Knipex Cobra - VS - Irwin Groovelock 

My dad bought me a 3 piece set of cobras when I started my Electrical apprenticeship. I had no idea how good they were when got them. 5 years later, they are still working great. And they have been used HARD. I didn't know how valuable they were at first so I abused them, they were my improvised hammer and prybar as well as pliers. Absolutely fantastic tools.

I've had my irwins for almost 2 years now. I'm a maintenance supervisor and they have worked great. The groups slid off and I had to glue them but they are good for the price. I have knipex pliers wrench and freaking love it. I personally use my pliers for all kinds of work clean and dirty. If I had knipex I'd cringe everytime I had to use them on something rusty like toilet bolts or something.

My favorite and most used Knipex is the 6" pliers wrench. Use it almost every day.

The hardened Knipex vs the Irwin damaged teeth shows in one quick image why it’s worth paying more for the Knipex.

Once you go Knipex, you don't go back

Been using those Irwin ones for a year or so, and I agree with everything you've shown. The width of the jaws has prevented me from getting onto a nut/etc without damaging something else, or simply not being able to access it at all. Plus, the teeth on mine are about twice as worn as the one you show, and really do not *grab* anything anymore. Time to fork some more dough towards a Knipex upgrade!

I've never seen anything better than Knipex. It's almost not even worth making comparison videos because no one else makes the kind of tool knipex does. The price is worth every penny

Knipex are the ONLY way to go! After thirty years of using them, nothing else compares!

Tool guy, you are very good at fairly explaining all of the pros and cons. Your videos are great, keep em coming!!! Thanks.

The metallurgy and build quality of Knipex is unmatched

I own and use both pliers. I like the vise grips. I love the knipex. The knipex are lighter slimmer and just feel better in my hands.

Interesting, I didn't figure the Knipex pliar line was considered "consumable". Excellent video as always!

I have Knipex that I had for years and they are my go to pliers. The reason I love them is just what you said, they have a narrow jaw that gets in places other pliers never will and they bite down like nothing else. Knipex all the way

i can do pull ups on a pipe with my knipex and the teeth are still in perfect condition

Can’t beat Knipex. Most used hand tool in life my old Knipex channel locks. If I ever lost them I’d be heart broken. Life long tools. Irwin are like the throw away brushes Knipex is a 50yr or 100yr. Purdy. Cool review.

I've owned Knipex for a long time and the cobras are the best in their class. I've used them daily for years and they still perform as new. Most everything irwin makes is just Chinese pot metal junk.

I just ordered a pair of Knipex pliers off of Amazon I’ve never used them before thought I would try them out I ordered the 10 inch Alligator ones for $28.00 my brother in law uses the Alligator ones.

Not buying the small = better. Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Not buying wide opening difference. You reach a point where you need bigger plier slong before the jaws are all the way out. Not buying replace spring. Replace tool. Irwin for the win since it is not exposed on the side of the tool. Not buying exchange criteria. Bring an Irwin into my local hardware and exchange. No fuss, no interrogation. Hand comfort. Changed up all my pliers to Irwin- arthritis. World of difference. Lastly, price, price, price. They are pliers for crying out loud. I have a laundry list of tooling and equipment I need. A 7 piece set of Irwins 6" to 24" cost 205 dollar. A seven piece Knipex set 4" to 22" is 550 dollars. I'll suffer through keeping 300 and change in my pocket.

I'm the CEO of Irwin Tools. I'm so sorry that our pliers are so shitty. Sincerely, Bruce Irwin

Totally dig the snow shoe analogy lol I was thinking of the same thing

Someone told me a long time ago that you can’t afford to go cheap. It did take some time to realize how right he was. Knipex are fantastic quality and IMHO worth every cent

Fantastic review. Glad we didn't have to hear about what you think of the colour or what season it was when you ordered them. Technical, precise, and to the point. And the gripping property you were referring to near the beginning would be 'clamping pressure' of which the Knipex has more. Thanks for costing me $60 and a trip to return the vice grips. I was in an auto parts store in Germany and was a fool enough to not buy a pair.

