When you talk to electricians, tools become a sort of sacred thing. Everyone has their favorites. Still, we have swayed more than one journeyman by placing a new tool in his hands. Our electrical tool reviews aim to reveal what electricians think about new products coming to market. Those might include a Klein non-contact voltage tester, Southwire RB1000 BendStation, or even hand tools. The new Milwaukee Gen2 combination wire pliers made a particularly big impact with some of our guys. Hands-on Electrical Tool Reviews Our hands-on electrical tool reviews take things like press tools and metal hole saws and find out if they work faster than existing products. Manufacturers are quick to make claims, but testing those claims is what helps Pros and know if a tool can cut it in the field. Our Pro electricians work with us to determine whether or not new tools are accurate, ergonomic, and/or just plain helpful.
The Southwire Surge Guard 50A provides a fortress of protection for your RV’s electronics—and inhabitants. It protects against both inconsistent power delivery and power surge events at the site. I’ve been using it to monitor the service and protect my Highland Ridge Open Range 427BHS fifth wheel RV. Pros Total protection with both line and […]
Klein Borescope Unlocks Android Potential The Klein ET16 Borescope pairs a 9mm digital camera to a 10-foot armored gooseneck cable. It also includes USB-C and micro-USB connections for viewing the image on most Android smartphones and devices. We like compact camera heads and good flexibility. Klein seems to have hit both with the ET16—and at […]
Crimping IS Easy with Milwaukee Force Logic Linear Crimper The Milwaukee M18 Force Logic 6T Linear Utility Crimper provides linemen with a fast and versatile way to crimp. It offers a slim grip and an enlarged trigger designed specifically for use with Class 3 gloves. The handle design also provides excellent balance as well as […]
Milwaukee Lineman’s Wrenches Join Power Utility Lineup We’ve been impressed with the level to which Milwaukee seems dedicated to expanding its efforts into the Power Utility trades. Joining the new fiberglass bolt cutters and tool storage solutions, Milwaukee has two lineman’s ratcheting wrenches that have some well-engineered features designed specifically for power utility work. Power […]
Milwaukee Power Utility Lineup Provides Solutions for Linemen Milwaukee has gone all-in with solutions for the Power Utility trade. In addition to the recent Fiberglass Bolt Cutters and Power Utility Wrenches, Milwaukee has also designed some handy Power Utility Storage solutions. These include a Compact Aerial Tool Apron, a Canvas Utility Bucket, and Two Bucket […]
The Klein/DeWalt team-up continues with a tool designed to let users more easily work around a utility pole. The Klein 90-degree Impact Wrench borrows DeWalt’s battery platform to cordlessly deliver high torque and speed to your work. We don’t see too many impact wrenches with through-bolt support, however. Key Features Klein designed the 90-degree impact […]
Klein Redesign Makes Clamp Meters More Functional “New and Improved” might be the sort of designation that gets overused in marketing speak, but it seems appropriate with the redesigned Klein Digital Clamp Meters. Klein has revamped the line with a focus on improving the accessibility and function of these tools. New Improvements The Klein Entry-Level […]
Let Your EDC Tackle Your Wire Stripping Klein realizes that half of you electricians likely use your pocket knives as wire strippers anyway, so they’ve gone ahead and designed a knife that actually does the job well. The Klein Electrician’s Pocket Knife tackles wire stripping duties for your common solid and stranded wire sizes, without […]
Having looked at the best circuit breaker finders and tracers, we also wanted to cover how circuit breaker finders work. Some readers (perhaps even some electricians) may not know what really goes on under the hood of these tools. For most of us, the little plastic boxes seem like magic. They can peer into walls […]
We caught a sneak peek at a new Bosch Cordless 18V Band Saw in this month’s Popular Mechanics magazine. It looks to be a very compact unit that sports an ergonomic grip and weighs much less (just 7.7 lbs including the 18V battery) than comparable products from Milwaukee Electric Tool (about 10.5 lbs). For overhead use – common in electrical work, this is going to be an amazingly advantageous tool. The 18V lithium-ion battery sits above the handle, rather than below it, giving it a weight-forward feel and aiding in vertically-oriented cuts. Like most 18V tools, the Bosch Cordless Band Saw has a safety switch that needs to be pressed before the trigger releases to power the saw.
