This $7 medical tool is a surprising must-have in my workshop

Sometimes semi-disposable objects are a more sensible choice than these designed to final a lifetime.

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Take scissors, for instance. I’ve a number of very nice, high-quality, dear, and undoubtedly not semi-disposable scissors from Klein Tools and Engineer. But should you abuse them by slicing issues that you just should not, then your very nice pair of scissors are shortly remodeled into not-so-nice scissors.

Ask me how I do know. It brings again reminiscences of my grandmother yelling at me for utilizing her finest scissors; scissors she’d use for dressmaking, to chop issues like wire and steel.

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ADC 320 Medicut EMT Shears

The world’s best-selling brand of medical grade utility shears, with a 7.25″ size for max leverage and power they’ll reduce via the hardest supplies.

Just a few years in the past, somebody recommended that I get some medical shears, and I purchased a few pairs. I’ve used these instruments in the previous for first-aid functions, however did not assume they’d be as much as the the trials of workshop use and abuse.

I used to be incorrect. 

Features

• Length: 7.25-inch
• Weight: 2.7 oz
• Blade materials: Surgical-grade stainless-steel
• Blade hardness: Rockwell hardness of C56
• Handle materials: Polypropylene
• Tip type: Stainless-steel security bandage tip
• Autoclavable: Yes, to 143ºC (290ºF)

Medical shears have a lot of benefits over scissors.

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The first benefit is worth. You can simply discover actually high-quality medical shears for about $7, which places them in the Bic pen-pricing class. In brief, it is one thing you need to use with out worrying an excessive amount of about trashing it.

They’re additionally robust, and have hardened, micro-serrated, stainless-steel blades, and are secured collectively utilizing a robust rivet. Combine these options with the snug polypropylene handles and you may put a lot of strain on these shears with out having to fret in regards to the blade being broken or the rivet giving method.

Speaking of the handles, they arrive in a vary of colours, from black to neon yellow. I want brighter colours as a result of they stand out on my workbench from all the opposite muddle, however some may want extra subdued colours.

Another factor I like is the tip. There aren’t any sharp factors to by accident poke into individuals, making them a lot safer than conventional scissors.

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The shears may be put via an autoclave for sterilization, and whereas most of us will not have an autoclave helpful, it does imply that they are often safely thrown in a pan of boiling water for cleansing.

I even have a pair of dear — and undoubtedly not semi-disposable — medical shears, in type of the Leatherman Raptor. These take the idea of medical shears and add options comparable to a carbide glass breaker, ring cutter, and oxygen tank wrench. I like every thing in regards to the Raptor shears aside from the the sheath that got here with them, so made a customized sheath out of kydex and a belt clip.

At $100, you might purchase over a dozen of the cheaper medical shears for a similar cash, however I’ve had these on my belt or backpack when venturing into the wilds for over a decade, and so they’ve reduce all types of supplies that may usually blunt a pair of scissors — and so they’re nonetheless going robust.

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But for common workshop or around-the-home use, you’ll be able to’t fault medical shears. They’re low-cost, robust, long-lasting, but the blunt suggestions make them protected round youngsters and others who may injure themselves with pointy issues.