I have used both so here is my take. The Knipex is forged steel with a thin plastic covering which gives a slight flex to the tool. You can "feel" the tool bite what you're gripping not the other "dead" Handel. Getting feedback through the tool is important to prevent knuckle-busting slippage. Own the Knipex and loan the Irwin.

Irwin to loan brother-in-law, Knipex for your own projects.

You should do a review of the CHANNELLOCK griplock pliers. I have both the knipex and channellock. I keep a pair of the channellock in my car. They seem to be of decent quality. Not knipex, but definitely great for the home owner.

Thanks for the comparison. I got the Cobras after the last video, only used them once, worked great.

I have 2 pairs of the Irwins and they work great. Trying to free seized up exhaust manifold bolts with any channel lock style pliers is going to chew them up, even the Knipex. Perhaps the heads on the were stripped and that's why you chose to use them, I don't know. I usually take a torch to them first and try my luck with an impact wrench or rachet. The wider jaw footprint is better for turning pipe also. The thinner heads will crimp the pipe.

Sears has knipex on sale all the time. I got my ten inch cobra pliers for twenty dollars, ten inch pliers wrench for thirty dollars

Very glad i watched this. Thank you everyone in participating in order to make these type of videos possible.

I have the irwin set, and I use them all the time. Yeah knipex is much better quality, but the irwin pliers work great.

ever since I bough my first knipex product I haven't bought any other if knipex has it. I have a German friend and asked him why German tools have such a high quality and he's answer was that German population has always had the mentality of buy once and buy for life and this reflects on all of German made products. and is why a lot of the cheap China products don't make it to Germany ifyou guys don't believe me you guys should search why walmart didn't make it in Germany. this is a something that we have lost in the U.S that's why we get soo ooh much low qualoty products from other country's

Love your reviews. The best tool reviews on youtube.

After watching this video I actually sold the groovelocks I had just bought and got some of the Knipex (err...craftsman) instead. Glad I did.

For me, the Knipex Cobra won hands down like no other when I successfully backed a 3" deck screw with a stripped screw head out of a green treated joist. For someone who has tried them all in this situation, that is some serious bite.

1 broader head on Irwin. Might be an advantage. More grip area versus higher grip pressure. Needs test on specific material to know which is better for a specific purpose. 2. Longer head reach on Irwin: Might be better in some applications and worse in others but probably usually won't matter. 3. Knipex opens a bit wider: Sort of, but I doubt that pliers work very well unless jaws are close to parallel and if the maximum opening with the jaws parallel looks like it might be about the same. 4. Smaller opening on Knipex pliers when the jaws are closed: Might be a disadvantage. Normally small fasteners don't need much grip force, so the outer part of the jaws is all that is necessary. The larger opening on the Irwin might grip better on larger fasteners where more grip is needed. 5. Knipex has a replaceable part: Mostly only significant because Knipex are expensive. If the Irwin fails you can just buy another one without much pain. Also maybe the permanent nature of the Irwin connection for that part is more reliable than with the Knipex approach. 6. Harder jaws on Knipex: If this is true, not much of everything referenced in this video matters. If gripping metal is the issue. Soft jaws grip poorly on iron pipe and even more poorly on harder metal. I presume harder jaws not only grip better they also last longer. But I'd like to see some objective testing before I believe that the Knipex jaws are harder.

Another channel was showing tool deals this month and one of them was a complete set of Irwin pliers that included three sizes of the Knipex knock-off pliers for $60 on Amazon (ironically, none of the pliers were actual Vice-Grips even though the entire set was the Irwin Vice-Grip name). After watching this, I'm glad I skipped that deal, would probably have to buy two sets just to get any use out of them seeing how the teeth wear down so badly.

Decent review, but he is incorrect at the 6:19 when he says Knipex is in excellent condition but in reality you can easily see the small roundings at the center teeths (those shiny bare metal parts at the outer edges). So they were showing some marks of usage after all.

For $20 at lowes you get 8" & 10" visegrip channel locks. Design for me as an electrician tightening couplings/circe objects all day i love these. When i make more money I'll Definetly go knipex lol

You do great reviews young man👍🏻👍🏻

I recently purchased knipex 7" and 10" cobras. They are awesome. The smaller 125 mm cobra seems great to have in motorcycle emergency toolkit. Video is great.

