"JEB's Tackle Review"
"Part B" Cobra Marine JAWS 7" Staniness Steel Wire Cutting Pliers
Author - John E. Brady, Hanover PA-USA
Copyright 2008
e-mail - jeb@jebswebsite.com

Note: This review is "Part B" of a 3-Part Review.
Part "A" is the overview; Part "B" (here) is the review of the 7" pliers; Part "C" is the review of the 5 1/2" pliers.
Please read "Part A - Overview" before reading this section.

5/15/08 UPDATE: See the end of this review for an update to this review. Click HERE to get to the end of the review.

First Review – Cobra Marine JAWS 7” Stainless Steel Pliers:

Initial overview and impression:
My initial impression of the pliers is that they are well made with tight tolerances, and much thought as to how they would be use and subsequently how they needed to be constructed to withstand the riggers of cutting tough materials like fishing hooks. They have flat spring spreaders to keep the jaws slightly in their open position, and jet black gloss vinyl slip-on handle covers.

While I’ve seen other stainless steel pliers, those were needle-nose pliers, not designed for cutting (I've had a pair of those sold by Normark for more than ten years). I’ve also recently seen what I would consider “hybrid” pliers made of polycarbonate material with some type of replaceable metal jaw insert. I call them hybrid, because those I’ve seen were a combination of needle-nose and cutting pliers. This is the first time I’ve seen cutting pliers made fully of stainless steel, as well as having carbide cutting jaws.

Photo of Cobra Marine JAWS 5 1/2" and 7"
Stainless Steel Pliers ----------------------------->

Photo from the Cobra Marine Website

The overall look of the pliers is similar to other high quality tools. They have tight joints, smooth action, smooth edges, and no side to side action. On close inspection of the jaws themselves, they have just the slightest bit (minuscule) of gap when closed, with two spots that actually appear to be touching (no light passing through). One near the top, the other in the very middle. The flat return springs are a nice added feature that helps keep the pliers open, but makes it tough for storing if not stored in some type of holster. The PVC handgrips, while certainly not a necessity, needing some type of grip is nearly a requirement for using around water or in cold temperatures. My stainless steel needle nose have foam grips, which are really nice for cold temps, and help to keep a tight grip with wet hands. However the older they get (about 15 years old now), the harder the foam is getting, and the easier it is to slip off the handles when they get wet. So, while I like the foam on those, I’m not partial to either.


Test 1: Electrical wiring test (both pair) - Absolute #AP8G100C Audio/Video Wire

For the electrical wire, since the pliers were made for heavy duty use, rather than starting out with small wires that even the most cheapest of pliers will at least tear through, I decided to go right to some heavy 10 gauge A/V wire I had on hand. This is a special type of wire my son gave me that he uses on car audio systems (Absolute #AP8G100C). The wire has a 6.65mm diameter multi-strand braided copper inner core, with a steel braded wrap over the copper core. The outside shielding is approximately 0.050 thick clear vinyl or PVC.


Absolute #AP8G100C wire

Since these pliers were engineered to cut much harder and larger materials, one would think this step to be a no-brainer, but I feel since I have to start somewhere, rather than jumping right into the tough stuff, this would be a good starting point to begin the testing, as well as help me build up confidence to continue on to the tougher stuff. I made six cuts each with each size pliers.

Results - Both Pliers: As I expected, cutting the 10 gauge wire with both pliers was smooth.
The shielding and the wire both cut cleanly and evenly with no damage or marks to the cutting jaws.

Test 2: Freshwater Fishing Hooks
For the hook tests, I selected three different hooks. All three are popular brands of high quality bass fishing hooks. Each of the hooks wire diameter gets progressively thicker. Wire diameters were measured using 6” digital calipers. The wire diameter shown was the largest measurement around the circumference of the hooks shank.

The hooks selected for the test and their wire diameters are as follows:

Hook #1:
XPoint 1/0 XGap #X25T Wire Diameter = 1.23mm -------------------->

 

Hook #2:
 Gamakatsu 2/0 DT Wide Gap Wire Diameter = 1.14mm* ------------>

 

Hook #3:
Daiichi 3/0 Offset Wide Gap Wire Diameter = 1.32mm ---------------->

*Although hook #2 is a larger “O” size, the wire diameter is
slightly smaller than the 1/0 hook.

Before I begin, let me say…
I was very hesitant to use these pliers to cut the hooks. It may sound ironic, because cutting these types of hooks is precisely why I purchased them. And although they were designed for just this type of use, I guess I was afraid that as expensive as they were, I’d ruin a perfectly good pair of pliers right off the bat. But I guess it’s better to find out now, rather than later!

Test Cut Results – 7” pliers - Hook #1:

Hook #1: As I stated at the beginning, all cuts were being made at the bottom portion of the cutting blades. Although I cut this first hook at this location, the cut apparently had enough force to snap the jaws together breaking a chip out of the right side tungsten jaw about 4.25mm from the tip. The chip is about 1.50 mm in diameter, and can be seen in the photo of the pliers and the cut #1 hook.

