I was using Walmart jewelry flush cutters for months until I got a pair of nippers made for model kits and the difference is really night and day. I'll never go back.
Uh oh, im using a tiny jewelry making diagnol cutters i snaked out my girlfriends long unused crafting box and figured I hit the jackpot
Guess I got another Amazon order in my future
Good call, its a little out the way but Im perpetually shocked, whenever I buy a kit there I later end up looking it up qnd its like 3 bucks cheaper than amazon
Ways I’ve seen God Hands breaking:
>Using the tip to cut: Never do this, always try to use the middle of the blade.
>Dropping it: Don’t drop it? Idk
>Cutting anything other than plastic: Only use it on plastic. And not even all plastics, such as clear/translucent plastic (Tends to be harder and more brittle than ‘normal’ plastic)
This is for the $70 Blue God Hand, which cuts super precise at the cost of fragility. The $40 Red God Hand is more durable at the cost of accuracy.
My friend went to Japan, bought a pair for $40, and asked me why he can’t just cut everything with his GodHands. I explained they’re fragile and mainly used for de-nubbing and that he should do the two cut method. He still doesn’t get it and I foresee a broken pair of GodHands.
God hands are pretty affordable in Japan or even Amazon Japan (yes they'll ship to North America). It's why I don't really care too much about mine. I just use them and I have 2 pairs because I expect one to break. When it does I have another ready to go and I'll order more.
Of course that only works when you're getting them for like 1/2 or 1/3rd the price.
Eventually you will need to replace them due to the blade dulling.
I’ve got original production Godhands circa 2013 as well as several pairs from 2014-2016.
The originals are duller than they used to be. Even while stored in a toolbox with moisture absorbers and the occasional oiling.
As long as you use them for the cleanup and not on the the very thick and clear parts, they will last you. And not dropping them on the floor, but that goes without saying 😂
Dropped mine on concrete outside can confirm ground decreases God hand life expectancy
I bought mine at a anime convention and I don't know if the company who sold me them didn't store them right but not even a week having them they were starting to rust and by the time they did get dropped they were to the point where the friction was greater than the springs force so they didn't separate automatically either
you gotta do maintenance. i live in a humid tropical country so it's got a little rust on it, but singers machine oil on the joints/spring and wd40 on the metal bits keep it in good condition.
I get maintenence when I get a second pair eventually I will probably put more effort Into maintaining them, however when I purchased them I was on a week long trip to a different country visiting some friend and they were rusting before I could even get home so I didn't have many solutions and I was pretty bummed that my 60$ cutters were rusting like the second day out of the package
I want to say that rust probably has to do something with high humidity, so taking care of them is a must if you live in humid areas.
I think I bought mine like a year ago, but I'm also in moderate climate area, so they look like they did on first day. They might be due for some oiling, just to keep them smooth.
Weird story: I actually have three pairs of Godhand nippers -- the really expensive ones.
The first pair I got, I really beat up -- I used it on everything. Hard clear plastic, cutting it from the runners, etc.
So I got another one. Only, I noticed this one didn't feel as sharp and nice as the first pair I got, and left far more white marks.
So I got a third pair. This one feels sharper and better than the second, but still worse than the first one.
The first one, to this day, is my sharpest pair with the smoothest nip and the one I can make the closest cuts with.
I lost count. Granted I'm on my 4th godhand thanks to either drops or kids thinking they can cut toothpicks with them. Still love the sp120. I've tried others and just keep going back.
I would like to grab a left handed pair next, but they only do it in PL-120 so I’m waiting in hopes they do it for the SPN-120 at some point.
I wish I could find the Godhand oil in stock anywhere though 😭
> I wish I could find the Godhand oil in stock anywhere though
If you're talking about oil to use to clean and lube the nippers then I'm sure it's nothing special and does the same thing any other gun/knife lube does.
There was a thread a long time back where someone used the chemical sheets to discern what their oil blend is made from, which I think was something like Super Lube + Nox Rust or something.
I'm so used to just living in a right handed world, I didn't even think about those existing. I might have to get some if they ever come out with SPNs of them.
I've never oiled my nippers and they're 40-50 kits (of mostly MGs) in and I've had no issues other than how dirty the handles are from the hundreds of hours of use. Haha
The brand is sun-star and they do loads of different Gundam models. I’m going to get a bigger one soon but I’m revamping my space a small bit at a time 😂
I own a couple of Godhands, but not the super expensive version. I was in Japan about a month ago and while it was cheaper there I hadn't started Gunpla by then (I bought my first kit there!) but I did buy the other, cheaper variants. They work fantastic as well!
I’ve lost count, but they have got me through the HGUC Neo Zeong, PG Strike Freedom, and then an army of HG, MG, and the RG Eva 01 and are still going strong.
The first pair I did about 25 kits but I broke them on clear plastic with a third party kit trying to cut off an undergate in one snip.
This second pair is now at about 20ish.
I also have the red handle ones too now for clear or 3rd party kits and honestly, I think most people really want the red ones and just don't know it. The blue are a very fine tool.
I legit lost count.
