SPRO has vastly expanded their product lineup in the last couple years. Known by many for the Dean Rojas Bronzeye Frogs and Little John CrankBaits, SPRO has recently added tools, rods, reels, terminal tackle, tackle boxes, rain gear, flashlights, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and more. One of their newer products that I’ve been testing for the last couple months is a set of the SPRO 6” Stainless Steel Split Ring Pliers— these things are awesome. Let’s take a closer look.
SPECIFICATIONS
The SPRO Stainless Steel Split Ring Pliers serve as a pretty great tool for the bass angler. With this one tool, you have a set of split ring pliers, a braid cutter, crimping tool and an effective set of pliers for turning things and unhooking fish.
The pliers themselves are made of stainless steel. The handles have a non-slip grip and the two cutters are super sharp. The crimping tool has multiple slots for use with different terminal tackle. Midway towards the nose of the pliers, you’ll notice teeth that can be used to grip and turn things. At the very tip you’ll find the one large tooth for opening split rings.
STORAGE SOLUTIONS
The pliers come with a coiled lanyard and carabiner so that they can be clipped onto your life vest, tackle box or belt loop. There’s also a sheath with a swiveling belt clip that can either be worn on your waist, zip-tied to the pedestal seat of your boat or attached to your kayak.
CUTTERS
The cutters on these pliers are top notch. They clip flouro and mono easily and slice through braid like butter. I tested them one last time while writing this review, and they still clip 15-pound braid without even having to pull on the pliers. They cut clean through 65-pound with just a little tug.
SPLIT RING SEPARATOR
The tooth at the end of these pliers works great for opening split rings. You can use these pliers to add a split ring to anything, but this function is most commonly used to swap out treble hooks. If you’ve ever tried to do this without a set of split ring pliers, you know it’s easy to mess up a split ring with plain needle nose pliers and using your fingernail is a great way to jack one of those up too. Having a quality set of split ring pliers in the boat or your tackle bag is a smart move.
ABOUT AS RUST-PROOF AS IT GETS
I’ve had a set of these pliers for around two months. I was really careful with them in the beginning, making sure to take them out of the boat each time I got home, or at minimum throw them into one of the storage compartments. After one such trip, I tossed them in the middle compartment of my boat only to find them sitting in a sauna a few days later after a heavy rain.
My boat sits on a bit of a forward incline in our driveway and water can get into the compartments if a lot of rain comes down quickly. I was pretty aggravated, but I was glad to see that the pliers weren’t rusted. After that, I’ll admit, I was a little less careful with the pliers and actually left them out most of the time.
They even got left in the bottom of my boat after a fishing trip. It was dry that day, so I didn’t think much of it. However, rain came again while the boat was stored at the house and they sat in a puddle of water for a couple days. After two months of use and all that abuse, there’s one little spec of discoloration on one of the cutters—that’s it to this day. I can’t even tell for sure if it’s rust or not.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I have been wildly impressed by the quality of these pliers. Yes, they are labeled as stainless steel; so they shouldn’t rust. However, so were dozens of other pliers and tools I’ve had over the years—most of which rusted or corroded quickly. Not the SPRO Stainless Steel Split Ring Pliers though. They have survived a torture testing that I really didn’t intend to put them through, but I am glad I did. I don’t know how they’ll hold up in saltwater conditions, but for the freshwater angler, I don’t think you can mess these up.
At $23.49, you get what you pay for—and even a bit more in my opinion. The cutters are great, the split ring function is effective for swapping out trebles and these can be used in a pinch to turn a nut or unhook a fish. Above all, they are durable. The cutters hold up well and these pliers don’t rust or corrode. The grip is sure and the storage options are versatile. An easy product to recommend if you’re in the marker for a versatile set of pliers.