Proper heat treating is critical on all toolls. Gotta heat entire work area and instant oil bath. Great job

Bought my pair of Irwin 8" to throw in my car, but after this video and seeing the wear and tear on them versus the Knipex, I've changed my mind

It's like snap on wrenches vs Craftsman wrenches. They'll do the same job (in theory), but the quality is incomparable.

I do industrial hvac and every single set of Knipex I have ever owned last years and years and years and I do not fear rounding any bolt busting my knuckles or not being able to back out a stripped off thread bad. Knipex hands down has the best made pair of pliers tongue and groove or adjustable ever made even in 2020. I believe these will hands down be the best pliers made even 20 years from now.

Thanks ... you should point out the weight of each.

Just a note on gripping small nuts ect. You can always use the section of jaws closest to the body of the pliers.

Craftsman has renamed kinipex pliers would like to see a comparison

i refill nitrogen tanks in confined spaces, Irwin's slip all day, creating a dangerous work environment in my field (on older units i work on), knipex literally save my life (in extreme conditions) and give me piece of mind knowing my tool will preform.

The cobras are better. The Irwin are good though. I've been using the 12 inch Irwins on my job for several years, maybe 7 or 8 years now, but when I need to replace them it'll be with cobras.

I have both tools. And I am a man thay will spend the money where it is due. You cannot bend the Knipex steel. That in itself sells the product however I do know that the Knipex tools have features that are ahead of the pack for innovation. Knipex all day, all night. Thank you for this helpful and entertaining video.

use the concept of PRESSURE =force per area as a better explanation! thanks for the vid

Ive had the 10 and 8 inch irwins for about 6 years. Only complaint is obviously they are bulky, the rust doesnt help the sliding mechanism and you end up having to push the button to adjust both ways anyway

The Knipex Cobra with the Quickset(newest) actually costs actually the same as the Irwin Groovelock, at least in germany. I just checked the US Amazon site and the price is also almost the same

Great review! I never considered the Irwins, not into China quality tools, Knipex are great, as are VBW pliers also Made In Germany.

Full of bologna, I don’t care for Irwin but I have 2 types of their hose pliers and after years of heavy industrial use their still near mint, very good. I have the knipex also and tend to use them less. Skinny is good when skinny is needed but skinny eats fasteners, dents pipe and tubing. Their both very good except you can but 3 to 5 Irwin for 1 knipex. As for not being good for small fasteners- that’s ridiculous you just use the front jaw, why would you need to hunker down on a 10-32 bolt with the knot he jaw?

I know this is an old review but I wanted to make a comment. I have to disagree with your force analogy. Wider jaws will spread the clamping force but the effective clamping force will be identical. The wider jaws of the irwin pliers are less likely to dig in which may be good or bad depending g on the job. That being said. I love my craftsman knipex!

Great video. I am only bothered by the pronunciation of Knipex.

I'm a heavy equipment mechanic and I use knipex cobra pliers a lot . I prefer knipex just because they are thinner, they are very durable as well .

I started with a 7 inch cobra for use with riser clamps / setting ready rods but now i have the 5&12" cobras and the 10" wrench plier... gonna catch them all.... eventually

I’ve always just went with channel lock But I’m thinking about trying knipex pliers as a back up thanks for the info.

fact is you need both wide and thin type sooner or later this is why we all collect tools constantly not one tool does it all i got both tools and many other slip joint type pliers and never got enough

The only 3 brands I own and use are Channellock, Knipex, & SK. I love all 3 brands, all are high quality.

Excellent Review!!! I have two pair of Knipex Cobra pliers, which I use daily for my work as an Heavy Industrial service tech. I love them, but after heavy use for about 5 years, the teeth are becoming worn. So I was going to replace them when I saw the Irwin Groovelock. I was not sure how well they would work or last, and your video has superb details which has helped me decide to stay with Knipex. Thank You and keep up the excellent reviews. Steve K.

