Xacto X75170 X-tra Hands with Magnifier
- Dual alligator clamp for flexible and accurate work
- Holds work in any position for modeling and hobbies
- Assortment of knives, blades and tools for cutting, whittling, sawing and carving. Wooden chest.
- Two times magnifier for close, exacting work
Product Description
The X-TRA Hands dual alligator clamps with 2X magnifying glass by X-ACTO is the perfect solution for any hobbyist or designer who needs a second set of hands to hold onto materials. These clamps will hold your work firmly in position, freeing your hands up for soldering, gluing and other tasks.
The powerful, 2X magnifying glass will help you visualize even the smallest areas of your work. These convenient alligator clamps are great for the following tasks:
Gluing in small or tight spaces
Precision “micro” cutting and trimming
Small detail touches
And more
These sturdy alligator clamps attach securely to almost any rigid surface, allowing you to continue working at your desk or workshop without needing to relocate.
X-ACTO office tools and supplies are crafted with the same quality and attention to detail as the legendary X-ACTO knife. Our commitment to quality and performance assures tha… More >>
Xacto X75170 X-tra Hands with Magnifier
I’ve started in on a project that requires a lot of small soldering work on circuit boards. My hands aren’t very steady so I have difficulty with such small work. Added to that the tiny tiny color bands and markings on components were giving me a head ache trying to decifer them with my unaided eye. This gizmo seemed like the perfect solution to my challenges.
It definately does a great job of holding small components steady for soldering and the adjustability of the arm positions works well. My only complaint is that the magnification is very low. Myabe 2X at best I think. Fortunately my vision just needed a very small boost to help identify the parts without getting eye strain so it works o.k. for me. If you can’t see small stuff at all to start with this product may not provide enough magnification to help.
Overall the construction seems to be sturdy and as noted by others the base is good and heavy for its size.
PROS:
-Heavy (So it wont tip over)
-Magnifying Glass
-Grippy base
-Cheap
Cons
- Adjustment isnt easy as pie.
When I first ordered this, I was wondering how on earth it would stand up without falling down. Surprisingly the stand is very heavy for how small it is. You can arrange this little guy in every any any direction you want. If you plan on doing any hobby work like soldering or model building, this investment will pay for itself as soon as you use it once.
As noted by some other reviewers, one wonders how it can hold anything, but it is heavier than you would think and does the job just fine. The price is right too. After looking in hardware stores at the model without the magnifying glass at a much higher price, I am glad I found it here on Amazon! I can highly recommend it!
The base of this product is nice and heavy and the arms stay put when you move them. One nice feature is the alligator clips can be replaced with just about anything that can be cut to fit the clamp hole (including other clips when they eventually wear out). The only downside for me is that my project is a bit bigger (doing wireframes for an art piece) so the cross bar is a bit short for that. Also I wish the bottom had a clamp so I could clamp it to the edge of the desk so it could hold more weight without tipping over. Right now I would guess it can hold about 2 lb (unsupported) with the arms outstretched. On the bright side, it wasn’t too hard to fashion my own clamp since the bottom is flat.
OK quality, nothing special, screws a bit hard to tighten, the magnifying glass is useless, it’s just too small, I didn’t need it anyway. It works well otherwise, the foot is heavy and stable enough for most small jobs and the clips align properly and hold parts well.