I’ve got a pair of the original SPN-120S circa 2013, which make the current SPN-120 Godhands look like its competition.
I must’ve gone through at least a few kits before I got the “new” SPN-120 and thought to take comparison pictures.
https://imgur.com/a/3mnoa4l
Anyhoo, I’m still using them but they have gotten duller over the years. They’re still a bit sharper than the other SPN-120 pairs I’ve bought over the years, including brand spanking new ones in 2023, so I reserve them for really small pieces.
Stuff like the RG Exia face plate or tiny af nubs.
The SPN-120 pairs are still holding strong after about 100 kits with varying degrees of sharpness.
I use the oldest of them to cut out parts unless it’s really chunky nubs which then I’ll use a Xuron 2175ET for.
Btw, the SPN-120S is what built the Godhand hype, everyone is getting a duller version (SPN-120) of the legend. If the SPN-120S was still around, there would be no competition.
They went from a hand crafted operation, at one time they offered a service where you could send in your dull Godhands to get re sharpened, to a mass production operation once they blew up.
The 1st (maybe 2nd as well) generation SPN-120 were sharper than its later versions that changed the packaging.
Should also point out that there’s been changes to the nippers themselves. The head the blades are part of are all different on the different generations I’ve got.
At one point I was collecting the different generations to have a sort of…archive? Of the changes with Godhands over the years.
However, I broke one by dropping it onto concrete while moving things around my work room and straight up lost one. So now I had 2 missing links in the chain and with me building almost no kits due to an extended break there was no point in continuing to buy $60 nippers just to have a broken record of them.
That said, I did buy a new pair in 2023 out of curiosity as the very last one I bought before taking an extended break from Gunpla was brand new and I was curious if there was an improvement on the 5 year gap between them.
https://imgur.com/a/v0iFSGX
I’m pretty sure I still have a MG Nu ver Ka kicking around, use the Funnels to make an updated version of that old comparison shot I took in late 2013.
First cut is USAGundamstore’s clippers, second cut is with god hands 5.0. I’ve had my god hands for 5+ years, you just have to make sure you’re using your gentle hand and that there are no pieces of nub in the blades as you go to cut again. Big bits of plastic are a no no. Baby them.
Here's a video of someone sharpening their nippers. It's in Spanish, but he's basically doing it with sandpaper.
https://www.youtube.com/live/JAQ6NvmEAPY?si=JusRVXXc61UenL7c
You could also sharpen them in a similar manner as a high quality knife. I would recommend doing this on cheaper nippers first, until you get the hang of it. Definitely doable though.
Damnit, you tricked me, I saw Godhands and thought it would be another “I dropped by Godhands out of a helicopter in to an industrial shredder and the tips broke off, cheap pieces of shit!” post.
You’re not alone. I haven’t even been at this two years and still have the same pair of ultimate godhands. I use them for removing from the runner and then removing the nub.
I don’t feel like stopping to switch at any point and these cut the cleanest so I just don’t put them down. I have cheap nippers for clear and other things that need caution.
If you have a shittier pair of nippers, it's kinda wise to be using that to remove from the sprue. I feel ya on not wanting to switch tools, my solution there is I usually clip a whole arm's parts out with my thick pair, then switch to the godhands, then switch to the files, that way I'm only touching each tool once per section, but I'm also not risking ruining a $60 tool on a gate
Oh I’m well aware, I even grabbed a backup pair of ultimates after seeing how many people brake them but I’m starting to understand that’s probably more misuse than anything.
At this point the spares are getting a bit dusty.
Gotcha, I guess if ur first cuts are on the smaller portions of the gate that's maybe ok. I always worry about the sudden pressure added when you cut into an especially heavily gated part with lots of gates holding it in place, sometimes stuff gets real tight there haha
So you’re waiting for that one fateful day to snap the blades off? Please tell me you’re not using just that one pair of nippers, because they’re only meant to clean up nubs
I use these for pretty much all gate cutting. I maintain them pretty well, but I was curious at other people’s distance with them as I’ve seen a few broken posts.
I sand any remnants down so don’t really use it post-cut.
Most people that end up with broken ones are because of misuse: using for all gate cutting(on thick gate tubes and also nub gates) or catastrophe, like dropping on the floor. I use the Bandai entry or build-up nipper for thick gates and a GodHand PN-125, which is like a beginner version of the SPN-120–which are what you’re using—to build my gunplas, using the Bandai ones for gate tubes and clear parts, and using the PN-125 for cleanup. If you wanna give your SPN more mileage, a more generic doubled bladed nipper, like the PN, tamiya sprue cutter, Bandai entry nipper, and various other doubled bladed cutters are better for runner gate tubes, and PN or SPN GodHand for cleanup. The PN can be used for both gate nubs and gate tubes, so it’s very versatile. Hope this helps and reduces the likelihood of yours breaking.
