There are certain tools that are considered nice-to-have items right up until they are necessary. Then you're screwed. Retaining ring pliers, or snap ring pliers, are one of them. I've gotten away with using sharp picks, small screwdrivers and needle-nose pliers to remove and install snap rings for a lot of years, but I've also wasted way too much time in the process. Five minutes of fussing and searching for just the right swear words with "alternate methods" is replaced by five seconds of elegance with the right tool. There's also less risk of scratching a part that shouldn't be scratched, or impaling oneself when the wrong tool slips. And plenty of times, it simply isn't possible to get the ring in and out of where it needs to go without the right tools.
The guys I share shop space with have tried to get by with cheap retaining ring pliers. Sometimes they work, but there have been some that simply snapped their tips off when it mattered, at 1:37 a.m. Life is too short for that.
The cheapest retaining ring pliers work only in one direction: inside or outside. For every size and style, two pliers may be required. A small step up allows the user to convert from inside to outside by disassembling the pivot and reassembling it, which works fine until your hands are a little oily and you drop the tiny pivot and it bounces into the darkest, deepest corner of your shop behind the work bench and raw material stacks. I recently discovered what is, as far as I have been able to find, the Mercedes-Benz of retaining ring pliers: Milbar Cam-Lock convertible retaining ring pliers, so slick they prompted me to finally fill that void in my tool box.
Milbar convertible retaining ring pliers convert from inside to outside use in a few seconds simply by turning a knob. A safety button prevents the mechanism from rotating under load. Each tool shows made-in-the-USA quality, fit and finish. Handles feature a cushioned grip for comfort. Milbar's range of sizes allows the pliers to work with internal and external rings from 1/4 in. to 2 in. Tip diameters include .038-, .070- and 0.090-in., with 18* and 90* angles allowing one to access even hard-to-reach locations. Kits with multiple pliers include a custom molded impact-resistant storage case.
I've gotten along without them so long because retaining ring pliers aren't used very often. I have used Milbar retaining ring pliers for only one job so far, installing the Bimmerworld solid brake caliper guides on Project 325, but they made that task so much easier and faster, it is almost worth it already. It's a good feeling to know I should be able to handle any retaining ring I may ever run into.
