bone cutters

[jungliztkruger]

i am looking to get a set of bone cutters and would like to see if anyone has a set for sale before i order a set off of fosters smith. obviously i need surgical stainless steel. just wondering if there is a cheaper set out there before i order(they dont have to be brand new just not rusty)

[MechanicalEngineer]

Toenail clippers (the big shear ones) are good for fragging corals (you can get them in the healthcare section of most stores).  You can also get these at Sears or Harbor Freight (they aren't called bone cutters though...just look for them with the dykes and such.)

[jungliztkruger]

there is a harbor freight store not even 2 minutes from my house but i didnt want to use just anything on the corals. what would they be called again ?

[MechanicalEngineer]

Stainless steel is the best choice since it won't rust as quickly (but it'll still rust!)  Dykes (diagonal cutting pliers) are inexpensive and easy to use.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40699

End cutter pliers are nice to have too sometimes:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=2454

Then there are cable cutters, some can get to be ridiculously overkill:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40507

That should be enough to get you started.  Just look around those aisles.

[lazylivin]

If you are using them to frag SPS corals I have found it better to break rather then cut. The reason I say this is cutting will actually crush where you make the cut. If you break it will be clean and always break just below the polyps which will heal the quickest. Both methods will work I have just found that broken frags seem to encrust pretty quick and cut frags usually die off a bit at the base before they start encrusting.

If you are not using for fragging SPS then disregard my post. 

Stainless Steel will usually last quite a while if you rinse in fresh water and dry throughly.

[jungliztkruger]

yes this will mostly be for sps. i already have a set of dykes so i might give those a try. i might try the breaking as well. i have a few frags from jacks that are on ridiculously large plastic plugs and i would like to do away with that. im somewhat torn between leaving the top of the plastic plug on the bottom of the frag or cutting it right at the bottom and maybe seeing if the little left on the plug will grow another frag.

[MechanicalEngineer]

I've found that Seriotopora (birdsnest) can be quite sensitive to hand-breaking.  The skeleton seems too delicate to handle pressure from a large area (like a hand.)  Definitely use dykes on that.  Otherwise, yes, acroporas and montiporas do well by snapping them.

[Zeppelin]

I got a nice pair of bone cutters from Chief Reef at the fall CORA frag swap.  Nice quality, slightly curved blades with a nice tip for cutting even smaller sps. 

[Bigmoo]

A while back I was looking into getting a "frag kit" and could not bring myself to pay foster and smith that amount of money. After running around and looking at medical stores I was told by one of them to try Wright States medical store for students, I have yet to look but they carry all surgical tools I beleive. Just a matter of able to buy them without being a med student.

[jungliztkruger]

i'll just walk in wearing a hannibal mask... im sure i'll get great service lol

[verper]

I got a nice pair of bone cutters from Chief Reef at the fall CORA frag swap.  Nice quality, slightly curved blades with a nice tip for cutting even smaller sps. 

I have those also and they are nice.

[Velvet64]

A while back I was looking into getting a "frag kit" and could not bring myself to pay foster and smith that amount of money. After running around and looking at medical stores I was told by one of them to try Wright States medical store for students, I have yet to look but they carry all surgical tools I beleive. Just a matter of able to buy them without being a med student.

   My husband goes to school at wright state, he is not a med student...i can ask him the rules for buying stuff at the store if you want to go there.. he could get it for you if you have to be a student... if you have to be a med student he might know of someone who can get it for you. though i think school store prices are higher than that of store that are not run by the school.

[jungliztkruger]

i have actually tried using the diagonal cuts and they seem to work nicely.   havent braved up enough yet to break anything but the monti with my hands yet

[Bigmoo]

does this mean you will not be wearing that mask for said shopping spree?

[jungliztkruger]

as entertaining as that idea is i think i will have to wait for it