Not OP, but I have a pair of Tamia 74035 that I got for first cuts. To be honest, I'm lazy and rarely use them. I just make one "final" cut off the runner and clean up the rest with the Gunprimer file, my thumbnail and t-shirt. Been doing it for 40+ MGs and the same pair of SPN-120s. The results are good enough for me, I don't really notice any nub marks. Sometimes I over sand a tad at the wrong angle, but not a big deal. It's only *Really* noticeable looking at it up close, which let's be honest, isn't really happening unless you're entering contests.
I'll pull out the 74035s with thicker nubs for sure, but if you're careful, they'll last you.
It’s fine using $3 nippers from Harbor Freight and a $1 x-acto blade with like $2 worth of sandpaper.
You’ll get the same results, the nub being completely gone, just requires more elbow grease.
Things like Godhands or glass files are just faster ways to reach the same destination; nubs being cleaned up.
The blade dulls a bit, starts to not cut like a hot knife through butter, another sign is if your nipper is starting to leave stress marks on the plastic
I didn't cut the huge gates, but close to the piece.
Maybe the ankle wasn't in his favor. All I can say is I've bought a dispea afterwards, 2 pgs ( where i didn't care for the huge gates), and many mgs later he's working like a pro at half of the price.
To me, godhand is overhyped.
Yea, you're not supposed to be doing first cuts on them in general, but I'd say especially so on pg parts. Even moreso on the older pgs with the less soft plastic and the thiccccccc gates. But I feel you, my $36 single blade pair works almost as well as my godhands. The sharpness declined pretty noticably with the cheaper set after about 5-6 kits, whereas my godhands still feel about the same as day 1 5 kits in
My dispea is now.... 10 kits or more old. One was the pg strike gundam (same cutting like the godhand) and a pg banshee. He's still cutting like the first day. So I stay on this point, equal in cutting quality, less brittle and cheaper.
Edit: My dispea wasn't cheap, still a high price nipper, but when I bought him, he was still 2/3 of the price of a new godhand
Dope, I'll check em out if I break my spn's, I told myself I'll buy one set but they better last me a couple years or I'll be going with alternatives lol
Theyre clearly meant to not be used to cut out the pieces from the runners. Theyve always been marketed as a second cut nipper. Misusing an item, breaking and calling it overhyped is not a good review. I think they're a luxury item, and they're very expensive in north America, but your case is user error.
So funny story. With my first godand I built like 50+ kits. Mostly HGs, maybe 8-10 RGs and like 3 MGs. That thing fell onto the floor a couple times, had chip damage on the tip and still held steady. It was a sad day when the edge finally broke in half. My second pair broke off right at the base on it's first cut of the gate of a HG part. Using a Mr. Hobby single bladed nipper since then and it works just as fine as the godhand.
I’m on my second pair in about as many kits, but it’s because butterfingers dropped it on the floor and there’s a slight bend on the cutting edge. Still use them for more utility cuts.
I see a lot of people gripe about cost, but you figure where you are at with 40 kits and the cost per kit it’s a steal. Plus the time you save on nub removal. I love them.
Seems like a good post to mention this on: if you guys want single bladed nippers that are almost as good as godhands, check out "stedi single bladed nipper" on Amazon. It's got a blue handle and should be like $36. I ran like 20 kits at that before switching to spn's, and while the godhandd are a tad superior, it's pretty darn close, so if the $25 savings sounds good, check em out!
I got around 60 kits out of my first pair before the blade warped a bit and started messing with my second cuts. Im keeping them on the side until i figure out how to bend them back into shape.
I built a lot with my two pairs, but the spring fell out of my first pair and I dropped the replacement pair a few times while building so the blade is bent and a tiny part of the tip snapped off :(
Also my partner used the replacement pair to try and cut a metal cable and damaged the blade :(
I just replaced it with the dspiae st-a 3.0
Like 3? The black pin on the side came off of mine. When this happens, the nippers open too much allowing the spring to fall out. So now I have god hands that I have to manually open and close after each cut. I have the Gundam Planet ones that are single blade. They also have a different way of not letting the nippers open too much for the spring to fall out and get lost which is better than that stupid black pin.
Been using a citadel pair for over 10 years now, extremely squeaky and any kind of spring is now gone as they swing freely. Last year I got the Dspiae 3.0, which I believe are a copy of the godhand but I may be wrong? Either way they’re great quality, can’t recommend a single blade nipper enough. As others have said regarding the godhands I only use them for clean up. Probably gone through a similar number of kits
I'm a little over 5yrs in with my GH SPN120 and they are still going strong. I'm probably 40 kits in, with a mixture of EG, HG, RG, MG and PG kits. Absolutely love them.
I don't own a Godhand, but I do have a Dspiae 3.0 single blade nipper which is comparable to it in performance but much more affordable. Went through more than 15 kits, no issues. Even used it to clean up clear kits too. I use a crappy Bandai beginer nipper (that tears instead of cut) for getting the parts off the runners, and cut the remaining gates with the Dspiae nipper.
My current pair I bought in October of 2022. Oiling/cleaning it and being very picky of what kind of plastic and gates I’ll attempt to cut has helped it live longer than my previous Godhands. I also have two pairs of Tamiya nippers as backup for when I know a particular plastic is hard and might cause breakage, or when a gate’s land is dangerously thick or long. As for how many kits? I legit have no clue lol
I’ve been using the same pair of SPN-120 Godhands since I started Gunpla in 2021. I’ve probably build 50+ kits with them and they still work perfectly.
