Economist Writing Every Day

My rave product for this year is “Fiskars 9 Inch Serrated Titanium Nitride Shop Shears”, available from Amazon here. I randomly bought these scissors a few years ago for a relative, and then realized how useful they were. So, I got a pair for our household, and it became our go-to scissors. When we lost that pair a few months ago, we felt the loss keenly enough to go and buy a replacement.

What is so great about them? Unlike some thick, heavy, or stubby heavy-duty shears, these have the feel of regular scissors, with fairly long, narrow blades. The handles are fairly substantial, and very comfortably contoured to the hand/thumb. The real magic is in the blades. They are sharp, with a very hard titanium nitride coating. Also, they have fine serrations in the cutting edge, that tend to grip the material in place as you are cutting. They will set you back about $24. Made in China, of course.

Two images from the Amazon site are:

With 935 ratings, the average rating on Amazon is a stratospheric 4.9/5.  Reviewers find themselves reaching for superlatives:

We have an embroidery shop and find regular scissors dull quickly. These do not. They cut through everything!

The best heavy duty scissors. Period… These pups will handle any cutting job even remotely appropriate for this tool.

My wife has multiple pair of shears that she uses on her sewing table. She would not miss one pair if I were to borrow them for the shop, right? Well, that did not work. I’m in purgatory for that, for sure. So… I bought these. These shears are MY shears. I get to use them for all of those things in the shop that need to be cut. No, I don’t cut asphalt roofing shingles and corrugated steel roofing with them, but I cut rough and heavy and coarse and dirty stuff that needs cut with the accuracy of using shears. Stuff where a razor knife is not quite adequate. You know the stuff I mean. Ladies, do the old man a favor… and do yourself a really good deed… and buy a pair of these for him. He’ll hopefully not be using yours any more.

The best pair of shears I’ve ever used… I swear, you could split the atom with these things. Matter simply parts at their touch. I’ve been using them daily for all my shearing needs for the last six months, and they’re as sharp and perfect as the day I received them.

Well, you get the picture. We use them for food cutting in the kitchen, cutting cloth, cardboard, thin sheet metal, wire, etc. They can also handle ordinary cutting of paper, although they do leave fine teeth marks.

Honorable Mention: Leatherman Micra Tool

Another cutting implement I find very useful is the Leatherman Micra Tool. At about 2 inches long all folded up, it is small enough to easily fit in a pocket or purse, though just a bit heavy to hang on a keychain. It has small but very capable scissors (can cut fingernails well) ; a very sharp little knife ; a diamond-grit file for nails, etc.; some light-duty screwdrivers; tweezers (not the best); and an old-fashioned bottle-cap opener. Also, it has ruler markings, which I have used on occasion. So many items now come packaged in very tough, clear plastic covering that you can’t peel or rip with your fingers. It is great to be able to whip out this Micra and quickly slice through that plastic. The quality of the workmanship is so good that anyone who appreciates tools will feel good about it.

This is an easy win as a present. If someone has no use for it, they can easily regift it. Once upon a time when I was a project leader, I bought one for everyone as a celebration for reaching milestone. I got them from Leatherman, engraved with the project name. They were a hit.

The only downside is the price. I am used to getting these for like $25 or so. But when I just looked on Amazon, I see the new price has jumped to $57 (though you can get them cheaper at the Leatherman.com site). That seems kind of steep. These are made in the U.S.A.  You can purchase Chinese knock-offs for much less, though the quality may vary.

There is, however, a lively market for used Micra tools. Below are two images for one for sale on eBay, for $13.00 plus $4.75 shipping. If you are getting one for yourself or say a son/father/brother or buddy, getting a high quality tool with a few scratches and no packaging may be fine. Other recipients may not appreciate a used item.