Knipex makes the best pliers in the world. No questions asked

Knipex makes a pair for Matco tools with a blue button.You can put it in a tight spot and pull up on one handle.I do have a pair of these and are awesome pliers.It is shown on Matco's youtube channel

The difference is design, metalurgy, heat treatment and overall quality. Pay the extra you will be happier in the end. I also note that the tools in every second irwin display i see in hardware stores have failed.

Hi guys! ... As a german I'll try now to explain you Americans how KNIPEX is correct pronounced. In Germany, almost all letters of a Word are pronounced. I know, you didn't. For example "Fort Knox". You speak it out as "Fort Nox". So,... NIPEX is wrong! In German Language are always "what you see is what you get". ... Say KNIPEX , first with an "K" and in the middel with an "i" like Illinois. ... And keep in Mind! ... The Germans make the things that comes in the things that comes in the things! ... :-) ... Nice conversation here. :-) ... Best regards

I had the opportunity to visit their factory and even have lunch with the CEO (in the cantine ;)) several years ago. What I can tell you is that their design and manufacturing processes are amazing! They have the best plier in the whole world. Fun fact: In the same city, you can find Stahlwille, Wera and Knipex.

I swear, I was wondering which one to buy. Thx for the vid.

The Knipex are vastly superior if you actually work with these things. Light weight yet indestructible.

This was one of the best reviews I've seen. Very impressed with the detailed analysis! Subscribed! The reason the Irwins are thick is to compensate for inferior grade metal. I knew nothing about vise grips but decided to get a Knipex on the advice of RV owners, for my new RV, and found them to be far superior to all others available. They are pricey, but no regrets.

Not mentioned and BIG negatives are that the Irwin Vise Grips RUST very quickly and more than "skin deep". They are also nearly impossible to CLEAN - cannot get the typical black oil/grease off of those pretty yellow & blue handles. I'm throwing out all of my large collection of Irwin Vise Grips tomorrow upon arrival of my new Knipex collection I ordered. (about $500 worth) I want CLEAN good tools.

If there's one thing the Germans know how to do, it's make good tools. What he forgot to say is that the pliers is self-clamping, so you don't have to press the two halves of the pliers together. So you can even loosen a tight screw with a foot on the pliers.

I DO HAVE THE KNIPEX COBRA, EXACTLY 💯 THIS SIZE, AND I DEFINITELY LOVE THIS TOOL 🔧 😄 !!! I WILL NOT DESCRIBE IT AS YOU DID IT PERFECTLY IN YOUR VIDEO, BUT I WILL JUST CONFIRM THAT THIS TOOL IS GREAT 👍 THANKS A LOT FOR THIS REVIEW !!!

I was sold on the Knipex Cobras after viewing your previous demonstration. It looks as if the Irwins were heat treated by someone using a bic lighter while they were standing outside the manufacturing plant on a smoke break.

I have two "Channellock" pliers,420 and 442 models.I think they are 10",and 12",and I have them for more then 10 years.They are worth every penny.Yes,when you see diference in price between Chinese junk,and "Channellock",you have to think,is it worth it?Yes,it is,how many times in your life you going to buy those kind of pliers?"Channellock" will most likely last forever.I will buy "Knipex",some day.People in North America is so used to buying cheap crap,they don't even know what is good stuff.You can't have something,for nothing!

knipex tools seem to be very durable&reliable. also have a nice light weight, feel, and balance. however, I don't like how knipex tools feel loosely bound. they seem to be more "jiggly" then other similarly priced competitors.

I found out about Knipex 25 years ago. There is no substitute.

I had two Erwins broke the button on both. Switched never had an issue.

Very good analysis. HOWEVER, I am sitting her holding the 8-inch version of those Knipex and Irwin tools. With this size, the Irwin opens very slightly larger. Perhaps one millimeter larger than the Knipex.

My first pair that I just misplaced god knows where lasted fifteen years with very little wear. Just bought the above with the insulated handle because I seldom shut off the electricity when making minor repairs or installations. Once you own a pair, you will never buy a cheaper brand. Worth every penny and then some. These are omg pliers. If you have a decent grip, you can remove anything.

Rockwell hardness test results would be interesting to compare.

