SOG PowerLock uses brittle steel

B

bigtool

Joined
May 12, 2005
Messages
2
Hi all,

Thought I would post my experience with a SOG powerlock. Borrowed one from a colleague and broke the pliers on the first use. :barf: It snapped right above the joint. From the looks of it, the steel is way over-hardened and quite brittle. The pliers didn't bend at all, they just snapped and flew across the room. I was attempting to bend a 1/8" steel rod when it happened.

The tool was new, and undamaged before I "bought" it from my friend.


Anyone else have a similar experience?



bigtool
 
bigtool said:
Hi all,

Thought I would post my experience with a SOG powerlock. Borrowed one from a colleague and broke the pliers on the first use. :barf: It snapped right above the joint. From the looks of it, the steel is way over-hardened and quite brittle. The pliers didn't bend at all, they just snapped and flew across the room. I was attempting to bend a 1/8" steel rod when it happened.

The tool was new, and undamaged before I "bought" it from my friend.

Anyone else have a similar experience?

bigtool
Click to expand...

How were you bending the rod? Did you have it in the jaws sideways and then twist the pliers, or did you have it straight in the end of the pliers and bend it up/down?

They still shouldn't have broken, but a twist makes it more likely. Plus the compound leverage means you can put 2X the force on the jaws than with other multitools.

In the few cases I've heard of the jaws snapping, SOG has replaced under warranty without question.
 
As the subject says, I WAS twisting when it happened. Y'know, I always thought that safety goggles were in case the object you are working on flies in your face. Never expected the pliers to shoot across the room.

Anyway, I sent it back today......


bigtool
 
You must have got a dud. I have abused my SOG and LM pretty bad. i.e. using it as a lever to snap off a padlock.

SOG's CS is good, you shouldn't have a problem getting a replacement.
 
Same thing happened to me. I was trying to take the wire bail off a 5 gallon bucket by twisting the end out of the hole.

Plier head snapped and flew across the garage. Sent it back to SOG with a note saying what I had done. Replaced the pliers head without a question and had a note in with it apoligizing for the time I was with the tool.

Great customer service.

Joe
 
That happened to me on a Gerber 400. I was not twisting, just squezing. Broke at the wire cutter. Sent it in, got a new one and I don't use it hard anymore. ;)
 
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