Camillus electrican's knife variations

[garddogg56]

Mtds;Oh those analog meters mines a Tripplett USA,When I was an apprentice we made the kit Simpson meter long gone now I think it took a hit Yet these kids don't know how good they have it nowadays It's getting harder to advoid the imports nowadays

[orvet]

garddogg & mtds, sounds like you both are/were electricians.
You are no doubt familiar with Klein Tools (who had some of their TL-29s made by Camillus and probably others) and their American made hand tools. I have been looking for a small (4-5”) pair of flush-cut end nippers for several years. Most of the ones I find are imported and they don’t make a flush cut version. After years of searching I finally found a flush-cut end nipper made by/for Klein Tools. It is only about twice the price of the import versions. I have to go back and get them, as I didn’t have the cash with me that day.

I guess we still make a few tools here in the USA!

[Vit_213]

Another photo.

This is not a chorus line

[garddogg56]

Dale I believe they are tywire cutters,kinda hard to find Iron workers use them all the time..Vit them legs gutta rest sometime they look good closed

[mtds]

Another photo.

tl29=2.jpg

This is not a chorus line

Vit_213: Any idea what the scales are made of on the two knives on the right?

[jerryd6818]

Dale - Are these what you're looking for? These are flush-cutters but you said "end-nippers" which these are not. (shown last below)

[Vit_213]

Another photo.

tl29=2.jpg

This is not a chorus line

Vit_213: Any idea what the scales are made of on the two knives on the right?

Smooth black Delrin

[orvet]

That us very close to what I am looking for Jerry.
When assembling a knife and spinning down the rocker pin it is difficult to cut the pin short enough unless one has a flush cutter. If one leaves the pin too long it does not tighten the pin enough to pull the sides of the knife close enough, thereby leaving a gap between the spring and the liners.

With a flush cutting end nipper it is easier to push down on the nipper to push the liners against the spring and then cut the pin to the proper length. The spinner then spins the head slightly into the handle creating a nice tight fit between the spring and liners.

The advantage to the end nipper is that it is easier to push straight down on the nipper to close the gap before cutting the pin. The one you show would be a close second choice, as the angle on the head would allow one to get nearly as much pressure on the handles as would an end nipper.

I hope that makes sense....

[jerryd6818]

It does make sense but these pliers aren't suited for that task. They're designed for electronics work and are not recommended for anything but small soft copper wire, 20ga (.034) and smaller.

[smokepole]

Dale, is this what you have in mind:

[garddogg56]

Smokepole that is what I was thinking we use those to tie rerod togeather but they don't cut flush enough a pair of sidecutter will do the samething

[smokepole]

garddogg, I know them as end cutting pliers/end nipps/steel fixers pliers/rigging pliers/riggers pliers etc etc - we also use them over here to for fixing re-enforcing steel cages for concrete etc. You do get some models that cut flush - or if you have a belt sander or nice big wet grinder like Dale has, you could very easily convert the standard model into a flush cutter.

[orvet]

That is the general idea, though I was hoping to find ones that were made for a flush cut.

I think my problem has been solved by Aimus Moses.
Aimus read this thread and PMed me. He is mailing me a pair that he has.

AAPK has the best members on the web!

Thanks Aimus.

[jerryd6818]

Well, show 'em when you get 'em. Not that I've seen every pair of pliers ever made but I've not seen any of the end nippers in flush cut. I used to have a set of end cutters that had handles like and were made like the Bernard parallel jaw pliers. I can't find them. We sometimes used them to pull taper pins out of a shaft when we couldn't get a punch on the other end.

[smokepole]

Jerry, here's some pics of an old pair of flush cutters I have - the jaws and pivot pin are all shot and don't bite flush or in line with each other any more - you can see that in the first pic - the jaw on the right of the pic is at an angle to the other one. The very slight angle you see on the outside of the jaws/cutting edge is something I put there a couple of years ago trying to touch up the cutting edge without stripping the pliers apart - I stopped when I realized it wouldn't cut flush anymore if I carried on any further. I now use it just as a puller - the other pair cuts flush enough for peening and spinning purposes. Looking at it now I reckon I need to take them apart and give them a good reconditioning.

[jerryd6818]

Thanks for showing those Smoke. They look like they've been around for a while.

[smokepole]

They look like they've been around for a while.

That they have. Like yourself I hate throwing something away if it has the slightest chance of still being useful - that is why I like making knives out of files and old circular saw blades too. So I reckon a revamp is on the cards for this pair..

[orvet]

Speaking of circular saw blades....I have one from a saw mill that is about 4 feet in diameter.
I will have to get some pics later....my wife & I are going garage sale-ing.

[smokepole]

Nice steel that Dale. I'd love to see some pics - as a general rule, if the cutting tips are shaped from the blade steel itself and not tungsten inserts, and the thinner the blade relative to it's diameter, the better the steel. If that blade is between 1/8th and 1/5th thick you have yourself some really nice high carbon steel for knives.

[zp4ja]

Good thread Guys. Never visit this forum ( I am a Case collector) but I have found this one in my tool box in great shape.

Looks to be 3-3/4" closed. Stamp in case u cant see it is...

CAMILLUS
________
NEW YORK
U S A

Not spaced or centered like that but you get the idea.

Thanks, Jerry

[orvet]

nice one zp.

Did you know that for many years Camillus built the TL-29 for Case as well as most of the US knife makers?

[zp4ja]

No Sir Dale, I did not.

What do you know about the one I posted as far as year/era goes. Just curious how old she is.

Thanks for the input, Jerry

[jerryd6818]

Long line Camillus -- Not guaranteed but generally accepted years of mfg 1960-1976

[zp4ja]

Long line Camillus -- Not guaranteed but generally accepted years of mfg 1960-1976

Thanks JerryD! Looking at it closer, this knife has factory edge. Never been put to work. Besides some very minor handles scratches, mint.

[smokepole]

zp4ja, that is a fine example - one of the nicest ones I have seen around. Very handy tools too.