Have you ever used pliers? Well, some of you may have seen the pliers but you may have not used them. Pliers are one of the types of hand tools that we use for holding the objects firmly. Pliers are developed from the tongs. Tongs were used to lift the hot metal during the period of the bronze age. In this article, you will learn about the uses of pliers and much more.
History Behind the Pliers:
So, if you think about the history of the pliers then, it is clear that the idea of the pliers originated from the tongs. Now, later modifications were made on the tongs and now, they have been termed as the pliers.
Pliers are very simple innovation and therefore, no one is credited for their invention. It is assumed that plier production may have happened before 3000 BCE. Also, these pliers were of wood or bronze.
In the process like casting or sometimes smithing, we have to handle hot material. So, the main use of the pliers is to deliberately handle and hold the hot metal during the ancient period. Later different designs and types of the pliers produced depending on the Requirements.
The main purpose of the pliers is to bend and compress different kinds of materials. Typical Pliers consist of the first-class levers with a fulcrum. The arrangement of the fulcrum and the first-class levers is such that it creates a required force that can be further used for bending the required material.
Now, the design of the pliers has a little bit changed. It is now consisting of the pair of handles, pivot or rivet and the head section. The head section consists of the gripping jaws or the cutting edges.
Main Parts
A typical plier and its parts are as follows:
Cutters: The cutters are located in the head section. They are used for cutting the wires.
Handles: We use the handles to hold the pliers in our hands. Handles may be coated with plastic, or a grip may present on them.
Fulcrum: Fulcrum is also known as a pivot point. It is a point where the handle and the jaws connect.
Nose or jaws: Jaws are nothing but the working end of the pliers. They are used for gripping.
Materials Used While Making a Plier:
Now, let us talk about one important thing and that is materials used for making a plier. We all know that materials play an important role in the manufacturing of any part. If the material selected is proper and accurate then, we don’t have to face a lot of difficulties while operating a device.
The material which is used to manufacture of the plier mainly consists of the steel alloys. The steel alloys may contain additional metals like vanadium and chromium. Steel alloys and additional additives increase the strength of the plier.
This mixture of steel, vanadium, and chromium also helps the plier from getting affected by the corrosion.
The handles of the plier consist of the metals. On the handles, different types of grips are located. These grips are insulated and made in such a way that they are electric shock resistant. The suitable grip also helps in handling hot and complicated metal parts efficiently.
If the grip is not present on the handle then, it becomes very difficult to handle the hot metal parts. In that, you may have to wear gloves to prevent your hands from the damage due to the heat of the hot metal.
The jaws of the pliers are of many sizes. These jaws can exert a lot of pressure and are made considering different applications. Now the surface of the jaws plays a crucial role. Slipping will cause when the surface of the pliers is smooth. So, to avoid slipping, the pliers’ surface must be textured.
Sometimes pliers are created only for cutting the wires and such pliers are called the diagonal pliers. While handling the jewellery and other delicate workpieces, it is important to use the softer layer of aluminium, brass or plastic.
Important uses of pliers:
Most of us think about the pliers when we need to cut the wires. But, in the electrical industries and other workshops pliers are the basic requirement of the operator.
Pliers are used for pulling wires as well as objects
They are also used for splicing, bending and tuning,
Most of the times people mainly use pliers for removing the insulation of the wire.
Depending on the plier type, each of the pliers has its applications. But most of them are used for cutting wires or holding metal parts.
There are many types of pliers. Some of them are listed below:
Slip joint pliers
Lineman’s pliers
Diagonal pliers
Pincers
Round nose pliers
Hand crimp tool
Bent nose pliers
Needle nose pliers
Slip Joint Pliers:
These pliers are used in the applications where gripping is required.
They are also used for regular applications like cutting wire, lopping wire.
Some of the times, slip join pliers are often find their use in the crimping of metal.
Diagonal Pliers
Diagonal pliers are used in the cutting application related to wires. They are also used for the cutting of the small pins.
Mostly the wires made up of bronze, brass, iron, aluminium are used for the cutting of the diagonal pliers.
Round Nose Pliers
Round nose pliers are used by electricians to make the loops inside the wire.
Jewellers also use such kind of pliers in the jewellery related work.
Their hardened and tempered jaws play a crucial role in industrial applications.
Hand Crimp Tool
This type of plier is used to join two metal pieces together by deforming one or both. They are deformed as such that one hold the other. The deformity or bend process done to join them is called Crimp.
Bent Nose Pliers
Bend nose pliers are used for the picking of the screws of the small size.
Often times they are very beneficial for bending of wires.
Needle Nose Pliers
These pliers are used in the applications where very small space or area is there.
They are used for bending wires, holding fittings as well as for placing wires.
Lineman’s Pliers
Lineman’s pliers are commonly used by the electricians. They are used for the cutting of the wire or for removing the wire insulation.
Electricians used such pliers for the purpose of twisting the wire.
Safety Precautions:
Following are the safety measures that you should take while using pliers:
Check the pliers’ wire cutting capacity as well as all other features before taking it for a given application. While selecting the perfect plier for your application, you must have required knowledge about all the types of the pliers.
Always cut the wire with the plier at a right angle.
Some people often use the hammer on the plier for cutting wires of greater thickness. This activity may damage your hand as well as the plier. So, never use the hammer on the plier nor use the plier as a hammer.
Also, never keep the plier in a location where the temperature is very high. If the plier is kept in a region of excessive temperature then, the tool’s properties will change. In this way, plier will not become useful for cutting the wires or for other applications.
If you want to increase the lifespan of the plier then, maintain it properly. You must clean it regularly as well as it should be oiled at regular intervals of time.
You must not use pliers for tightening of the nuts.
In this way, we have just discovered pliers, the history behind them, their types as well as uses of Pliers. We hope that you like this article. If you have any queries then, just comment below.
