binds in the tool. There are chips in the blade where it smacks the screwdriver every time the bottle opener blade is closed. In fact, it's almost impossible to open the bottle opener blade with a fingernail, I have to use a metal fingernail or another multitool to extract the bottle opener. The backsprings are all very strong and solid, and the tools snap open and closed with gusto.

Sharpening: B+

The main blade has obvious signs of being re-sharpened in the past, so I will not rate that. The serrated blade will only tear paper, and it takes three forceful slices to get through paracord. The wire notches on the serrated blade and the bottle opener are sharpened, however. So that brings the score back up a bit.

Peening: A+

The SOG ToolClip shows the other brands how a rivet should be peened. I thought the Sheffield and the Coast tools were good, but the SOG ToolClip is above and beyond in quality round large-headed rivets.

Sheath: n/a

The SOG ToolClip does't come with a sheath.

Other Things of Note:

The dark gray color of the jaws and handle is a nice touch. Some people say the copies are worse because they're sharp-edged and painful to use and operate.  That's not true. It's just as uncomfortable to hold as the copies. In fact, it's MORE uncomfortable than several of the copies, because the tools stick up farther out of the handle, and the back of the blades is a sharp point that can and does dig into my palm.

Overall: Pass

Yeah, seriously, pass. New the ToolClip goes for about $150. Used they can be had for $50-$80 in various conditions. It's sad to say, the but a used SOG ToolClip is not significantly better than a new True Value copy. It's riveted better and it has a clip. The True Value version has a better serrated blade, better sharpening, and a small phillips driver that doesn't contact the bottle opener. It works BETTER than the ToolClip after peening the rivets myself. The jaws open smoothly without sticking, the bottle opener doesnt jam or contact the screwdriver, and the serrated blade can cut paper and go through paracord like butter.

All the spring-loaded copies are slightly worse in the tool department. The serrated blades are often better, but the wire notches are almost never sharpened, and the small screwdriver tool almost always is missing a washer, meaning it contacts the bottle opener blade. The jaws on the spring-loade copies don't open quite as far. However, the smooth operating jaws and spring-action makes them much easier to use as pliers.

That said, none of these 3-layer ToolClip clones, nor the ToolClip itself, are very useful as multi-tools. They all have three cutting blades, two sizes of flat screwdriver, a very bad file, and a bottle opener. For a multi tool, that's a very poor showing. The Coast Pocket Mechanic tools are far more useful and far more comfortable to hold, with quality that is on par with the SOG. They have two sizes of flat screwdrivers, one size phillips driver, two cutting blades, a very good file, a saw, and a bottle opener. Later models are spring-loaded. They are all sharpened very well.

If you're wanting to actually use your tools, the SOG ToolClip is just not what you want in your pocket. I'm sorry to say, it's a very poor pair of pliers. The jaws are too stiff, the handle too awkward, and the shape painful. It's a very poor multi-tool as well. Too many cutting blades and flat drivers, coupled with a useless file and jamming bottle opener. There aren't enough useful tools to warrant the awkwardness of the pliers.

Note: I filed my micro driver slightly so it no longer binds. But as received, in used but not abused condition, the bottle opener was jamming against the micro driver.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on August 01, 2018, 09:13:55 AM
Here is a video comparison between the SOG ToolClip, several of the copies, and then two versions of the Coast Pocket Mechanic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RGKkVZ0y8k


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gerleatherberman on August 01, 2018, 02:27:15 PM
Very nice write-up, Charles! Thank you! :cheers:

I have to agree with everything you wrote about it. It is amazing, as a collector's piece, but as I've noted before, not even close to ideal for EDC. :ahhh
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Wspeed on August 01, 2018, 02:31:28 PM
Excellent reviews  :cheers: :like: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on August 02, 2018, 05:46:49 PM
This is a great thread CC :like: I have learned quite a bit from it and thanks for taking the time to do all of this :cheers: :like:

I am a bit surprised that the SOG rated lower than some of the knockoffs though :o but that's the way it goes sometimes :ahhh :D
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on August 02, 2018, 06:45:05 PM
Yeah, and surprisingly the SOG was well used. You'd think that time and use would have caused the dragging to get better over time as things wore against each other. And the fact that the opener blade jammed against the screwdriver was surprising. I had assumed that was only a problem with the copies. It may just be a manufacturing defect with my copy. I'm guessing if it was a common problem other people would have chimed up about it. At any rate, I fixed mine by grinding a little bit of the screwdriver. It still contacts, but it no longer jams now. The real fix I think is to sharpen the opener blade to 25 degrees instead of 45 degrees, but holy balls that would take forever.

