CMS-Japanese Motorcycle Supply Parts

Tsunoda Flush Cut Cable Tie Cutter Review - KBN-150


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Tsunoda make a set of flush cut pliers specifically for dealing with cable ties - the KBN-150 (available on eBay US, eBay CA, eBay AU and Amazon). Here's my review of this niche tool. Mine arrived presented so:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

Closeup of the text on the front and back:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

The front attempts to draw your attention to the fact that it's a 2-in-1 tool - with teeth to pull the cable tie tight and a flush cutting component for making sure that there's no sharp edge left on the cable tie. The cable tie capacity is for ties up to 8mm wide.

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

A closeup of the rated cutting capacity:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

That's 1.6mm of soft iron, 2.6mm of copper, 2.0mm of brass, 4.0mm of plastic and 5.5mm² of stranded copper wire.

The back also mentions the KBN150's hardness - 42 to 50HRC for the body and 56-62HRC for the induction-hardened edge. Out of the packaging, the blue is quite vivid:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

The handle coating is PVC.

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

The pliers are 158mm end to end, 52mm across the handle at the widest point and weigh 135gm. The head shape is notably different to most other pliers:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

Don't put them upside down on your wife's favourite polished wooden tabletop as the pointy top edge can scratch soft wood easily! The hinge has very tight tolerances and the movement feels quality:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

The jaws align nicely and cut well:

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

Here is a review of the Japanese-made Tsunoda KBN-150 or KBN150, a cable tie cutter - or a rather niche flush cutting set of pliers - being reviewed today.

So, how do they perform in real life? After cutting myself on a half dozen cable tie ends in one day a while back I decided I'd get a flush cutter for fixing that and the Tsunoda offering stood out for just that purpose with the grippy teeth on the back of the head. Turns out that they're not just a gimmick, the tool really IS perfect for working with cable ties, though it has served admirably for the past few weeks as a general purpose flush cutter as well. They're rated to 10AWG wire, too (5.5mm²), which is not always easy to find in a flush cutter - around here, anyway.

After about a month of near-daily use the cutting edge seems basically unchanged - though about 80% of the time it's cutting plastic, the remainder thin steel and copper wire. I'll update if/when anything changes with it's cutting ability.

So, it allows you to tie ties tighter than you easily could with just your hands and means that they're cut flush and can't slice you open down the track. Added bonus? Feels like a quality tool and is made in Japan by a reputable company, so I am expecting a good long usable life out of these.

If you work with cable ties a lot these are definitely worth a place in your kit. Find them on eBay US, eBay CA, eBay AU and Amazon.



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