Needle nose is my go-to for knockouts. And if I have the room to maneuver, I grab lineman's instead, that way I already have the "hammer" in hand for setting the nut. Punch, grab, twist, go on with life. Exactly like he did with the channel locks. Except my needlenose and/or linemans fits it my tool pouch. Then again I mainly do residential. If I was using conduit connectors all day I'd be using channellocks too.
Gardener bender makes flat lasercut wrenches for 1/2, 3/4, and 1" locknut's. Hold them on the inside, and tighten the fitting from the outside with channel locks or pliers wrench as usual. They are much more toolbelt portable. They work great for removal in a tight spot as well.
thats a cool tool if it works. I remember cutting the old bx cable with metal sheers and they came out with that rotary bx / mc cable cutter which saved a lot of time and made a nice cut. of course it wont long after I got mine that someone else liked it more than I did and they walked off with it or I walked off with out it. either way it was gone. good review up date us after a few hundred more boxes.
Thanks for sharing that impact gun bit to it. I bought he wrench a few months ago and I returned it, I hated it. But I would for sure buy it again and use it with an impact. Thanks again! 4 videos in, love the channel!
Stan, here's a suggestion to try, if I can get the idea across without a picture - slip a screwdriver through the hole, and line up the screwdriver with the body of the tool. Wrap your hand around both at the same time. Now use it as a fixed wrench. holding the screwdriver and tool together effectively locks the drive. Typically once you spin the locknut down with a finger you only need half a turn or so to finish the job. It's a thought anyway... BTW thanks for the review, I didn't even know Klein made it!
You are misunderstanding which hole he is talking about and which hole Klein is referring to. The hole for the wire to pass through is just the back side of the locknut tool. The two smaller holes in the side are the ones that the screwdriver goes through to gain leverage.
Gee, the end of my vicegrips ins't screwed up. The end of my electrician's pliers is. :-) I think I would have thought of using a 3/8s ratchet rather than an impact driver. Probably slower, but less likely (maybe) to trash the tool. What is really missing is a red push button on the end of the tool to lock the gearing. Push the button in and crank over the handle. Done.
Ken Wolfe I was always taught the same. screw driver, and nines. I use the same tools to do the knockouts. keeps the tools in my hands. this is neat though. Klein has a lot of tools that are neat but not necessary. Thanks for the review!
One little addition would increase its usefulness (maybe!): A build in ratchet function! Use it with a screwdriver, a cordless drill or without anything.
What about the knock outs on the back of the box, will it fit on to those? The other knock ours are easy enough. Nobody can answer this for me, and I'm not wasting 50$ if it doesn't do that.
Can you not grip the knurl of the opposing end so it doesn't twist and then use the body like a wrench to twist the end on the nut? Seems that would give you plenty of gronk to seat the nut without having to resort to the extra tools.
Shadon HKW I saw a cutaway of this thing and it has spur gears and a drive shaft in it. I doubt those little teeth will like impact duty for long. Drill driver would probably be a lot better. Sounds like if they had added a ratcheting pawl mechanisim ala gear wrench they would have had a winner. I guess when it craps out you can put those ends on a double box gear wrench and have yourself a very handy tool. :-)
So as a fellow electrician I have to ask, the back story of you man, it's been bugging me since, well, the pipe bending video. I think it's cool that you have both under your belt, and you have my respect. I'm only at the start of my machining hobby, a couple of years anyway and building my basement shop. however I have learned a lot from you and keep up the good work.
I get asked that a lot, I hold 2 licence classes that pertain to my trade, but support my field work with a fab and machine shop, hope that helps clear it up a bit :)
A couple of thoughts Stan, that you have probably already thought of. A 3/8 ratchet would also drive it without using the impact, but that would take much more time. Also, if you get 200+ glands out of it, $30 of cost against the labour should be insignificant, especially when you add in the potential(probable?) savings on rework if you have a loose gland. Great video. Greg
TS--I had thought of the 3/8 ratchet, too, which he could easily store in his toolbelt. Using the cordless impact might require him to carry it around, which would be heavy and bulky if you didn't need to. Incidentally, what does the term "gland" refer to? I couldn't puzzle it out from the context you used it in. Thanks.
Guaranteed that we did not last more than a couple weeks after you started using your impact on it. I was super surprised to see that it was not a ratcheting mechanism I really think Klein dropped the ball on this one.
I actually have a pair of Klein lock nut pliers that look similar to needle nose pliers with bigger teeth to engage on lock nut. but they don't always work well unless your using the center knock out. they hit the side of the box when truning.