I was expecting rather an uproar after posting that. When I first started this thread everyone bashed the copies and said how "all the wrong stuff is sharp and all the wrong stuff is dull" and "[the] kind of tools when you don't want nothing to get done but like wounds in you hands."  I've found a few tools like that, but many of these are actually decent, and several are better than the SOG. The True Value for instance. It may have a worse surface finish and inferior riveting, but it fixed some design flaws in the original SOG, and it has better tools.

Overall, my recommendation is to skip the SOG, and skip most of the copies. I'd skip the Sheffield, skip the Ruko and Alltrade tools, skip the direct copies of the SOG (Even the True Value), skip all the three-layer all-metal tools, and buy the Coast tools. Type 1 or Type 2, just depends on how big you're wanting. The Type 1 plier is far, far more pocketable, and i prefer it slightly to the Type 2, even though the Type 2 has that awesome long-reach phillips driver. The Coast tools (type 1 with the spring-loaded jaws in particular) are made very well. They're far, FAR more comfortable than the SOG ToolClip to use, and they have a more useful tool load. The cutters work well and the plier jaws are bigger and open wider. For a collector, I can see having the SOG. But for someone who needs a beefy pair of pliers with a few useful tools thrown in, the Coast Pocket Mechanic or Sport Mechanic is the way to go.

Then, because the scales are plastic, screw on the pocket clip of your choice :)

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: Poncho65 on August 04, 2018, 11:35:14 AM
It's all good and I may even try to track a Coast MT down now :salute: :like:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on September 24, 2018, 11:37:05 PM
THIS THREAD IS AWESOME - mainly because FOR YEARS I have owned a 'nano' version of the toolclip (3 inches long) and have been searching every year to find more of them. Only about halfway through reading all the posts, but hoping someone knows where I can find more of these tiny versions.

Will post a few pics once I get home with some coins in the pic for perspective.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on September 26, 2018, 08:46:37 PM
As promised. Would LOVE to know where I could get about a dozen more of these!!!

Edit: cannot seem to get the pic embed to display, but here is a direct link to image:

http://www.lmctf.com/misc/nano_toolclip.jpg

(http://www.lmctf.com/misc/nano_toolclip.jpg)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gregozedobe on September 27, 2018, 05:26:01 AM
As promised. Would LOVE to know where I could get about a dozen more of these!!!

Edit: cannot seem to get the pic embed to display, but here is a direct link to image:

http://www.lmctf.com/misc/nano_toolclip.jpg


I'm getting a 404 error - page not found when I click on that link.

I'm assuming you're not after the genuine SOG micro ToolClip as it is 4" long
http://wiki.multitool.org/tiki-index.php?page=Micro+ToolClip
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on September 27, 2018, 02:15:03 PM
Link is fixed, I had forgotten about a htaccess redirect in that webspace.

Anyhow, these appear to be about half the size of an official SOG micro toolclip.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gregozedobe on September 27, 2018, 05:07:31 PM
Link is fixed, I had forgotten about a htaccess redirect in that webspace.

Anyhow, these appear to be about half the size of an official SOG micro toolclip.

Link works OK now  :tu:

And yes, it does look like (very) miniature SOG ToolClip (the larger one, not the Micro).   Probably made in the same chinese factory that makes the full size knock-off of the Og ToolClip.

