Southwire 7-in-1 Multi Tool Pliers Brings Robust Multi-Function Design to Electricians
The new Southwire 7-in-1 Multi Tool Pliers pulls together seven common electrician functions to help save you time and space. The Southwire S7N1HD is another one of their heavy-duty forged designs in the same vein as their forged Romex and forged wire strippers. This time the design moves from the cutting/stripping/looping process and brings in other parts of the job.
10-Second Summary
- Model: Southwire S7N1HD
- Robust needle nose jaws
- Bolt head pliers
- 10-14 solid/12-16 stranded wire stripper
- Curved wire/cable shearing knives
- 6-32/8-32 bolt shears
- Terminal crimper
- Knurled reaming head
- Spring-loaded locking handles
- Tether holes on both handles
- ~$31
1 Tool, 7 Jobs
The Southwire 7-in-1 Multi Tool Pliers has a total of – you guessed it – 7 functions.
Needle Nose Pliers
Starting from the jaw tips, it’s a needle nose pliers. I like the wide jaws of their forged wire strippers to help pull, strip jackets, and twist wire, but there are times that the narrow nose is more visible and workable in tight spaces.
Bolt Head Pliers
Just below the jaw tips, the pliers make way for bolt head gripping. They’re not as broad as a regular set of pliers and will do their best work on heads up to 3/4″ or less.
Wire Strippers
Making room for the bolt head pliers function leaves less room for the wire stripper. Three stripping holes cover 10, 12, and 14-gauge solid wire or 12, 14, and 16 stranded.
Cable Shears
Southwire is adding a curve to the cutters on their stripping and multi-tools and its a good thing. It provides better grip than straight knife edges and makes cutting wire and small-diameter cable easier since it doesn’t slip.
Bolt Shears
Just underneath the rivet are your standard 6-32 and 8-32 bolt shears.
Terminal Crimper
Continuing below the rivet, a terminal crimper is in an excellent position to let you get plenty of leverage to crimp solidly.
Reaming Head
Knurling on the outside of the tapered jaws gives you a reaming head to work with.
Additional Design Features
But wait… there’s more!
Beyond the 7 functions built into the tool, the Southwire 7-in-1 Multi Tool Pliers has spring-loaded, locking handles. I personally like the spring handle design, but there are plenty of electricians that don’t. If you really don’t like them, you can always take the spring out.
Both of the forged wire strippers go with an ergo curved handle design but these stick with traditional symmetrical ones. The handles are pretty comfortable and have tether holes cut at the end of both.
Pricing
You can pick up this Southwire multi-tool for just under $32.96 at retailers like Amazon. Most similar tools leave off the bolt head pliers, so there’s not much direct competition. However, Klein’s All-Purpose Pliers run around $45 and their Hybrid Pliers are closer to $40.
Southwire gives you more function than either at a lower price and still has a lifetime guarantee.
Perfect, Right?
There’s no doubt that this is a highly functional tool with excellent value. However, I noticed that the rivet on ours sticks a little when it’s at its most open position and it’s not quite as smooth as the other forged strippers. It’s entirely possible that it will smooth out over the next few weeks of use and I’ll come back with an update to let you know.
Other than that, it’s simply a very useful multi-tool to have in your bag to save space and time.