Like you, I bought a pair of the Irwins when I lost a pair of my Knipex pumps. To this day, I haven't used the Irwins. They are just way to big and bulky. The Cobras, as you stated, are much thinner and have a better feel , can get into confined spaces that the big bulky Irwins. Its the quality of steel that makes the difference. One thing you said about the snowshoe simile, a smaller footprint applies more force. This is not accurate. It applies the same force only spread across a larger area. Imagine if you will trying to rotate a shaft made of something soft like a very thin copper tube. The wider footprint won't distort the tubing and may be able to apply greater torque / rotational force on it, where the smaller footprint may require more squeezing force to apply torque. In all, I think it just boils down to the task at hand. For instance, I only buy 6pt sockets because they have less tendency to round off a nut than a 12 point will. BUT, I occasionly bump into a square head that requires an 8 point or twelve point so, of course I opt for the 8. We all love it when we have that alternate tool we can use to make our jobs easier or even do-able..

KNIPEX are a lot more expensive than Irwin, but in the long run you get what you pay for. I've had my Cobra set for many years, and they are hands down the bomb!!!

EXCELLENT REVIEW. I LOVE THE KNIPEX TOOLS. I HAVE BOTH THE KNIPEX COBRAS AND THE CRAFTSMAN VERSION MADE BY KNIPEX FOR THEM. EXCELLENT TOOL.

Bought a pair of 8 and 10inch Irwin in a pack for under 20 bucks. Sorry I cant justify the money for knipex. Maybe Klein but not knipex

My 12inch knipex cobras I've had for 6 years are quite warn on the teeth. I also have a 6inch pair of irwins that I've had for the last 5 years that also show about the same amount of wear. I'm my opinion that are both good however, like you said the width and profile of the head on the Irwin has kept me away from the larger models.

Just got my first pair of knipex cobras and I love them

I have both and totally agree. Very good video.

not sure about the exposed spring on the knipex. seems like it could be a problem, hooked on stuff, banged into and messed up- then again not sure the spring mechanism on the irwin would like being smacked around either. probably not a problem as i'm sure no one watching has ever used any pliers to hammer on something or hit a pliers with a hammer.

I have to disagree with you on this one. They aren't in different leagues , they just have different uses. I own a few sets of both and the knipex are great for small fasteners. I've found that the groves are closer together so they line up funky on bigger bolts. The Erwin are much more useful if you are working with larger fasteners or pipe. Lastly, the push button is on the Erwins is better for putting in a tool bag or pouch.

i have 2 10" vice grips and one of them is just starting to slip. never had any problems till now (3 years). (i mainly use them is pipe wrench replecements). im going to try wihas version next

Recently bought a Knipex Cobra 10" and must say I am surprised at how high quality they are! In the past I looked at the Irwin Groovelock pliers and did not like them because they were bulky, unbalanced and the spring release looked like it was weak and it was difficult to work! Knipex with the cobra model solved all the problems I had with this tool. I think Cobra might be the new name in water pump pliers for years I always regarded Channel Lock as king but it is now King Cobra!

Irwin for life! As a welder in trades school, I use Irwin... it’s my personal preference...

That's not heat treating on the irwin. They are cast, heat treated, coated. then ground in that order. What you are seeing is the rapid heating caused by grinding causing the jaws to lose any heat treating they had.

I'm sure the metallurgy on the Knipex is much better, but should the wear and damage comparison done with the equivalent work on both? It seems the new Irwin was not used but instead the one that's been in regular use for some time. If both new ones were put through the same work, the comparison would have been on equal footing. The spring mechanism, while I always like designs meant for the long haul, like the serviceable spring, the riveted design may not be much of a problem since it's not something that seems likely be a problem down the line, being so lightly loaded and having no bearing on how hard it's used. Maybe if both tools were left out to rust it would eventually be an advantage for the serviceability, but that'd be heretical- ;) Could some creative grinder work be done on the Irwin to reprofile the jaws, or is the metal not up to the weakening and higher resultant forces?

IO have been working with the Irwin's and never have had a problem in any form. just as good as the channel locks

thanks, that answered my question. great video.

I thought these would be great for plumbing. I have them in my plumbing tool box. Can't go without me them.

I own both. I have used both. I prefer the Irwin. I prefer the ALLIGATORS over both of these pliers though.