If I come across any I'll let you know.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on September 27, 2018, 05:57:53 PM
Thanks, I cannot help but keep imagining there's a pallet of these sitting somewhere out there in a warehouse :)

Figured it would be intriguing to know there's an even more micro version out there. The build quality on this one is really good.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on September 27, 2018, 11:43:56 PM
Those super tiny ones are sold on Amazon and eBay. Kikkerland makes one with wooden scales. Lewis and Clark Urban Gear makes one that looks more like a coast Sport Mechanic with plastic scales. And then there are hundreds of them on eBay... but you'll have to search through a bunch of related crap to find them.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on September 28, 2018, 03:32:21 PM
If I find any, will be sure to share a link....but I have been searching for YEARS.

If you guys happen to have a product link for amazon, etc please share - the tiny ones are incredibly useful for ultralight camping, fly fishing, etc.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on September 28, 2018, 06:02:09 PM
20 seconds of searching later....

https://www.amazon.com/Kikkerland-Mini-Keychain-Pliers/dp/B07BKQK5VZ

https://www.amazon.com/Lewis-Clark-Urban-Minipliers-Black/dp/B01I78X0K8

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lewis-Clark-Urban-Gear-Minipliers-Red-Tool-Pliers-Keychain-Pocket/173556515938

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on September 28, 2018, 06:41:52 PM
That said, if you want a small keychain-sized pair of pliers, I don't recommend either of those. I suggest you find an old Coast Micro Pliers. These:  https://www.ebay.com/itm/163276214074

They fit on a keychain just as nicely as a minichamp, but have functional, usable pliers. FAR more usable than those super tiny keychain pliers.

Charles.


Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on October 01, 2018, 08:08:07 PM
Thanks - would be curious what search terms you used as I have obviously been striking out on that front.

Purchased a couple of those just now. Thanks again!
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: cody6268 on October 01, 2018, 11:46:13 PM
If I find any, will be sure to share a link....but I have been searching for YEARS.

If you guys happen to have a product link for amazon, etc please share - the tiny ones are incredibly useful for ultralight camping, fly fishing, etc.

I had one (with a broken spring) that came in a lot on my keys for some time. Those little pliers just really couldn't do anything.

For size, I'd recommend the SwissTech tool or the Sebertool line. Very robust pliers for that tiny size.  All but the Sebertool M4 don't have a blade, but there's also the SOG CrossGrip (discontinued and somewhat scarce) as well as the Leatherman Squirts. The older Squirts (P4, S4, E4) are what I recommend, as the scissors have a return spring that breaks easy.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on October 02, 2018, 06:42:38 PM
Agree, those pliers don't do much....but they're great for clipping and tying small objects like fishing flies....and dare I say....roach clip?  :twak:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 02, 2018, 09:32:28 PM
Don't forget nose and ear hair extractors!

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 04, 2018, 07:55:57 PM
I bought one of the SwissGear models for cheap, but it too has a broken pliers spring. Seems to be a really common failure point.

I would really like to get a Toolclip, or even a SwissGrip, but the prices are just too high for me. Maybe I should start looking for a trade  :shrug:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 04, 2018, 09:21:47 PM
Well, the early models don't have a spring, and the pliers are very useful without it. It can be replaced. I replaced it in a mod I'm working on, and can detail it in another post when I'm finished with the mod. But essentially I cut a piece of metal out of a Leatherman pocket clip, bent it, dremeled it, and fit it into the backspring. I had to disassemble the tool and re-peen everything to do it, though.

Unfortunately the SwissGear isn't the most useful model, because of the fish scaler. But it's still a great pair of needle nosed pliers.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 04, 2018, 09:29:03 PM
Well, the early models don't have a spring, and the pliers are very useful without it. It can be replaced. I replaced it in a mod I'm working on, and can detail it in another post when I'm finished with the mod. But essentially I cut a piece of metal out of a Leatherman pocket clip, bent it, dremeled it, and fit it into the backspring. I had to disassemble the tool and re-peen everything to do it, though.

Unfortunately the SwissGear isn't the most useful model, because of the fish scaler. But it's still a great pair of needle nosed pliers.

Charles.

