Old timer told me to never use flush cutters on steel messenger wire

Guy with 30 years in the trade warned me I'd ruin my $80 Knipex cutters if I kept using them on steel. Didn't listen, snapped the tip off on a nasty 0.25 inch messenger by the third job. Anyone else had a tool die from cutting stuff you knew you shouldn't?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_cora19d ago

Yeah I heard those cheap HF cutters do just fine on messenger wire for a fraction of the price.

michaelrodriguez19d ago

My buddy runs a small telecom crew and he swears by a $89 HF unit he grabbed off Amazon. We were talking about it last week and he said it's cut miles of messenger wire without skipping a beat. It's funny how the expensive gear is a status thing sometimes, but the cheap stuff does the real work. Always been that way with tools, seems like.