 

7" pliers and hook #1 after cut was made -------------------------->

 

 

 

Damage Note:

I know the blade chipped during this cut, because I made the cut shortly after cutting the braded wire. No other cuts were made between these two cuts. Immediately after seeing the chip, I reviewed the photo taken after cutting the braided wire. There is no chip in that photo. However, reviewing the photo reveled what appears to be a break in the lower third of the jaw. Again, I must point out, this was BEFORE any cutting was done with the pliers.

 

 

Photo of right Jaw of 7" pliers with chipout and hair-line crack ----------->

 
Test Cut Results – 7” pliers - Hook #2:

This cut went smoothly. I had confidence it would be, since it turns out the wire size was actually slightly thinner than the smaller 1/0 hook. Before I made the cut, I took a photo showing the location on the blades where the cuts are being made. As you can see from the photo after the cut was made, other than the previous chip-out, there were no marks left after this cut.

 

 

7" pliers and hook #2 after cut was made

 

Test Cut Results – 7” pliers - Hook #3:

After the resulting chip-out from cutting the first hook, I was very hesitant to attempt cutting a larger diameter hook. However, since these larger pliers were going to be targeted at the saltwater angler, those anglers will be cutting leader and hooks that most likely will be thicker and/or stronger than this 3/0 freshwater hook. Sooo… Lets proceed…

WHEW! I took a deep breath and made the cut… It was successful! Other than a very minute impression left in the blades, they cut the hook fairly easily, just as well as it did the second hook. My opinion is that this type of hook, size, and wire diameter is going to the largest and toughest hook a freshwater angler will be routinely using and need to cut.

7" pliers and hook #3 after cut was made

Overall Testing Results and Conclusions - Cobra Marine 7” Stainless Steel pliers:

Overall opinion of quality and finish:
As noted in the initial overview of the pliers, they have an overall satin finish with smooth even edges. With the exception of some rough edges on the two pieces along the joint that can be considered cosmetic flaws since they do not interfere with their smooth action, overall they are well made. And as expected with any pliers of this quality caliber, the jaws have a smooth action, they close tight and evenly, and have little side to side play.

Cutting results:
The pliers cut through the strong, thick, high quality hooks without causing any damage to the cutters (where the cut was made), and the pressure needed to be applied to make the cuts was as expected. You need to apply a good bit of pressure to make the cut, but you would with any other pliers. Baring the breakage issue (see below) they should hold up over time and many cuts. Can you make the same cuts with other pliers and have the same result? Sure, but just cutting isn’t all of what these pliers are about.

Specifics on the Tungsten Carbide Cutters:
As noted during the cutting tests, I found some problems with the cutters. With the incident I had cutting the 2nd hook that caused a piece of the tungsten carbide jaw to chip. On further inspection, I also found what appears to be a full break across the cutter. Since I took photo’s of the pliers before doing any cutting, I can be certain in saying they arrived in this condition.

Being a woodworker, I work with and I’m familiar with carbide. It is a very brittle material. I have other carbide tools (saw blades, router bits, lathe chisels), all of which are made just like the Cobra pliers, are made with the carbide pieces braised onto the main material to act as the cutting agent. I also know that you can easily chip or break the carbide just by knocking it against another hard material. Although I’ve done it a time or two in my 30+ years of woodworking, and I know it can happen, I can actually say it rarely does happen as long as the tools are treated properly. And when it does happen, I can usually track it back to a previous stress crack or manufacturing flaw. However, with the other tools, with care, you can keep the carbide tips from banging against each other, or another hard material. But these pliers are by design, very different. Simply by using them, you will be banging the carbide cutters against themselves every time you cut something. There’s no avoiding it.

Conclusion - 7" Pliers:
I would have to expect that my quality experience with the pliers is an exception, and they will fully back them up and send replacements. But will they hold up over time? I can’t really say. Only time will tell. If they do, and the breakage is resolved, I think they would be worth the investment. If you think the price is too high, just remember like any other high quality products, you will pay much more for that quality. You can buy a reel for $20. But how often do you pass it by, and buy one for $50 or $100? You bought the more expensive reel because you didn’t want to have to buy another one in just a few years. These pliers are no different. You will be getting something that will last you for many years. Just think, never having to reach into your tackle box, and find that because you put your pliers away wet, they’re now covered with rust and unusable.

Now… PART C... Onto the Cobra Marine JAWS 5 ½” Stainless Steel Pliers

5/25/08 Update on damage issue on Cobra 7" Pliers:

During the testing of these pliers, I found damage to the carbide cutters that was there BEFORE my testing, as well as causing damage during the first hook cutting test. After the test damage occured, and I realized there was previous damage, I immediately contact the manufacturer (Cobra Marine). They did not ignore the issue! They responded within a day, and requested I return the pliers for replacement. They also recognized that their could be damage to other pliers in thier inventory, and said they would check all the pliers in stock.

I do not know what the result was from their review of the balance of their stock, but I received a replacement pliers a few weeks later. After running the same test that I performed on the original pliers, I had no damage on the replacements.

Although the original damage on the pliers should be a concern for anyone spending this much for a pair of fishing pliers, you should be able to rest assured that if you do have a problem with your pliers, Cobra Marine will stand behind their product. JEB

Photo of Jaws on replacement 7" pliers

If you have any comments or questions about this or any review, please contact me at the email address at the top of the page.

Remember - "They call it fishing, but the goal is catching."

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