PolarLab Slice Nippers

I was fortunate enough to get some time to chat with John Rauscher- who was a vendor at Armorcon, is a fellow Review Crew member, and all around good guy. While I was spending some well-spent cash picking up some tools from his table, he handed this small package over for me to review for AMPS. It was a Kickstarter that was successful and while their website does not allow for purchasing these at this time, you can grab them up from John personally. I couldn't wait to get home from Armorcon to give them a try.

Inside the well packed plastic package is a very lightweight set of nippers, along with some extra washers, a spare blade, and an allen wrench for switching out the blades. The tool is noticeably light- I mean I have nearly a dozen pairs of nippers and these are lighter than anything I own. According to the Kickstarter video, the 3D printed handles can be switched out- but I don't see any options available on the website. I did read elsewhere that the files are available to download and print your own handles though if you do that sort of thing. They did just finish fulfilling all of their Kickstarter obligations though so it might end up being available again there in the future. There are two blade options you can purchase depending on what you are cutting using their dual replacement blade system:

• BA-24 Blade: Optimized for softer materials like acrylic and plastic.
• BA-32 Blade: Designed for tougher materials, such as electrical or metal wires.

Blades are made from Japanese tool steel and the single-edged design ensures precise cuts without compressing or damaging the material, making the SLICE nipper a versatile tool for a wide range of applications. The fact that you can take out the dull blades and replace with new ones means it can be a sustainable tool that you use for years to come.

Let's get on to testing it out! First I tried out cutting some spare track links from the Takom M1 Super Sherman and while cutting was ridiculously easy, there were some noticeable nubs remaining...

I tried cutting some of the clear periscopes from the same kit and had no issues whatsoever- so I was puzzled by the inconsistencies. I then had a thought and had a close look at the nippers and the two replacement blades that came in the package and realized that I had the BA-32 blade installed as a default. So I used the included allen wrench and loosened the opposite way I am used to as per the warning on the package- righty is loosey! Switched out for what looked to be the more delicate blade- and had much better results. 

There were still some nubs after cutting them off the sprue- but I really think that was due to the fact you can't get these in quite as well in the tight spaces as you can with narrower tips like the Zoukei-Mura nippers I have. Once off the sprue, I was able to clip the nubs off just as close as the other ones do. I then reinstalled the more durable blade to try out the wire- these nipped through thin electrical wire with no issues and no crimping on the ends that I could see. I tried a thicker gauge copper wire and it was not able to cut through and left a small notch in the blade- so if you are looking to cut thicker gauge wire than size 28, you might want to use more durable cutters.

Conclusion

I liked how light these were to handle and how cleanly and easily they sliced through sprues of varying thicknesses. The fact you can switch out the blades as they dull means that longevity-wise, with care these will last you a long time. They are not so good in the tight spaces on smaller parts- so you may need a second clip on some parts off the sprue, but they are excellent when you get those kits with thicker sprue gates as they slice much easier than your more expensive sets and if they get damaged, just a quick turn of the screw will get you a new sharp blade. While the website https://polarlab.us/ doesn't allow you to buy the nippers yet, you can get replacement blades there. However, your better option is contacting John from Boomers' Books and Empire Models directly as he is a friend to AMPS and you'll be supporting a small business to boot- John can be contacted via email:  boomers@gsinet.net

Highly Recommended for Beginner to Advanced builders.

Thanks goes out to John Rauscher at Boomers' Books and Empire Models for this review sample.

Reviewed by Michael Reeves

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