Adam Savage's Favorite Tools: 3 Essential Pliers!

Today's tool tips are a three-in-one: Adam recommends three sets of pliers that perform unique tasks for grabbing, gripping, and manipulating materials for shop work. There's soft-jaw pliers that are great for holding on to delicate parts without marring them, jeweler's pliers that are amazing for bending coat-hanger wire, and screw pliers that are essentially a handheld small parts vise. Make sure they're part of your plier collection!

Shot by Adam Savage

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Intro bumper by Abe Dieckman

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#AdamSavage #favoritetools

[Gerald]

For anyone looking for what Adam called Jeweler's Pliers, they're actually 'Stepped Bail-Making Pliers'. It'll help your search.

[manueldeubler]

Knipex Pliers wrench. If you don't have one, get one. You will find dozen of uses. They replace a whole set of open-end wrenches. In addition, I have used the perfectly parallel jaws to push in bearings, bend metal and push a button into a pair of jeans.

[AllynWrench]

Just a tip here that I found very handy. I have a set of long reach needle nose pliers that I slid a square cut o ring onto. I work in the Automotive industry, they are the o rings that are on the bottom of oil filters. You could probably use rubber bands too but I found that the square cut shape of the o ring lets me "roll" it up and down the handles one handed. A regular round style o ring will just roll away. But the reason the o ring helps is it turns my pliers into a temporary locking plier that doesn't clamp like a vice grip. It is SO useful for something like holding a nut or a bolt or even a screw with one hand a spinning the other end of the fastener I am using. The rubber stretch of the o ring lets the pliers hold tight enough to be in control, but they will even kind of let go automatically if too much torque is applied. You can also make them grab harder by sliding the farther up the grips. Thank you for your videos Adam and all of the Tested team.

[spasticmuse]

I would love for Adam to do a tool segment on "homemade tools"; the tools you either couldn't afford, couldn't acquire, or simply didn't exist for a job you needed to get done. SO... you make one!! I would think that's right up his alley and probably has a few he could show.

My favorite example actually applies here: Rebuilding rear brake calipers on a import car(the kind some mechanics would know with the "twist in" piston). Part of the integrated parking brake mechanism is buried in the bottom of the piston well, held in by a c-clip. Long story short, no c-clip pliers could reach and do the job, so I ended up getting a pair of 8" hemostats, grinding points into the ends of the jaws, and they worked a treat!

PS: Rebuilding those kinds of calipers is really only for those who are broke, desperate &/or ignorant. But doable.

[dennisdjou]

Knipex pliers are the bomb and I use them every day. Both the aggressive toothed as well as the non marring ones. Their ability to adjust and grip firmly is insane.

[MaxWobbles]

One of my favorites have been the knipex pliers wrench. They're parallel jaws that essentially act like an adjustable wrench that won't slip. They also don't have any teeth to mar what you're working on. Great for an fittings and also surprisingly great for sheet metal.

[feelthepayne]

You probably have some already, but parallel jaw pliers are awesome as well.

[bobbobberton]

I worked in an orthodontic lab for many years. The dental industry has some pretty interesting pliers. Probably similar to some jeweler's equipment. The 3-pronged pliers and bird beak pliers we're my bread and butter. I've made tens of thousands of retainers with them, and they're worth checking out for a shop.

[markjf]

I was just working on bending spinner bait wire and complaining about how the needle nose didn’t make a proper loop. Boom. Ordered the jewelers pliers. Thanks fellow nerd.

[TheHappyKamper]

I could watch Adam talk about interesting tools all day

[enochjukie]

My favorite pliers are made by Knipex. They make some of the best quality tools available and many different styles.

[paulb]

I had a "Maker" friend that would have loved this video. He had a 'bot cave' in his basement where he built robots. He was eccentric and passionate about life like Adam. Sadly he got pancreatic cancer and passed away last year. I miss you Randy...you were truly Unique.

[elliotromokurek]

I've got two pairs of pliers that are worth mentioning, the first is the Knipex pliers wrench, I have the seven inch version and it literally changed my life. The grip that you can get with them is incredible and because of that, the jaws don't have to be serrated so they don't mark up parts. The second pair is a set of dentist's tooth extracting pliers, like the knipex they have a lot of holding power and the jaw shape is completely unique, their profile is designed to hug around a tooth and follow its contours. This one I use less frequently but its always in a situation where no other tool would work.

[mad-]

My girl is a dentist surgeon. And I've always been fascinated with every special tool they have and end up buying a pair for me as well.
I find basic surgery pliers and clamps and tools super use full for tiny projects.

[dalesims]

I purchased a pair of the screw pliers (medium size)and used them 3 days later for the first time, removing stripped and damaged flathead screws. They worked great, l wish that I had known about them years ago. A MUST have for person working with broken/damaged bolts or screws.
Looking to purchasing the jewelers and soft face pliers in the future
Dale

[bbram]

I have the screw pliers, they are great for loosening stripped screws as well.

[richardmartin]

As a technician one thing that is super satisfying for me is having the right tool for the application! I definitely will be getting a pair of the jewelers pliers and soft jaw pliers! I have the new knipex twin grip on order and have been meaning to order engineer or vampliers screw pliers. In my line of work I could use them for screw extraction when a customer has stripped the heads on a screw in a less than spacious area.

[ankh]

Never thought I'd be interested in watching a video about pliers and feel so thrilled about it. Adam's excitement is infectious and I always en up learning new stuff.

[kayzinwillobee]

OMG I just paused your video and ordered some screw pliers on amazon. I wish I had know about this tool years ago. In my line of work I have to occasionally cut the heads off stuck screws and then back them out from the other side. I have the best needle nose vice grips money can buy and it does get the job done. But like you said I never get a good grip and the tool will slip off the screw multiple times during its extraction. Its really annoying. I cant wait to try these!!!! Thank you thank you thank you

[ultranitro]

I have a set of 15" long double jointed needle nose pliers so they fully open without having to open the handle end all the way. Perfect for grabbing things down in a hole where theres no room to work.