Looking at the way it fits together, I came to the same conclusion about how to fit in a new spring. But I'm really not wanting to deal with the rivets and all that, so I probably won't.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 05, 2018, 08:08:21 AM
IF, and it's a big IF there is enough of the spring sticking out, you can possibly remove it without splitting the thing apart. It will just pull straight out... pressure from everything riveted together keeps it kinda stuck, so you may have to apply heat. I've not had one broken off with enough sticking out to be able to do this yet, but it is feasably possible.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: geequeue on October 05, 2018, 03:37:30 PM
Got the Urban Gear tiny toolclip, pic for size reference:

(http://www.lmctf.com/misc/nano_toolclips.jpg)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 05, 2018, 03:47:01 PM
IF, and it's a big IF there is enough of the spring sticking out, you can possibly remove it without splitting the thing apart. It will just pull straight out... pressure from everything riveted together keeps it kinda stuck, so you may have to apply heat. I've not had one broken off with enough sticking out to be able to do this yet, but it is feasably possible.

Charles.

There's a bit of a stub. Not much, but perhaps I'll get lucky.

(https://i.imgur.com/zQOUh10.jpg)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 06, 2018, 08:38:59 AM
This is how the spring is installed. You can see the clip I used to make my replacement spring. Works great so far!

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 11, 2018, 11:10:48 PM
So I snagged a mint condition example of the yellowish logo Endeavor tool. This thing definitely has the beefiest pliers I've ever seen in a MT, and the spring is absurdly powerful. It's like working out with one of those spring-loaded hand exercisers. The blade is so unevenly ground I can't tell if it's supposed to be a chisel grind or what, and I have yet to extract the flathead driver from the backside with my puny human fingernails. The blade I can fix and I'm sure the tools will loosen up with some oil and work. The spring might be a dealbreaker as far as actually using this one goes, though. It's really that strong.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 12, 2018, 08:00:48 AM
You get used to the spring pretty quickly. Or well, I did at least. But I hit the gym 3x a week, so your mileage may vary. The backspring tool will loosen up with a good soapy cleaning, working the tool vigorously, then lube. I had two like that, but cleaning and lubing fixed them.

The blades are all mostly chisel ground, but there's also a small back edge on the blades. The back bevel also exists on most - but not all - of the Pro Pocket Mechanics and type 2 Sport Mechanics. Only two copies I have so far sport a truly chisel ground blade.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 12, 2018, 01:37:36 PM
To clarify; I have arthritis in my dominant hand, which makes it difficult to squeeze things like this. So my mileage definitely varies  :-\

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 13, 2018, 04:31:46 AM
Okay, so I got my hands on one more model; an unused Sport Mechanic. This would probably be my favorite of the bunch if not for one problem; the tips of the pliers don't meet up that well. Kind of ruins them as a set of needle nose pliers since the precision is lost.
It's a shame because I like everything about the design (well, I could do without the fish scaler), and it's otherwise really good quality. It even came with the original box, inspection sticker, and manual. Chopper, I think you mentioned this sheath being pretty good, and it definitely is.
I like this enough to probably buy a second one to hopefully get better pliers, if another surfaces.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 13, 2018, 05:20:57 AM
Did you snag a Type 1 or Type 2 Sport Mechanic? Got pics? Sad to hear about the pliers. They may be fixable. Can you post some pics?

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 13, 2018, 05:45:10 AM
I'll try to post pics tomorrow afternoon. On my way to bed for an early start on work in the morning.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 16, 2018, 04:36:52 PM
Okay, so I didn't get around to messing with this until today.
Here are some shots of the pliers. It is currently sans handle scales and oily because i gave it a bit of a soak;

(https://i.imgur.com/O1FAMPt.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/JBzgGXq.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/k8CqpHk.jpg)

As you can see, the jaws are kinda funky out of the box.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 16, 2018, 04:39:35 PM
I can feel slight play in the fixed half of the pliers, so maybe some peening on those rivets could help.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 16, 2018, 10:45:09 PM
So I did a bit of peening and that seems to have removed any detectable play in the fixed half of the pliers, though the alignment is only fractionally improved.

