Professional Tool Reviews for Pros
There are more than enough upgrades on these Milwaukee Gen 2 combination pliers to make them a worthy addition to your electrical tool kit.
When we reviewed the original Milwaukee 6 in 1 Combination Pliers and the Milwaukee 6 in 1 Long Nose Pliers several years ago, we felt they were adept tools that offered a lot of features most electricians would find extremely useful. Indeed, our own Ben Parker who does this kind of work for a living, agreed wholeheartedly once we put them into his hands. Now, the revamped Milwaukee Gen II combination wire pliers offer even more capabilities and ease of use.
While the new Milwaukee Gen II combination wire pliers are technically a complete redesign, users of the existing pliers won’t be dealing with something completely unfamiliar. Instead, Milwaukee tweaked enough features (likely based on feedback from Pros) to give this tool a better edge and to make it even more flexible and usable for electricians in the field.
If the original 6-in-1 was a compelling hand tool for electricians, the new combination wire pliers are even more so and reflect a maturity of the hand tool that we can really appreciate. Plus, at just around $20, it’s an easy call to simply grab one at your local dealer and stick it in your electrician’s bag or tool kit.
The new Milwaukee 6-in-1 wire strippers have a wider open then the first generation product–by a full 1/8-inch. On top of that, this wider open is possible with the same handle opening width. Milwaukee pulled this off by adjusting the way the handle angles out from the central pivot point.
The handle spring has also been decreased in size, so it closes a bit easier (for less hand fatigue), and the locking mechanism is a much more robust one-handed metal latch instead of the two-handed plastic slide clip. Previously you had to grasp the tool in one hand and use your other hand to raise or lower the locking slide. I love the ease of use with this new system.
The jaws of the new Milwaukee Gen II 6-in-1 wire strippers maintain their width now—all the way down to the tip, and there’s a larger but less aggressive reaming angle for the ridges on the sides of the cutters.
The wire strippers now handle down to 8 gauge solid and 10 gauge stranded, and the cutters are arced–more like try cable cutters. This gives you a lot more cutting capability and cables cut with much less force required. The shape also holds cables in place so they don’t ride up the blade as you cut.
Lastly, the new Milwaukee Gen II combination wire pliers and strippers have holes in the base of the handles, so they’re ready for tethering—important if you’re working up in the air and need to secure your tools from falling to the ground when dropped.
This week one of the projects we had on our plate was to wire up a 30A 220V circuit for a washer and dryer. That involves cutting and stripping back 10-gauge wire for both the washer and dryer end as well as the 30A breaker in the electrical panel. As I expected, the Milwaukee Gen II combination wire pliers cut our wires cleanly and easily. The gauges for cutting solid wire are quite accurate, and there were no nicks or scratches to the copper when we were finished.
For some other applications, we grabbed the Milwaukee 48-22-3079 cutting pliers and did some manual inside pipe reaming for 1/2-inch and 3/4-inch EMT conduit by inserting them within the pipe. For the outside we just used the ample opening space between the jaws and twisted them around the outside edge.
There are enough upgrades on these cutting pliers to make them a worthy addition or upgrade to your kit. Obviously, first-time buyers will be advantaged as it may be hard to justify an upgrade at around $20, but for those looking for a great multi-use tool, the price is just about perfect.
When he's not playing with the latest power tool, Clint DeBoer enjoys life as a husband, father, and avid reader—especially the Bible. He loves Jesus, has a degree in recording engineering, and has been involved in multimedia and/or online publishing in one form or another since 1992.
Clint’s career has covered nearly the entire realm of audio and video production. After graduating at the top of his class with an Associates Degree in Recording Engineering, he began working for the famed Soundelux studios in 1994, one of the largest post-production companies specializing in audio for feature films & television. Working on a myriad of feature films, Clint honed his skills as a dialogue editor, foley editor, and sound designer. Years later, he moved into the expanding area of video editing, where he served as the company’s senior AVID video editor for three years.
Working for such clients as Universal Pictures, Hollywood Pictures, Paramount Home Entertainment, NASA, Universal Studios, Planet Hollywood, SEGA, NASCAR, and others, Clint DeBoer dealt extensively with client management as well as film & video editing, color correction, and digital video & MPEG compression. He also carries several THX certifications (Technician I and II, THX Video), and is ISF Level II Certified.
After founding the CD Media, Inc. publishing company in 1996, he went on to help start or grow several successful online publications, including Audioholics (as Editor-in-Chief for 12 years), Audiogurus, and AV Gadgets. In 2008, Clint founded Pro Tool Reviews followed by the landscape and outdoor power equipment-focused OPE Reviews in 2017. He also heads up the Pro Tool Innovation Awards, an annual awards program honoring innovative tools and accessories across the trades.
Crediting God and his excellent staff for the success of what is now the largest power tool review publication in the industry, Clint DeBoer hopes to see continued growth for the company as it rapidly expands its reach. Pro Tool Reviews critically reviews hundreds of hand tools, power tools, and accessories each year to help inform users about the best and newest products in the industry. Reaching everyone from the construction industry professional and tradesman to the serious DIYer, Pro Tool Reviews helps tool consumers shop better, work smarter, and stay aware of what tools and products can help put them at the top of their game.
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I am a residential electrician I lost my klein pair and bought these instead. At first i was really impressed with them they seemed to feel better in the hand and cut and defensively strip easier so i was very impressed. 8 months later they are so dull that they will not cut fine standard wire such as would be on fans or light fixtures at all. They still cut solid wire or stranded thhn ok but it just wont cut through all the strands in fixture wire. The stripper part is fairly dull too but not too bad just… Read more »
In looking over these pliers at the local HD, I noticed quite a quality disparity from specimen to specimen. They had over a dozen pairs to examine, and all of them had grinding flaws in the Jaws, some being quite uneven. If you’re in the market for this type of pliers, then I’d check out the Klein all purpose pliers, they are a better design, and better built. The Klein are more expensive, but you get what you pay for in most cases, and this is one of them.
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Professional Tool Reviews for Pros