Tech & Gadgets · Head-to-head
Channellock 102-10 10-inch Curved Jaw Locking Pliers w/ Cutter vs Knipex 41 14 250 Grip Pliers with Universal Jaws, 10 in.
Which should you buy? Our verdict on both, pulled from our full The Best Locking Pliers: 4 Compared (and One to Skip) comparison.
The Channellock wins on the one thing this category quietly fails at, which is holding the adjusting screw setting through repeated cycles, and it is the only tool here whose maker publishes a lock nut for exactly that. The Knipex is the better technical document and the better answer if you clamp round, hex and flat stock in the same day, because it publishes a jaw opening for each of those shapes separately.
Channellock 102-10 10-inch Curved Jaw Locking Pliers w/ Cutter
Buy itThe only one of the four whose maker publishes a lock nut to retain the jaw adjustment, backed by the fullest dimensional table in the group.
- Channellock publishes the numbers in full: jaw capacity 2.48 in., jaw length 1.61 in., overall length 9.37 in., handle span 2.85 in., joint thickness 0.79 in., weight 1.34 lbs.
- The listed lock nut feature retains jaw adjustment, which is the setting that quietly drifts on a locking plier used all day.
- Forged steel jaws, an extended release lever described as one handed and pinch preventing, a coiled spring and an epoxy resin coating for rust and weld spatter.
- No jaw hardness figure and no clamping force are published.
- It is sold as a 10 inch tool but the published overall length is 9.37 in., so measure before you assume it fills the same slot as your old one.
- Channellock's own page states its locking pliers are made in Spain, while it lists its snips, non locking pliers, drivers, pry bars and ratcheting wrenches as 100 percent made in the USA.
Knipex 41 14 250 Grip Pliers with Universal Jaws, 10 in.
Buy itPublishes three separate jaw openings, names the steel the jaws are forged from, and states the country of origin.
- Max jaw opening is published as 1 27/64 in. for round pipe, square stock and hex, so you can check the fit for the shape you actually clamp rather than a single headline number.
- Materials are broken out: gripping jaws in chrome vanadium electric steel, forged, on a high strength rolled steel pliers body.
- The technical table gives country of origin Germany, weight 1.29 lbs., a bright zinc plated galvanized finish, and a serrated gripping surface.
- Bare handles with no grip sleeves, which is a preference rather than a fault but is worth knowing before it arrives.
- No jaw hardness figure and no clamping force are published, and no product standard is cited on the page.
- Nothing is published about a lock nut or any other feature that holds the adjusting screw setting.
Side by side
| Channellock 102-10 10-inch Curved Jaw Locking Pliers w/ Cutter | Knipex 41 14 250 Grip Pliers with Universal Jaws, 10 in. | |
|---|---|---|
| Our verdict | Buy | Buy |
| Best for | Anyone buying one general purpose locking plier who wants to check every number before it arrives. | Someone who clamps round stock, hex and flat material in the same day and wants the capacity for each printed rather than guessed. |
| Price tier | $$ · mid-range | $$$ · premium |
The bottom line
Our overall pick is the Channellock 102-10 10-inch Curved Jaw Locking Pliers w/ Cutter - The only one of the four whose maker publishes a lock nut to retain the jaw adjustment, backed by the fullest dimensional table in the group. Choose the Knipex 41 14 250 Grip Pliers with Universal Jaws, 10 in. instead if someone who clamps round stock, hex and flat material in the same day and wants the capacity for each printed rather than guessed.
Want the full picture, including the other options we compared and the popular one we'd skip? Read the complete The Best Locking Pliers: 4 Compared (and One to Skip).