The list of hand tools that are essential to electricians has mostly remained unchanged over the years. Cable cutters and strippers, linemen’s pliers, screwdrivers, crimpers, and other basic tools always are on belts or in pouches or toolboxes. Many of these tools look much like they did 20 years ago. However, since toolmakers continually improve their products, it’s fair to say today’s models are superior in many ways.


Evolutionary improvements are ongoing, there are more multitask tools, and several companies best known in the industry for other products have added hand tools to their offerings (e.g., Milwaukee and Southwire, see sidebar, page 102).


“Today’s hand-tool consumers are looking for products that deliver new, innovative ways to accomplish tasks more quickly and efficiently,” said Charlotte Gooding, senior merchant, hand tools for The Home Depot. “Core tools (e.g., screwdrivers, pliers, etc.) stay true to their user-application requirements, but they reinvent themselves over time with the addition of new features that promote better ergonomics, quality enhancements and increased function.”


Gooding said hand-tool users look for brands they know and tools they trust.


“A professional with a toolbox full of national brand tools has a relationship with the brand and expectations for products that carry its name,” she said. “The right brand, combined with tools that perform, and meaningful innovations definitely provides an edge over hand-toolmakers that have not kept their products fresh [and] current.”


Ryan DeArment, vice president of sales and marketing, Channellock, said that time is money in today’s working world.


“Anything that can be done to aid the professional user in getting the job done quickly and reliably is key,” he said. “Hand tools today are generally better designed to help the user access hard-to-reach areas while being more comfortable to use and more progressive in appearance. It’s what the end-user demands, and committed manufacturers are listening.”


For example, Channellock introduced a new line of American-made screwdrivers for professionals last year. The tools have four-sided, high-torque acetate handles, which provide more torque compared to standard, six-sided handles. The four-sided handles are impact-resistant, strong, and durable, and according to DeArment, they have exceptional solvent resistance.


“Channellock tools are designed to fit both the job and the technician,” he said. “The E Series line of pliers features several sizes of cutting, long nose and combination linemen’s pliers. Slimmer, sleeker design reaches into tighter spaces and our improved high-leverage design required 40 percent less force to make clean, accurate cuts compared to other high-leverage pliers.”


Channellock invented the tongue-and-groove pliers in 1933, DeArment said, and it’s been a preferred tool ever since. Other milestones include the patented conical surface on the cam side of pliers when undercut in 1965, and the patent for the PermaLock fastener was added to the tongue-and-groove and slip-joint pliers in 1984.


“We don’t change tools just to make a change,” he said. “When we change something, we make sure it’s a needed change that will make tool users’ jobs easier.”


Nathan Buckert, product development manager, Ideal Industries, said: “Many additions and changes to hand tools in recent years are focused on working faster and more efficiently. Tool features can be added to an existing tool, which can take the place of an entirely other tool.


“Another trend is to make tools smaller and lighter while maintaining or even improving strength and performance.”


[SB]Regarding new entries to the hand-tool market, Buckert said that reputable companies look at ways to expand and grow their businesses.


“It’s no surprise to see companies known as experts in a category try to leverage that expertise in adjacent product categories,” he said. “However, no matter how good the company is, there is a learning curve when entering into new markets. The leaders of the hand-tool market have had years, decades, even centuries of experience benchmarking, testing and experimenting new ways to improve the performance of their products, and there is no way for a newcomer to have this knowledge or expertise. A professional company is able to provide service, availability and the look of a leading product, but the true professionals will most certainly see differences in performance, quality and durability because category leadership is in the details.


“Professional electricians tend to be brand- and product-loyal. Often, there is minimal impact from newcomers because a product needs to be proven in the industry before professionals can rely on it,” Buckert said.


Alan Sipe, president, Knipex Tools, said: “Improvements in the ability of tools to perform their function faster and easier are the drivers of today’s best tool manufacturers.


“The basic use for many hand tools has not changed much since their invention, but there have been and continue to be major improvements in quality, ability to perform and user comfort. For instance, pliers started with bare handles and then improved when dipped. Plastisol-type handles were developed. Most quality pliers are available with single or dual-material comfort grip handles providing a firmer and more comfortable grip.


“Pump pliers with a simple arc joint have improved dramatically. The best jaws are now hexagonal-shaped, letting the user securely grip any shaped item. The best styles now are adjusted and set with a push button for a secure setting. These tools have 30 percent more capacity than similar ‘old-style’ tools.


“We are also seeing a huge demand for new, high-quality tools in miniature sizes. Industrial and commercial equipment is getting smaller and more efficient, and technicians need to have great tools to get into tight spaces and fix things. Another optional improvement over the years is the availability of insulated handles to help protect users from electric shock.


“We are seeing some companies make inroads with well-merchandised, Asian-imported tools, leveraging rebate opportunities to ‘big box’ stores. The price/value relationship between these products must be considered since these tools are purchased and privately labeled, so users don’t know who manufactured the tools, what their quality is, and how long the tool will last. Trade professionals are not fooled easily,” 
Sipe said.


Mark Klein, president, Klein Tools, said: “My great, great, great, grandfather founded Klein Tools in 1857 in Chicago. We have been making hand tools in America ever since, and we are known for our quality, craftsmanship and durability. We use a proprietary tool steel and do our own forging and heat-treating in-house to ensure we meet our high standards. Klein Tools has more than 155 years of experience that won’t be replicated by others any time soon. Professionals rely on our products to get their job done. It is my family’s name on the product, so when tradespeople pick up a Klein tool, we don’t want to let them down.”


Technology advances, building code changes, updated safety laws, association or vendor requirements, new building material products, application improvements or multiuse products all contribute to the creation and advancement of new hand tools and accessories.


Klein Tools products are constantly reviewed to see how they can be made more efficient, comfortable or useful.


Examples of recent developments include fiberglass fishing tools with a proprietary protective coating to keep users’ hands free from splinters when pulling wire; a foam wire-pulling lubricate alternative to gel and wax lubricants; development of a demolition screwdriver engineered for prying and chiseling as well as driving screws; all-purpose pliers that can strip, cut and loop 8–16 AWG solid and 10–18 AWG stranded wire, plus it has screw shearing holes; and cushion grip punchdown tools incorporating a two-step impact process that precisely inserts and then trims off excess wire and has a comfortable screwdriver shape design for accessing narrow, crowded blocks.