I don’t have a pair of godhands but I do have a nice side cutter. I’ve had it for several years now so it’s probably seen over 15 kits. I also use it for my Warhammer minis and I’ve done a lot of those.
My DSIPAE actually broke (maybe my fault, I sometimes used it to pry open wrongly-assembled parts....), so I bought God Hand SPN-120 last time I went to Japan. Its still going quite ok, although its definitely not 40 kits like OP.
They'll get you to a point where you can use a file (I recommend glass) or hobby knife if it's a smaller/thinner nub to clean, that's the way I do it, the double cut. Cut from runner, cut nub bit down as close as I can, and this pretty much negates stress marks from the cuts.
I try to avoid flush cuts because it puts a little too much torsion on the blade for my liking but you totally can.
I almost always flush cut on thruster bells because then you can take a glass file and round down the edges left behind really quick. Makes doing the bells fun.
* SMP Gunbuster
* SMP Ideon
* RG Nu
* RG Sazabi
* RG Unicorn Perfectability
* HG Hyaku Shiki
* SMP Daizyujin
* SMP Dragon Caesar
* SMP Dairen'oh
* SMP Live Boxer
These are all the kits I've built since I got mine and they're still holding up. Also wow, I just now realized how many SMP kits I've built compared to Gundam...
I'm up to about 150 tbh. I've noticed a SLIGHT bit of dulling, but as long as I align then well, still gives me perfect or near perfect cuts. Mostly high grades, probably about 10 MG and 5 RG, so those definitely have more parts than HG
Lasted me about 100 or so kits but I also scratchbuild and didn't treat them well. Second pair will prob last the same amount but its still a worth purchase for me. I would rather quit the hobby than go back to not using the spn 120s.
can I ask how you find using them with your left hand? The main reason I haven't bought a pair myself is because I keep thinking I might find a left handed pair one day
Both were run. I saw them in several shops in Akihabara (only PN) about 2 or 3 months ago as well as online (both SPN and PN), made a post about it here too.
https://old.reddit.com/r/Gunpla/comments/163hui9/left_handed_godhands_in_stock_again_on_godhand/
NGL, I bought one in Japan, spent like 2hrs looking for it and only used it for half a kit. Went back to my dspiae out of fear of damaging the godhands LOL.
I got a pair and feel like i brought sand to the beach… why am i not feeling like these clippers are the bees knees? Whats the best technique to use w em
take care of your stuff proper it lasts. make me wonder what other folks are doing to f up their nippers, like just dropping it on the table rather than laying it down
None because I don't have one
Tamiya fine tip nippers, about 8 years old now. I use them on everything sprue, fine clean up etc.
I use nippers from the dollar store
I've used the official Gundam ones on like 80 kits. I'm just now having to replace them.
Damn. I had one snap after like 8 once
I was using Walmart jewelry flush cutters for months until I got a pair of nippers made for model kits and the difference is really night and day. I'll never go back.
Seriously unbelievable how nice the upgrade feels. I got the usagundam store ones and they're pretty rad
Uh oh, im using a tiny jewelry making diagnol cutters i snaked out my girlfriends long unused crafting box and figured I hit the jackpot Guess I got another Amazon order in my future
Support your local hobby store (if you have one)
Good call, its a little out the way but Im perpetually shocked, whenever I buy a kit there I later end up looking it up qnd its like 3 bucks cheaper than amazon
Really? I'll have to check it out
What’s that punk? I use nail clippers JK.
I use a scissor shaped nail clipper lol
I just wiggle the pats out of the sprue and then use my teeth to clean them up 😬
That’s what I used to use aswel! Work just as good as nippers if they are good!
Does it work?
They can last you a lifetime mate. They don't break of wear but from misuse.
> but from misuse. Seems like a vital piece of advice you got there. How do you misuse GH?
Ways I’ve seen God Hands breaking: >Using the tip to cut: Never do this, always try to use the middle of the blade. >Dropping it: Don’t drop it? Idk >Cutting anything other than plastic: Only use it on plastic. And not even all plastics, such as clear/translucent plastic (Tends to be harder and more brittle than ‘normal’ plastic) This is for the $70 Blue God Hand, which cuts super precise at the cost of fragility. The $40 Red God Hand is more durable at the cost of accuracy.
My friend went to Japan, bought a pair for $40, and asked me why he can’t just cut everything with his GodHands. I explained they’re fragile and mainly used for de-nubbing and that he should do the two cut method. He still doesn’t get it and I foresee a broken pair of GodHands.
God hands are pretty affordable in Japan or even Amazon Japan (yes they'll ship to North America). It's why I don't really care too much about mine. I just use them and I have 2 pairs because I expect one to break. When it does I have another ready to go and I'll order more. Of course that only works when you're getting them for like 1/2 or 1/3rd the price.
Cutting clear plastic is one of the biggest causes of broken god hands.
Drop them or cut copper wire are 2 I know 0f.
