Astro Pneumatic Tool 9409A Hose Clamp Pliers

I bought these some time ago... At least 2 years. I am an auto technician by trade and I have used several different brands of cable type "remote" hose clamp pliers. These are by far the best. Better than Snap On Better than Blue Point Better than Craftsman Better than the very expensive pair of S-K pliers that I bought (turns out those are re-labeled Mayhews anyway). Though I will say I like the handle on the Mayhew/S-K pliers better. Why is this particular Astro remote hose clamp pliers tool better? Two reasons: The cable is the thickest I've used on ANY of these type that I've used before. I've used it hard for what must be going on 3 years now and haven't noticed any real cable stretch. Every other pair of pliers I've used have noticeable stretch after 6 months. After 1 year, most become stretched beyond usefulness. And it has a threaded adjustment to compensate for any stretch or to just better fit whatever specific spring clamp you happen to be working with. The end that grips the spring clamp itself is a lower profile and seems to grip better than the others I've used as well. The only downside is it seems it takes a lot more effort to compress the handles and release the lock than on some of the other competitors' products. A small trade off for a tool that is otherwise far superior in the important ways. Also, after a couple years of hard use, I broke the spring for the locking lever. I now have to lock the lever manually. No big deal. I still keep on using them. There's a part of me that is tempted to install this Astro cable setup on my old pair of S-K branded Mayhew pliers. That would be the best of all worlds. UPDATE: It's almost 2020. A couple years ago I did infact transfer the Astro cable setup to my S-K/Mayhew pliers and continued using it. Handles definitely work a little easier than the original Astro purple handled ones I had. The locking mechanism tends to skip at times, though. The cable itself is now sticking pretty good and has become a little more time-consuming to use, but it refuses to give up. I have never had a cable last this long. All the previous pliers I've used typically only get me about a year's worth of near daily use until the cable stretches to being not so usable. The profile of the clamp is also better than the others I've used. So, I'm back to order a replacement pair. I'm going to leave my S-K handled ones with the old Astro cable on it as a backup and use the new Astros for everyday. This cable has to be nearly 7 years old and gets very frequent use. I'm still flabbergasted that these have held up so well when every other similar cable type pliers have gotten difficult to use within a year. Well-done, Astro. UPDATE April 2020: I purchased my second set in January 2020 after my first one lasted 7+ years and is still functional on my S-K set of handles. The jaw on my new pair sheared the top piece only 4 months into use. Not sure if that's luck of the draw or if Astro's metallurgy/production methods have gone downhill. Definitely a bit bummed after my original set lasted for so long and technically still works, just sticks a bit and is now installed on different handles... Considering downgrading my rating.

Quality looking/working tool.

I am working on a 2003 Dodge Durango and it needs the power steering hoses replaced. The return hose goes from the steering rack straight to the reservoir and is secured with a pinch clamp. The ears were on the bottom and I could not get a pair of pliers on it. I heard of these type of hose clamp pliers but, never had to use one. A lot of comments were reported that most of these units are cheaply made and won’t work on small clamps. I decided on the one made by astro. Probably because all their tools are made excellently. Took me less than 5 minutes to unpack, figure this thing out and remove the hard to get to clamp. The unit is well made with what appears to be a powder coating finish. The clamping portion turns so you can easily position it with one hand while operating the clamp. One has to squeeze it enough to engage the locking pawl. This locks the clamp in an open position. Very happy with this purchase and recommend it.

If you want to work on new cars, this is very likely going to be a must-have product, because they are going to have those accursed spring-clamp things buried somewhere deep in your engine compartment's bowels. You will be tempted to try, but there's not a chance in hell you'll be able to sneak a pair of needlenose pliers in there. If you are against all odds able to do so, you know that the pliers will slip off when you're really bearing down. That's when you will pinch a bit of your hand between the flats of the plier handles when they slam shut under your full squeezing force. So really, this thing is going to save you from a blood blister. So whatever this item costs right now, that's the price of not getting a blood blister. Simple. In short, this thing will clamp down securely on spring hose clamps, and can snake in to get at clamps that would be otherwise nearly impossible to get at. It can, in fact, save you from taking apart extra bits. The typical instructions for swapping out the thermostat on the Mazda 2.3L 4-cyl include removing the serpentine belt tensioner. With this? Unnecessary. Just snake this in, snag the clamps, and use an extension to get the bolts. Easy peasy. It is not perfect: You will need to fiddle with the little set-screw bolt to adjust the tension on the wire if you want the locking mechanism to keep your clamp maximally open. Otherwise you'll need to keep one hand on the pliers to keep the clamp as open as it can get. And the locking lever can be a pain to release. And at full-open, the pliers are difficult to grasp unless you have pretty large hands. All said, I'm glad I bought it and I'd buy it again, it's just nice to have in your kit, and it can speed up a number of jobs.

Get this first. I bought a cheaper brand that came with a bunch of other pliers, broke before it removed 2 clamp. Bought the Astro and removed my Clamp with ease. Save time and money and get the quality Astro

I had another tool exactly like this one but it didn't work so good so I initially had my doubts. However upon receiving it I noticed one main difference. The hooks on this took that grab the ears of the clamp are angled differently than the way they were on my other cheaper tool this made all the difference in the tools ability to work properly. This tool grabs the clamps ears and doesn't let go! With my other tool the grabbing part of the tool would constantly slip off! Not with this one! It works great! It also has a larger diameter cable than the cheaper hose clamp tool like it and has an adjusting nut to make up for cable stretch which will occur over time with extended use. A total life save of a tool for those usually impossible to reach hose clamps under the hood!

This thing is amazing, I didn't even know they existed until I had such a complicated car repair on a luxury German vehicle. This tool allowed me to reach a hose clamp that would have been otherwise impossible to reach with any conventional plier remover. After trying for several hours I gave up, found this when searching a forum on the repair, 2 days later I had it and it was able to lock on and remove the clamp that I could not reach or even see deep behind the engine, simply amazing. I knocked off a star for quality only because my sheathing has already torn using it to remove two clamps, but I'm sure it is b/c of the cramped quarters and all the sharp edges around it when using it. Still would be nice to not have it rip.

Will not open to 2.5 inches as described. Only opens to 2 inches and is not strong enough to open a 2 inch hose clamp. The primers work on smaller Corbin clamps, just not the big stuff.