Are the SAK pliers any good?

[jscalia]

I've never had a SAK with pliers and I find that my EDC, Swiss Spirit, is very useful mainly for its pliers. They dont do a good job of turning bolts/nuts, but they are good for grabbing things, pulling out knots,

 

[powernoodle]

SAK pliers pale in comparison to those of the Spirit, Wave, etc. They are more akin to toy pliers (IMO), though they can be useful for small tasks.

 

[SAKsRCool]

What powernoodle said... they obviously aren't as strong as a full size pliers but I think they come in really handly for the small things.

 

[tcolling]

Think of them as very robust forceps. For many small jobs they do just fine.

- Tim

 

[supratentorial]

The Wenger pliers have a slip joint but they still won't do the job of a full size multi-tool. I can see them being useful as forceps.

 

[cncyana]

You already have a Skeletool I see. That was fast!

 

[GarageBoy]

The little ones are great for jewelry and such

 

[wildstar]

I think around the city, the Victorinox SAK pliers are toys. They are great for finer work such as office and perhaps making jewelerly. However, in the city for more serious work, I have real pliers around anyways for the Leatherman pliers rarely see the light of day.

I personally find Leatherman very heavy for backpacking. The SAK pliers meet most of my needs for small repairs. The most complicated thing I carry is my stove or GPS and they can be easily - and better - repaired with the smaller SAK pliers.

If I go car camping, I have my car toolkit with pliers in the trunk.

And, I am not sure if it is my small hands or the Leatherman ergonomics but I find the LM pliers difficult to use. The handles are soooo fat and the balance awkward that the delicate work for twisting things apart is very difficult and tiring. I find the small SAK pliers easier in this situation.

my 2 cents

 

[Jess82]

I've never had a SAK with pliers and I find that my EDC, Swiss Spirit, is very useful mainly for its pliers. They dont do a good job of turning bolts/nuts, but they are good for grabbing things, pulling out knots,

If all you are really using the pliers for on your Spirit is grabbing things and not really for bolts and nuts you should be fine with a SAK set of pliers since that is all they are good for on their smaller knives.