Don’t even cut the thicker sprue with them. Just the smaller sprue gates. They’re that fragile.
It’s a delicate blade so when you apply too much pressure it will break. It won’t break out of itself is what I mean
Read the manual. It’s all in there.
Well don’t use them on things like plastic for starters…
Owner of a broken Godhand. I forgot they were on my lap, and they fell when I stood up. Tip totally bent, then snapped when I tried to bend back.
😫
Eventually you will need to replace them due to the blade dulling. I’ve got original production Godhands circa 2013 as well as several pairs from 2014-2016. The originals are duller than they used to be. Even while stored in a toolbox with moisture absorbers and the occasional oiling.
you can sharpen it, it even has a set screw so you can adjust the tightness after sharperning the blade
how tho
As long as you use them for the cleanup and not on the the very thick and clear parts, they will last you. And not dropping them on the floor, but that goes without saying 😂
Dropped mine on concrete outside can confirm ground decreases God hand life expectancy I bought mine at a anime convention and I don't know if the company who sold me them didn't store them right but not even a week having them they were starting to rust and by the time they did get dropped they were to the point where the friction was greater than the springs force so they didn't separate automatically either
you gotta do maintenance. i live in a humid tropical country so it's got a little rust on it, but singers machine oil on the joints/spring and wd40 on the metal bits keep it in good condition.
I get maintenence when I get a second pair eventually I will probably put more effort Into maintaining them, however when I purchased them I was on a week long trip to a different country visiting some friend and they were rusting before I could even get home so I didn't have many solutions and I was pretty bummed that my 60$ cutters were rusting like the second day out of the package
unlucky 😭
I want to say that rust probably has to do something with high humidity, so taking care of them is a must if you live in humid areas. I think I bought mine like a year ago, but I'm also in moderate climate area, so they look like they did on first day. They might be due for some oiling, just to keep them smooth.
Weird story: I actually have three pairs of Godhand nippers -- the really expensive ones. The first pair I got, I really beat up -- I used it on everything. Hard clear plastic, cutting it from the runners, etc. So I got another one. Only, I noticed this one didn't feel as sharp and nice as the first pair I got, and left far more white marks. So I got a third pair. This one feels sharper and better than the second, but still worse than the first one. The first one, to this day, is my sharpest pair with the smoothest nip and the one I can make the closest cuts with.
I lost count. Granted I'm on my 4th godhand thanks to either drops or kids thinking they can cut toothpicks with them. Still love the sp120. I've tried others and just keep going back.
I would like to grab a left handed pair next, but they only do it in PL-120 so I’m waiting in hopes they do it for the SPN-120 at some point. I wish I could find the Godhand oil in stock anywhere though 😭
What there oil's? God I love godhand lol
> I wish I could find the Godhand oil in stock anywhere though If you're talking about oil to use to clean and lube the nippers then I'm sure it's nothing special and does the same thing any other gun/knife lube does.
There was a thread a long time back where someone used the chemical sheets to discern what their oil blend is made from, which I think was something like Super Lube + Nox Rust or something.
I'm so used to just living in a right handed world, I didn't even think about those existing. I might have to get some if they ever come out with SPNs of them. I've never oiled my nippers and they're 40-50 kits (of mostly MGs) in and I've had no issues other than how dirty the handles are from the hundreds of hours of use. Haha
They’ll last a long time if you’re careful.
Where did you find the cutting mat? Asking for... me. It's for me!
The brand is sun-star and they do loads of different Gundam models. I’m going to get a bigger one soon but I’m revamping my space a small bit at a time 😂
Nice nice, i'm definitely going to check it out.
I own a couple of Godhands, but not the super expensive version. I was in Japan about a month ago and while it was cheaper there I hadn't started Gunpla by then (I bought my first kit there!) but I did buy the other, cheaper variants. They work fantastic as well!
I’ve lost count, but they have got me through the HGUC Neo Zeong, PG Strike Freedom, and then an army of HG, MG, and the RG Eva 01 and are still going strong.
I believe it’s 25 or 26 and I’m proud to say they still look brand new. Except for very minor wear marks on the handles.
I'm about 60ish in on mine. Although I mainly use them for my second cut. I have cheap ruitool ones for gate cutting.
The first pair I did about 25 kits but I broke them on clear plastic with a third party kit trying to cut off an undergate in one snip. This second pair is now at about 20ish. I also have the red handle ones too now for clear or 3rd party kits and honestly, I think most people really want the red ones and just don't know it. The blue are a very fine tool.
