Bolt Cutters

Bolt cutters, sometimes called bolt croppers, are a tool used to cut bolts, chains, padlocks, rebar and wire mesh, built with long handles and short blades joined by compound hinges that multiply the force applied at the handles into far greater force at the cutting edge; a typical pair can generate roughly 20 kilonewtons of cutting force from about 250 newtons of hand force. Blades are ground in several styles depending on the job, including an angled cut with the head set at 25 to 35 degrees for easier insertion around a target, a center cut with both blades equidistant from the tool's faces, a shear cut with blades that pass each other like scissors, and a clipper cut with blades flush against one face. Bolt cutters are commonly sold in lengths from about 12 to 42 inches measured from the jaw tip to the end of the handle, and versions with fiberglass handles are made lighter and safer for cutting live electrical wire during rescue work. Beyond their practical trade uses, bolt cutters became a recognizable protest tool at the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp, where demonstrators used them to cut through the perimeter fencing around a British air base.