(https://i.imgur.com/ZXg3dhZ.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/uoFsxME.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/mmvyDxE.jpg)

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 17, 2018, 02:53:42 PM
The pliers on this thing are giving me nothing but trouble... the action was super stiff when I got it, but I figured I could loosen it up with some deep cleaning and oil.
I cleaned it out good with soapy water and worked oil into the pivot, then worked the jaws a couple hundred times, to almost no effect.
 So the fixed half of the pliers moved when it wasn't supposed to, and the moving part is so stiff it requires two hands to operate.
It's pretty disappointing, because I like the rest of the tool a lot. Even the scissors are pretty good. I'm not ready to give up on it yet, though. I'll keep trying to break in these pliers.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 18, 2018, 09:11:21 AM
I've never seen Coast pliers with such a misaligned head or that are stiff enough to require two hands.... and I have around 20 pairs now. (I know, I'm sick).  You say they're unused... you sure?

So, looking at your pics, the bottom jaw is dragging against the spacer. Hold the pliers in a vise so that only the riveted area of the fixed jaw is held in the vise. Use a punch and a hammer to ker-plang! the spacer sideways to create more clearance. The pliers are riveted at the fixed jaw and at the pivot, and you can bend the side plates a little to get clearance. I did this with the junk copies all the time to get them to loosen up, but I've not needed it with the Coast pliers yet. The fact that the rivets were loose on the fixed jaw tells me you either have an abused copy or perhaps a factory second.


Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 18, 2018, 01:49:10 PM
I've never seen Coast pliers with such a misaligned head or that are stiff enough to require two hands.... and I have around 20 pairs now. (I know, I'm sick).  You say they're unused... you sure?

So, looking at your pics, the bottom jaw is dragging against the spacer. Hold the pliers in a vise so that only the riveted area of the fixed jaw is held in the vise. Use a punch and a hammer to ker-plang! the spacer sideways to create more clearance. The pliers are riveted at the fixed jaw and at the pivot, and you can bend the side plates a little to get clearance. I did this with the junk copies all the time to get them to loosen up, but I've not needed it with the Coast pliers yet. The fact that the rivets were loose on the fixed jaw tells me you either have an abused copy or perhaps a factory second.


Charles.

There are no signs of use anywhere else. Everything but the pliers is in excellent condition, and like my Endeavor example it had what appeared to be whatever lube they put on it in the factory. Old and resinified, of course.
I'm guessing it's a defect that slipped through. Unless the previous owner did nothing but take it out, do something really stupid with the pliers, then just put it back in the box for however many years.

I'll try loosening the spacer today. Though I don't currently have a bench vise so it might be hard to secure it well enough.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 18, 2018, 03:29:59 PM
Well, I beat the smurf out of those spacers, and it worked  :tu:

They're only a little tight when fully closed, I think due to the back side of the spacers being a little tight on the arm. But that's actually not a bad thing, as this model lacks a bail to lock the pliers down.
So now it's functional, and still tight enough to not flop open when I use the other tools.
Kind of a pain I had to work on it this much just to get the darn thing to a reasonably usable level, but now I'm going to EDC it for a while and see if it was worth the hassle. Many thanks for the advice, Chopper, and for the great thread!
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 18, 2018, 08:16:17 PM
Also I just bought a lot of 15 tools just to get another Sport Mechanic  :facepalm:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: gregozedobe on October 19, 2018, 02:19:44 AM
Also I just bought a lot of 15 tools just to get another Sport Mechanic  :facepalm:

Instant expansion of your collection !   :pok:   :rofl:  :rofl:  :rofl:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 21, 2018, 04:51:39 PM
Hey Chopper, I know it isn't exactly a Toolclip clone, but did you ever try one of these?

(https://i.imgur.com/kZqGGUg.jpg)
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 22, 2018, 07:51:57 AM
I have tried the Sheffield version, and it's kinda smurfty. I've been eyeing the Coast version, which these appear to be poor copies of. They're $17 brand new. eBay item number 272006465290.