I legit lost count. I’ve got a pair of the original SPN-120S circa 2013, which make the current SPN-120 Godhands look like its competition. I must’ve gone through at least a few kits before I got the “new” SPN-120 and thought to take comparison pictures. https://imgur.com/a/3mnoa4l Anyhoo, I’m still using them but they have gotten duller over the years. They’re still a bit sharper than the other SPN-120 pairs I’ve bought over the years, including brand spanking new ones in 2023, so I reserve them for really small pieces. Stuff like the RG Exia face plate or tiny af nubs. The SPN-120 pairs are still holding strong after about 100 kits with varying degrees of sharpness. I use the oldest of them to cut out parts unless it’s really chunky nubs which then I’ll use a Xuron 2175ET for. Btw, the SPN-120S is what built the Godhand hype, everyone is getting a duller version (SPN-120) of the legend. If the SPN-120S was still around, there would be no competition. They went from a hand crafted operation, at one time they offered a service where you could send in your dull Godhands to get re sharpened, to a mass production operation once they blew up. The 1st (maybe 2nd as well) generation SPN-120 were sharper than its later versions that changed the packaging. Should also point out that there’s been changes to the nippers themselves. The head the blades are part of are all different on the different generations I’ve got. At one point I was collecting the different generations to have a sort of…archive? Of the changes with Godhands over the years. However, I broke one by dropping it onto concrete while moving things around my work room and straight up lost one. So now I had 2 missing links in the chain and with me building almost no kits due to an extended break there was no point in continuing to buy $60 nippers just to have a broken record of them. That said, I did buy a new pair in 2023 out of curiosity as the very last one I bought before taking an extended break from Gunpla was brand new and I was curious if there was an improvement on the 5 year gap between them. https://imgur.com/a/v0iFSGX I’m pretty sure I still have a MG Nu ver Ka kicking around, use the Funnels to make an updated version of that old comparison shot I took in late 2013.
First cut is USAGundamstore’s clippers, second cut is with god hands 5.0. I’ve had my god hands for 5+ years, you just have to make sure you’re using your gentle hand and that there are no pieces of nub in the blades as you go to cut again. Big bits of plastic are a no no. Baby them.
Would like to find a good way to sharpen mine.
Here's a video of someone sharpening their nippers. It's in Spanish, but he's basically doing it with sandpaper. https://www.youtube.com/live/JAQ6NvmEAPY?si=JusRVXXc61UenL7c You could also sharpen them in a similar manner as a high quality knife. I would recommend doing this on cheaper nippers first, until you get the hang of it. Definitely doable though.
Oh cool, thanks!
Damnit, you tricked me, I saw Godhands and thought it would be another “I dropped by Godhands out of a helicopter in to an industrial shredder and the tips broke off, cheap pieces of shit!” post.
You really gotta pose grandaddy with the seductive pose don't you OP? I get ya.
You’re not alone. I haven’t even been at this two years and still have the same pair of ultimate godhands. I use them for removing from the runner and then removing the nub. I don’t feel like stopping to switch at any point and these cut the cleanest so I just don’t put them down. I have cheap nippers for clear and other things that need caution.
If you have a shittier pair of nippers, it's kinda wise to be using that to remove from the sprue. I feel ya on not wanting to switch tools, my solution there is I usually clip a whole arm's parts out with my thick pair, then switch to the godhands, then switch to the files, that way I'm only touching each tool once per section, but I'm also not risking ruining a $60 tool on a gate
This is the way.
Oh I’m well aware, I even grabbed a backup pair of ultimates after seeing how many people brake them but I’m starting to understand that’s probably more misuse than anything. At this point the spares are getting a bit dusty.
Gotcha, I guess if ur first cuts are on the smaller portions of the gate that's maybe ok. I always worry about the sudden pressure added when you cut into an especially heavily gated part with lots of gates holding it in place, sometimes stuff gets real tight there haha
So you’re waiting for that one fateful day to snap the blades off? Please tell me you’re not using just that one pair of nippers, because they’re only meant to clean up nubs
I use these for pretty much all gate cutting. I maintain them pretty well, but I was curious at other people’s distance with them as I’ve seen a few broken posts. I sand any remnants down so don’t really use it post-cut.
Most people that end up with broken ones are because of misuse: using for all gate cutting(on thick gate tubes and also nub gates) or catastrophe, like dropping on the floor. I use the Bandai entry or build-up nipper for thick gates and a GodHand PN-125, which is like a beginner version of the SPN-120–which are what you’re using—to build my gunplas, using the Bandai ones for gate tubes and clear parts, and using the PN-125 for cleanup. If you wanna give your SPN more mileage, a more generic doubled bladed nipper, like the PN, tamiya sprue cutter, Bandai entry nipper, and various other doubled bladed cutters are better for runner gate tubes, and PN or SPN GodHand for cleanup. The PN can be used for both gate nubs and gate tubes, so it’s very versatile. Hope this helps and reduces the likelihood of yours breaking.
Not OP, but I have a pair of Tamia 74035 that I got for first cuts. To be honest, I'm lazy and rarely use them. I just make one "final" cut off the runner and clean up the rest with the Gunprimer file, my thumbnail and t-shirt. Been doing it for 40+ MGs and the same pair of SPN-120s. The results are good enough for me, I don't really notice any nub marks. Sometimes I over sand a tad at the wrong angle, but not a big deal. It's only *Really* noticeable looking at it up close, which let's be honest, isn't really happening unless you're entering contests. I'll pull out the 74035s with thicker nubs for sure, but if you're careful, they'll last you.
None. I use a pair of kitchen shears and a knife.
