Tsunoda PLC-200U Slip Joint Pliers, Hold Pliers series (8")

These pliers are godlike. Easily the best slip joints I've ever handled. I'm 35. I've been collecting slip joint pliers of all makes and models for over 10 years. I have OCD and one of the things I'm extremely obsessive about is my tools. I am continuously blown away by how high quality tsonoda products are. This slip joint pliers is brilliant, it's a work of art. The handle and jaw design is simply supreme. The handles have stop points integrated so you don't get punched in any position. The pliers are riveted and will not loosen up. The jaws are crazy sharp and grippy. The amount of force I can exert just with my own hand grip is shopping, I squeezed a nut really hard and watched it bend. I just cut many different nail sizes with the cutters and it popped all the nails in half quickly. Let's be honest, cutters on slip joints always suck - not on these Tsunodas they dont. I have snap ons and extremely old USA made pliers and these tsonoda are so much better it's not fair. These were under $20 too. Snap ons are like 60. What the hell is going on here. Buy these. Buy multiple.

These are by far the best pliers I've bought of Amazon in this type of format (Slip joint). They are extremely well machined, they feel super smooth, they grip well and do an excellent job. Japanese quality is second to none.

Compare to Snap-on. If you are a professional, I won't have to explain why I was so utterly disappointed that these simple forged, non-polished, loose riveted hinge slip joints are way overrated in other reviews. The Snap-On pliers are clearly built stronger, but that is not what makes the Tsunoda, PLC-200U, Hold Pliers, 8-inches completely inferior.Keep in mind that the pliers on the right were used every day for 5 years before the expert that absolutely gushed about how much better Tsunoda’s are than Snap-on's was even born. I wanted to believe there was something better and know they are probably sincere reviews. Just forgot that a person can be honest, but not correct.Disqualifying features:High polish is necessary;This pair of pliers is a good forging with limited machine work on the sides of the faces creating a polished look. That is a step above the forged pliers offered for free in a Japanese car or motorcycle tool kit, but not necessarily one made in Germany. The problem with any tool that is used professionally is they must have a polished finish on the entire surface. That way they can be cleaned of grease and grime with a simple wipe of a clean rag. Try that on anywhere except the polished flats and all you will do is impregnate the mess, especially on those knurled grips.Serviceable hinge;The Snap-on pliers have a mechanical interference nut (won't loosen) allowing wear adjustment. That adjustment is especially necessary as the pliers have an exceptional wire cutting shear point above the hinge. These Tsunoda’s came with a riveted hinge, it does not show well in the photos, but has a peened ball 1/2 the size of the actual pin. It is tiny and very short with little more material to keep the pliers together. Mine were actually delivered loose and I had to peen the rivet with a ball peen hammer. The fit is now good, but not serviceable unless you somehow have a replacement rivet, and good luck with that.Maximum flat grip on thin materials;While the manufacture promotes the third joint slip option allows for more parallel jaws when open. When closed they only make contact at the tip. You have to focus on the tip specifically to see it. But the Tsunoda, PLC-200U, Hold Pliers, 8-inches are curved away from the tip and the Snap-on's are 100% flat the entire machined segment.Grip position and comfort;While Snap-on has a smooth curved perfectly spaced handle with no sharp points on the inside or outside. Allowing for griping with all parts of your fingers and even palms. These Tsunoda Pliers have a rough finish with forging lines and sharp transitions. Most importantly, they have a very narrow grip when closed. Abnormally narrow, meaning the only way someone could feel that these are perfect would be if they have extremely small hands that cannot perform a natural grip, or just unable to manage the increased weight of the heavier Snap-Ons.To think I fooled myself into not only making this purchase, but adding on another item to get to $25 and 4-8 am overnight delivery. Man was I looking forward to being impressed. The initial disappointment was that my sealed Amazon bag had the hanging display card, but no tool inside. The saving grace is I not only had a replacement sent for free, but ultimately was given a full refund before the replacement arrived.In conclusion, had I not received this pair of pliers for free. I would have followed up on my disappointment with all the incorrect reviews and returned the pliers. As it stands. They are now mine to keep, but probably will leave in a car or somewhere I don't care about. These are now my least professional pair of pliers I have ever owned short of the old Yamaha SR500 tool kit.

The media could not be loaded.  Another gorgeous tool from Tsunoda. Seems solid and has a good weight to it. That said, it's not ideal for my application, so I'm gonna switch them out for some standard slip joints.

There aren’t many things that you can get at such high quality for such an affordable price. Excellent tool.