Those locknut pliers are one of kleins hidden gems that not everyone knows about. And unlike this gimmick crap they work with one hand& they Also fit in pouch as normal pliers, the pliers are also good for breaking out panel blanks, pipe reaming & also they grip pipe almost as good as a vise
Stan, the high def really looks great.. but is kind of a colossal PITA for those of us stuck in areas with limited band width... otherwise love the content, Thanks!
Click the little gear icon on the bottom right of the video player. Go to "Quality" and select the video quality that you can live with due to your slow internet. The lower the number the smaller the video download size. Of course the video won't look as good. 240p or 360p should work pretty good with really slow internet, just experiment. It sets the default quality for all RU-vid videos.
I just use my knipex cobra pliers and it almost always bites when it doesn't like 10% i just grab my other knipex plier and hold the locknut. Another option is the 7" cobra actually fit pretty well inside j boxes and tighten very well the actual lock nut.
Why did you out the screwdriver shaft in the hole on the handle in the box instead of the handle in your hand? That's where the benefits come. Not reaching inside the box.
Robert Gillespie I was looking to see if anyone thought the same thing before I made the comment. Smaller and ratchet style would have a home in my pouch.
Looks like were made that way but not advertised because of liability. It is interesting how tools can be used other than advertised. Good luck with it.
Klein tools are pretty good quality, I would expect it to last. The impact drive seems to be the way to go. Those small 1/4 or 3/8 impact drivers don't produce a great deal of torque anyway.
Klein and channellock better come up with something better than what ive seen because german tools have arrived and they're bringing innovation to hand tools.
The primary function of this tool is installing retrofit deep cut-in boxes where you can't get into the box to start the locknut, and a screwdriver + pliers would be awkward.. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-PglNH584BBc.html, For rough-in time installations, it's kind of pointless. It takes no more effort to put the nut on the connector than to put into a tool. Using a power tool to tighten connectors only is advantageous if preparing many of them at one time before mounting the boxes. Otherwise, it takes more energy to carry and use a power tool than a hand tool. For a single box being installed during rough-in, a simpler tool with a pair of sockets on a swivel handle ( like a Tiger wrench) would be better for holding the nut while using channel locks to tighten than using a screwdriver and a linemans plier as a hammer.. It could be less expensive, more rugged, and would work with connectors on the side or back of the box.
The tool is designed to allow the wire to pass through it, for cut in old work applications. There is a hole to pass through wire (from an NM or MC cable with conductors already attached) so therefore a ratchet would not allow wires to pass throug.
they could have made it like harbor freights 180 degree swiveling head ratchet with 3/4'' on one end and 1/2'' on the other. anyway what ever and like you said Klein doesn't give it away.
This only is possible to work in new construction when wires are not coming through the pipe. I personally think it's a waste of money because since this will only work in new construction there's nothing wrong with a pair of Klein's and a flat head screwdriver. 👷♂️🛠
So it has to save you about an hour of work to pay for itself and after that it's making money, right? I'd be more surprised if it doesn't last, but time will tell.
Even if the impact eventually beats it to death, I'll bet it holds up well with a drill driver(non-impact) in low gear much better and would likely still be a great time saver.
Doesn't work well with the concave lock rings, slips often. Also, can't fit very much wire through the opening and didn't fit in my bags. Good idea, poorly executed. I'll stick with my channel locks or hammer and screw driver. I will say that with a remodel box that you don't good have access to and cant beat on with a hammer that this is a good option but other than that I couldn't find much of a reason to carry it around. Ended up trading it for a bender.
It is mainly intended for old work single gang cut ins with wire already in the connector. It is hard for some people to fit their hand inside, especially near the back of deeper boxes.
Sorry but I bought a set of 3 (1/2" 3/4" 1") much simpler and far better locknut wrenches for $10 at home Depot and they work much better and are far easier to use. I've seen several different variations of lock nut tools come out over my 20 years in the field and nothing seems to catch on. They charge $50 for that silly Klein one.
I love tools as much as the next guy, but this seams a bit over complicated . . Theres a very cheap little wrench on the market that does the job just fine. Thats assuming a person isnt just gonna use the old tried n true method.
Hmm, makes the tool kit heavier at the end of the day. Okay I guess for "production" work at a bench, but moving from one place to another more weight. Knocking out slugs, why not use the screwdriver and the line man's pliers to knock out the knockout, then hit the lock nut with the same tools? Not an electrician, listen and learn. Dennis L.
