Shock Grippers

[MAGNUMB]

Was looking at 4 different shock shaft grippers. Any thoughts?

Grid RC Shock Shaft Tool for $19- Uses screws to clamp instead of hand grip.

RDRP Gripper $29- Looks like a high quality piece.

Team Losi Shock Shaft Pliers $25. Nice size handle and might not need as much force.

ProTek Shock Tool $25. Also has pillow ball tool along with shock body holder, but looks a little small and hard to use.

Right now I'm leaning towards the Losi or Grid RC....

[JatoTheRipper]

I have the ProTek and I'm a big fan. I like the it has the tool to help install and remove hollow/pivot balls.

The Grid RC one will be a pain to use.

The Losi one does shock shafts and that's it.

[Natedog]

Good analysis Jato, I also bought the ProTek after looking at quite a few.

[ROWDY RACING]

Yeah the protek is bitchin titties.

[svt923]

Those Protek shock pliers are some of the best money I have ever spent in RC.

[84yoda]

I like the tekno one, has everything you need.

Edit: part number TKR1115. The 4mm shock shaft part works good for holding links while threading rod ends on.

[EeePee]

Paper towel and a pair of pliers or needle nose? Worked perfect all my life.

[84yoda]

Originally Posted by EeePee

Paper towel and a pair of pliers or needle nose? Worked perfect all my life.

It isn't the 90s anymore!

[blumaro]

yeah racing makes a nice pair also

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by 84yoda

I like the tekno one, has everything you need.

Edit: part number TKR1115. The 4mm shock shaft part works good for holding links while threading rod ends on.

The Tekno one does look nice because it does shock bodies as well, but it's typical Tekno in that the price is way too high.

Originally Posted by EeePee

Paper towel and a pair of pliers or needle nose? Worked perfect all my life.

Why do things the ghetto way when you can get the right tool that will last a lifetime for $25?

[cmbscx10]

Originally Posted by JatoTheRipper

The Tekno one does look nice because it does shock bodies as well, but it's typical Tekno in that the price is way too high.


Why do things the ghetto way when you can get the right tool that will last a lifetime for $25?

After building my last set of shocks on my Tekno MT410 EEpee's way I will get either the ProTek or Tekno's.

With a little 5min worth of searching you can find Tekno's for $.50 more than ProTeks.

Having owned my first Tekno RC and using various parts from them on other builds I agree that Tekno product is more expensive than a comparable product. With a little research some items are not or at all more expensive. I can say from experience that in the case of Tekno it is definitely justified.

https://www.hobbies4life.com/tekno-p...product/145101

[MAGNUMB]

I've done the paper towel thing for 30 years and it always makes me cringe a little....never knew they made these. I ended up grabbing the Tamiya one as it had all the features as the Protek but was a few bucks cheaper and also had a ballcap holder.
Should make changing out pistons a lot easier at the track. Getting back into onroad and going to try out the new TAO7 kit.

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by cmbscx10

After building my last set of shocks on my Tekno MT410 EEpee's way I will get either the ProTek or Tekno's.

With a little 5min worth of searching you can find Tekno's for $.50 more than ProTeks.

Having owned my first Tekno RC and using various parts from them on other builds I agree that Tekno product is more expensive than a comparable product. With a little research some items are not or at all more expensive. I can say from experience that in the case of Tekno it is definitely justified.

https://www.hobbies4life.com/tekno-p...product/145101

They're OOS at that site, but if you can find the Tekno pliers for the same price I'd go for those.

Originally Posted by MAGNUMB

I've done the paper towel thing for 30 years and it always makes me cringe a little....never knew they made these. I ended up grabbing the Tamiya one as it had all the features as the Protek but was a few bucks cheaper and also had a ballcap holder.
Should make changing out pistons a lot easier at the track. Getting back into onroad and going to try out the new TAO7 kit.

I've used the paper towel method and I've also used pliers wrapped in electrical tape. One time it was either the paper towel or the electrical tape that had a tear in it and it screwed up a shock shaft. At that point I told myself to stop being cheap and "splurge" on a $25 set of pliers and I wish I had done it sooner.

[ROWDY RACING]

Originally Posted by EeePee

Paper towel and a pair of pliers or needle nose? Worked perfect all my life.

Put down the natty and drink mead old timer.

[EeePee]

Originally Posted by ROWDY RACING

Put down the natty and drink mead old timer.

It's too expensive.

[RCMFMaxxMan]

If you have to use paper towels or electrical tape you are doing it wrong. And personally, I don't like unitaskers (tools that only do one thing) unless it is the only way to really do the job right and efficiently. I never see myself owning any sort of shock shaft pliers or clamp at any point in the future. What do I do then? Wire cutters. Everyone should have a pair in the tool box and no additional materials are needed to use. Grip the shock shaft right above the threads. The sharp edge grips surprisingly well. Thread the shock end on. The gripped area is low enough that it should never come in contact with the o-rings in the shock. I rarely even notice any marring anyway. Some shocks even have flat spots at the end of the shaft. I still use wire cutters for these since needle nose pliers will scratch much more area (just making it look ugly) than the thin edge of the wire cutters. If you are a tool junkie, buy the shock shaft tool. If you are a minimalist and value efficiency but still want to do the job right, try your wire cutters. If you don't have some already... well, that is a tool you should buy.

[C*H*U*D]

Originally Posted by MAGNUMB

...Getting back into onroad and going to try out the new TAO7 kit.

That's my next car as well. I've been playing more with on-road stuff lately and changing shock oil has become a routine now. I guess I should step into 2017 and get a pair of pliers.

[nightcrawler48]

Originally Posted by RCMFMaxxMan

If you have to use paper towels or electrical tape you are doing it wrong. And personally, I don't like unitaskers (tools that only do one thing) unless it is the only way to really do the job right and efficiently. I never see myself owning any sort of shock shaft pliers or clamp at any point in the future. What do I do then? Wire cutters. Everyone should have a pair in the tool box and no additional materials are needed to use. Grip the shock shaft right above the threads. The sharp edge grips surprisingly well. Thread the shock end on. The gripped area is low enough that it should never come in contact with the o-rings in the shock. I rarely even notice any marring anyway. Some shocks even have flat spots at the end of the shaft. I still use wire cutters for these since needle nose pliers will scratch much more area (just making it look ugly) than the thin edge of the wire cutters. If you are a tool junkie, buy the shock shaft tool. If you are a minimalist and value efficiency but still want to do the job right, try your wire cutters. If you don't have some already... well, that is a tool you should buy.

Obviously you are not a member of the old adage "he who dies with the most tools wins" club.

Seriously though, having worked with tools almost my whole life and having wasted more money than I hate to think about by using cheap or the wrong tools, I now try to take advantage of the things people manufacture to make the job as easy and painless as possible. I realize there are probably as many opinions about this as there are members here. Just my thoughts.

[Hal]

A good set of shock pliers are worth the $$$. In a pinch I would put a piece of rubber tubing on the jaws of my needle nose pliers. I am a tool whore though

[BDR]

Don't be a pack of girls

Just long nosed pliers just above the shock threads works a treat, ya not ever going to compress them that far to damage the orings