Real Tools. No Jokes. I bought the Knipex Cobra ES for one job I had in mind: roller chain master links. I work industrial maintenance, and chain is a big part of the day. In my Knipex top five, the Cobra ES came in as my latest favorite. Here’s what I’ve found running it at work and on the vise.
Disclosure: I buy most of my own tools, and sometimes companies send me items to test. Nobody has ever paid me for an opinion. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Quick Verdict: Knipex Cobra ES 87 51 180
The roller chain master-link tool I was looking for, and maybe the handiest plier size I own.
- Pops master-link clips on and off in one squeeze
- Slim, long-reach jaws work sideways around guards
- 7-1/4 in angled head: handy size, not unwieldy
- Twin Grip style top jaw plus a new wire holder
- Too small for 1 in pipe and up
- Not for nuts and bolt heads much past about 3/4 in
- Sideways, you get less grip on the chain post
- Push button: wasn’t sure at first, second nature now
Best For: Roller chain work, small pipe, tight spots
What It Is
This is the Knipex Cobra ES, model 87 51 180, at 7-1/4 inches. It has an angled head, a Twin Grip style top jaw, and a new extra: a little wire holder piece built in. I’ll admit I don’t remember what “ES” stands for. I thought I knew, and now I don’t.
It uses the Knipex push-button adjustment. When I first got it, I wasn’t sure I’d like the push button. But nearly everything else I carry from Knipex has it too, including the pliers wrench and the Twin Grip. At this point I’m, well, institutionalized in the Knipex push button. It’s second nature now.
The Size: I Was Overshooting With 10 Inch Pliers
This might be the handiest plier size I own. I’d been thinking about getting one around this size anyway. Looking back, I was overshooting with all my 10 inch stuff, and the smaller range is a lot more useful day to day. For size comparison, my Knipex Alligator is the 250, a 10 inch plier. It’s my most-used all-around plier, but for chain clips it’s a little unwieldy. The 10 inch can still do the job, and it works well on bigger chain like your 120. But once I saw the Cobra ES, I figured it might be the way to go for most chain. After using it, I think it is.
The Job I Bought It For: Roller Chain Master Links
In the video I’m working on a scrap piece of number 60 roller chain on the vise. Here’s how it goes on a real repair.
Set up over the sprocket if you can. In my opinion, the best place to put chain back together is over the sprocket. You’ve got a tooth here and a tooth there, and the chain lines up and holds itself, so you aren’t trying to hold one end up and match it. You can’t always do that, though. Say the chain broke in the middle, between two sprockets, and it’s timed with other chains that have dogs pushing lumber through. You don’t want to move that chain back to the sprocket. You have to build right where you are, tough it out, and hopefully have a helper to line it up.
Putting the clip on. The master link goes in, then the side plate, and sometimes you have to squeeze it. Then the clip. A groove in the top jaw grabs the round post, and the bottom jaw catches the clip. Line it up, squeeze, and it pops on. You put it on and pop it, and it’s on. No problem, no big deal.
Taking it off. It works in reverse, too. There are two grooves you have to sit down in. The top jaw rests on the post, the bottom jaw hits the bottom of the clip, and it pushes the clip right off. When chain fails, the master link is a lot of the time the first place it pops, so you’ll use this both ways.
When you’re stuck working sideways. On the vise everything is easy. On a machine, they put guards in the damnedest places, sometimes where you’d have to take the whole machine apart to get the guard off. The Cobra ES works sideways too. You don’t get the same grab on the post, but the jaws are slim enough and long enough to get in there and do it.
What I used before. I used to do this with a screwdriver, a pocket knife, or my Knipex needle-nose pliers, and I always thought I was doing good. The needle-nose works, but it’s more unwieldy because you’re out at the end of those long jaws. The Cobra ES gets you right up close on the clip. I loved it right away. It’s exactly what I was looking for.
Pipe, Nuts and Bolts
It’s not just a chain tool, but know its limits. It’s probably fine on 1/2 in pipe. For 1 inch pipe and up, you need the bigger stuff. On nuts and bolt heads, I wouldn’t go much past about 3/4 inch with a plier this size, or you won’t get the right grip to hold them while you back off or run up. Honestly, I hardly use it for that anyway. Roller chain is where it earns its keep.
Shop Tip: No Chain Breaker on You?
Here’s one from the end of the video. If you’re on roller chain without time to run to the shop for the chain breaker, and you’ve got a grinder with you, grind the pin heads down flat. Then take a little punch and drive the pin out. Taking the peened head off first makes it go a lot quicker. It’ll get you through the day.
Where It Fits in My Knipex Lineup
In my top 5 Knipex tools, the Cobra ES is the newest favorite, next to the forged wire strippers, the Alligator 250, the pliers wrench, and the Twin Grip. The Twin Grip is my go-to for broken bolts and rounded studs. I started using the Twin Grip on roller chain too.
How It Stacks Up
| Job | Cobra ES 87 51 180 (7-1/4 in) | Alligator 250 (10 in) | Knipex needle-nose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master-link clips | Grooved top jaw, pops on and off | Can do it, a little unwieldy | Works, but you’re out at the end of long jaws |
| Bigger chain (120 and up) | – | Works good | – |
| Pipe | About 1/2 in. Go bigger for 1 in and up | Pipe joints | – |
| Behind guards | Slim, long reach, works sideways | – | Reaches, less control |
The Verdict
If you work on roller chain, the Knipex Cobra ES is the master-link tool I’d been hunting for. It grabs the post, pops the clip on or off, and gets in where guards make life hard. It’s sized right, too. It made me realize I’d been overshooting with 10 inch pliers. Just don’t buy it to be your pipe plier for 1 inch and up, or a bolt-head wrench for big hardware. That’s what bigger pliers are for. For me, it went straight into my Knipex top five.