The Sheffield version wasn't THAT bad. It had a good (for a knockoff) blade, a sorta-okay file, and a smurfty backspring screwdriver. The wrench itself was of the cheapest possible quality, and attached to the handle via two rivets.

The Coast version has more tools and appears to be a lot higher quality.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 22, 2018, 07:54:29 AM
Today I found my first COPY of a type 2 plier. It's pretty bad. I'll post pics and info tomorrow. It's easy to tell these, because they have the crappy short and badly-made backspring screwdriver, not the quality machined part like the Coast tools have. There are other differences and a completely different toolset to boot.

Charles.
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: ChopperCharles on October 22, 2018, 11:15:04 PM
And here we go with the copy!

On first glance, this looks like an early Coast model. The scales with the press-on red plastic rivets were short-lived, and reserved mostly for one-offs made by Coast for other companies. However, it's quite easy to see this is not a coast product by the tool selection and the poor design. First off, the backspring screwdriver is incorrect. It's a short stubby cast driver, where the Coast drivers are all machined from round rod. Second, the combination bottle opener and fish scaler is not a Coast-made tool. Third, there is a backspring pakage hook tool. The screw that holds the handle spring on is the wrong type -- it should be a round headed screw, but instead it is a flat-topped screw meant to be countersunk. The blade tang is marked "Stainless Steel China", and the "China" is mostly hidden as it's stamped in the pivot area of the tang. Finally, the sheath is a very thin nylon, and is not thick and robust like a real Coast sheath.

Quality wise, this tool is far, far below that of a Coast. The jaws are okay, and they operate smoothly -- until you attempt to open them more than the spring does. Then they quickly become stiff and sticky.  The cutters don't cut anything. Not wire, not zip ties, nothing. The cutters are shaped differently than Coast cutters. They have a proper bevel on them, where Coast cutters have two flat surfaces that sort of smash wire as it cuts. Still, the Coast cutters work, and these don't at all.

On to the tools. The scissors are surprising. Coast scissors in the Type 2 pliers either have a springless system (somewhat like Wenger scissors), or a spring and a screw pivot. These have a spring and a rivet pivot. They're copies of the better Coast scissor design, and they cut paracord in one go. Not quite as easily as Victorinox scissors, but they do a good job. The spring is typical for copies -- it's not very springy. It's worse than the Coast spring, which at least does its job as a spring. Still, the scissors work.

The blade is thinner than the blade in the Coast tools, and it doesn't have as deep a belly. It is a plain edged blade and is very poorly ground. It is not sharp at all.

The saw is typical of the chinese knockoffs. The Coast saws are thinner at the top and wider at the teeth, so that the blade doesn't get stuck in the wood you're cutting. This saw is the same width top and bottom,

The serrated blade surprisingly is a close match to a type 1 coast serrated blade. The file is decent and aggressive.

The package hook is absolutely worthless. It's obvious they had blades and scissors with tangs that require a backspring tool (smaller tang). So they shoved a package hook in there. Which is fine, it's not the most useful tool, but that'd be great... except that it is directly underneath the plier handle, and hits the handle when extending. This makes it largely useless. They could have moved the package hook and main blade to a different location, except that the tools have to be in a particular order for the nail nicks to all line up and work. It's a huge bodge that Coast would have never have made.

Except for the surprisingly good scissors, this tool is a fail. An actual Coast tool is designed and built to far better quality. That said, this is a decent attempt. It's better than the majority of the type 1 copies.

Charles.

Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 23, 2018, 01:52:45 AM
They actually found a way to make the parcel hook less useful. Bravo!  :facepalm:
Title: Re: The Ubiquitous Chinese SOG Toolclip knockoffs: Many Models Reviewed
Post by: WoodsDuck on October 23, 2018, 06:50:13 PM
So I got the other Sport Mechanic I ordered, and it has great pliers. It's one of the kind with sprung pliers, but of course the spring is broken.
It's in good shape, other than someone thoughtfully pre-stripping the heads of the scale screws for me, and putting a couple nicks in the blade edge. But these are things even I can fix.