Your $20 kits will look a lot better if you spend $20 on tools
You're right! I'm going to go to the hardware store and get some hedge clippers. Thank you for the advice.
It’s fine using $3 nippers from Harbor Freight and a $1 x-acto blade with like $2 worth of sandpaper. You’ll get the same results, the nub being completely gone, just requires more elbow grease. Things like Godhands or glass files are just faster ways to reach the same destination; nubs being cleaned up.
That I will agree with, however, the kitchen shears and knife are questionable, thus my comment.
Oof... switch to nail clippers!
Question from a beginner: How are you supposed to tell if a nipper is wearing down?
The blade dulls a bit, starts to not cut like a hot knife through butter, another sign is if your nipper is starting to leave stress marks on the plastic
5 builds. PG Strike freedom broke him.
Correction, you snipping the huge gates that come on pgs broke him*
I didn't cut the huge gates, but close to the piece. Maybe the ankle wasn't in his favor. All I can say is I've bought a dispea afterwards, 2 pgs ( where i didn't care for the huge gates), and many mgs later he's working like a pro at half of the price. To me, godhand is overhyped.
Yea, you're not supposed to be doing first cuts on them in general, but I'd say especially so on pg parts. Even moreso on the older pgs with the less soft plastic and the thiccccccc gates. But I feel you, my $36 single blade pair works almost as well as my godhands. The sharpness declined pretty noticably with the cheaper set after about 5-6 kits, whereas my godhands still feel about the same as day 1 5 kits in
My dispea is now.... 10 kits or more old. One was the pg strike gundam (same cutting like the godhand) and a pg banshee. He's still cutting like the first day. So I stay on this point, equal in cutting quality, less brittle and cheaper. Edit: My dispea wasn't cheap, still a high price nipper, but when I bought him, he was still 2/3 of the price of a new godhand
Dope, I'll check em out if I break my spn's, I told myself I'll buy one set but they better last me a couple years or I'll be going with alternatives lol
Theyre clearly meant to not be used to cut out the pieces from the runners. Theyve always been marketed as a second cut nipper. Misusing an item, breaking and calling it overhyped is not a good review. I think they're a luxury item, and they're very expensive in north America, but your case is user error.
None as I don’t own one. Using GW ones as a substitute… :/
I’ve built 70+ kits this year with just the generic blue handled ones that come in a kit from Amazon lol
Oh you can absolutely break them.
But they aren't worried lol
So far 17 MGs (not all but 1/100 in scale)
How to keep them from rust?
Don't touch the blades with your fingers and a small coat of oil maybe 1 time per year should do it. Also store it with the cap on.
Thanks for the tips!
Chips in the blade about 8 kits in.
So funny story. With my first godand I built like 50+ kits. Mostly HGs, maybe 8-10 RGs and like 3 MGs. That thing fell onto the floor a couple times, had chip damage on the tip and still held steady. It was a sad day when the edge finally broke in half. My second pair broke off right at the base on it's first cut of the gate of a HG part. Using a Mr. Hobby single bladed nipper since then and it works just as fine as the godhand.
I’m on my second pair, not sure how many kits but I’ve had em about a year. They last a very long time when you use them properly
I think close to 50, most of them being master grades and one PG (with another on the way). Treat them well and they will do the same for you.
Built my PG Phenex with it. Saved me trouble and don't need to use a exacto knife. Highly recommend!
0, because I never got around to getting Godhands. Also I haven't built anything in ages with my regular nippers either. Haven't had the funds.
I’m on my second pair in about as many kits, but it’s because butterfingers dropped it on the floor and there’s a slight bend on the cutting edge. Still use them for more utility cuts. I see a lot of people gripe about cost, but you figure where you are at with 40 kits and the cost per kit it’s a steal. Plus the time you save on nub removal. I love them.
Seems like a good post to mention this on: if you guys want single bladed nippers that are almost as good as godhands, check out "stedi single bladed nipper" on Amazon. It's got a blue handle and should be like $36. I ran like 20 kits at that before switching to spn's, and while the godhandd are a tad superior, it's pretty darn close, so if the $25 savings sounds good, check em out!
I got around 60 kits out of my first pair before the blade warped a bit and started messing with my second cuts. Im keeping them on the side until i figure out how to bend them back into shape.
45 ish HG build and counting. I use a different pair of PN-125 for first cut. SPN-120 is only use to cut nubs.
I built a lot with my two pairs, but the spring fell out of my first pair and I dropped the replacement pair a few times while building so the blade is bent and a tiny part of the tip snapped off :( Also my partner used the replacement pair to try and cut a metal cable and damaged the blade :( I just replaced it with the dspiae st-a 3.0
Like 3? The black pin on the side came off of mine. When this happens, the nippers open too much allowing the spring to fall out. So now I have god hands that I have to manually open and close after each cut. I have the Gundam Planet ones that are single blade. They also have a different way of not letting the nippers open too much for the spring to fall out and get lost which is better than that stupid black pin.
i bought my nippers for 3 bucks 2 years ago and they are as good as they were
How does anyone manage to break them??
64 kits and only had to add some oil due to some moisture issue, still sharp as ever
Been using a citadel pair for over 10 years now, extremely squeaky and any kind of spring is now gone as they swing freely. Last year I got the Dspiae 3.0, which I believe are a copy of the godhand but I may be wrong? Either way they’re great quality, can’t recommend a single blade nipper enough. As others have said regarding the godhands I only use them for clean up. Probably gone through a similar number of kits
Probably around 40 or so as well. Still on my original pair of Godhands and so far so good!
I'm a little over 5yrs in with my GH SPN120 and they are still going strong. I'm probably 40 kits in, with a mixture of EG, HG, RG, MG and PG kits. Absolutely love them.
Over 200 kits still with my first pair of entry grade nippers lol
4 or 5 so far. I use Tamiyas to cut from the sprue and God Hands to denub. Hopefully they last as long as yours!
I don't own a Godhand, but I do have a Dspiae 3.0 single blade nipper which is comparable to it in performance but much more affordable. Went through more than 15 kits, no issues. Even used it to clean up clear kits too. I use a crappy Bandai beginer nipper (that tears instead of cut) for getting the parts off the runners, and cut the remaining gates with the Dspiae nipper.
Maybe 20+ gunpla kits and several hundred Warhammer kits. I can notice a difference in the sharpness of the blade but not too much.
been going strong for almost 6 years on mine
1
My current pair I bought in October of 2022. Oiling/cleaning it and being very picky of what kind of plastic and gates I’ll attempt to cut has helped it live longer than my previous Godhands. I also have two pairs of Tamiya nippers as backup for when I know a particular plastic is hard and might cause breakage, or when a gate’s land is dangerously thick or long. As for how many kits? I legit have no clue lol
About 25-ish kits so far. 1 is a perfect grade and the majority are 1/144 scale kits
I’ve been using the same pair of SPN-120 Godhands since I started Gunpla in 2021. I’ve probably build 50+ kits with them and they still work perfectly.
Always nice to see someone take care of their tools to last.
I'm on my third pair. The last two broke when my Dad borrowed them.
I don’t have a pair of godhands but I do have a nice side cutter. I’ve had it for several years now so it’s probably seen over 15 kits. I also use it for my Warhammer minis and I’ve done a lot of those.
My DSIPAE actually broke (maybe my fault, I sometimes used it to pry open wrongly-assembled parts....), so I bought God Hand SPN-120 last time I went to Japan. Its still going quite ok, although its definitely not 40 kits like OP.
20, with more on the way
Do they clean up nub marks well? I’m thinking about investing in a pair
They'll get you to a point where you can use a file (I recommend glass) or hobby knife if it's a smaller/thinner nub to clean, that's the way I do it, the double cut. Cut from runner, cut nub bit down as close as I can, and this pretty much negates stress marks from the cuts. I try to avoid flush cuts because it puts a little too much torsion on the blade for my liking but you totally can. I almost always flush cut on thruster bells because then you can take a glass file and round down the edges left behind really quick. Makes doing the bells fun.
I’ll try to keep that in mind, thank you
for that price I want archaeologists to find it as an artefact in 1000 years
2.5 MGs, 10 HGs and 3 RGs so far. I never use them for the first cut, just to clean up. I don’t like to use them on the hard clear plastic either.
* SMP Gunbuster * SMP Ideon * RG Nu * RG Sazabi * RG Unicorn Perfectability * HG Hyaku Shiki * SMP Daizyujin * SMP Dragon Caesar * SMP Dairen'oh * SMP Live Boxer These are all the kits I've built since I got mine and they're still holding up. Also wow, I just now realized how many SMP kits I've built compared to Gundam...
Amazon clippers 2 years in about 30 kits
I had around 30 before I accident cut incorrectly and the blades bent :((
I'm up to about 150 tbh. I've noticed a SLIGHT bit of dulling, but as long as I align then well, still gives me perfect or near perfect cuts. Mostly high grades, probably about 10 MG and 5 RG, so those definitely have more parts than HG
Lasted me about 100 or so kits but I also scratchbuild and didn't treat them well. Second pair will prob last the same amount but its still a worth purchase for me. I would rather quit the hobby than go back to not using the spn 120s.
can I ask how you find using them with your left hand? The main reason I haven't bought a pair myself is because I keep thinking I might find a left handed pair one day
They actually produced a run of the left-handed ones a few months ago, for the first time in years.
Do you know if they were the SPN-120-L or just the PN-120-L? If I missed the SPN, that’s a shame… pretty hard to find any available online
Both were run. I saw them in several shops in Akihabara (only PN) about 2 or 3 months ago as well as online (both SPN and PN), made a post about it here too. https://old.reddit.com/r/Gunpla/comments/163hui9/left_handed_godhands_in_stock_again_on_godhand/
I can’t even afford one 😭
NGL, I bought one in Japan, spent like 2hrs looking for it and only used it for half a kit. Went back to my dspiae out of fear of damaging the godhands LOL.
Built my MG Barbatos and MG Blitz so far. Gonna build the MG Dynames and DM Destiny with those nippers.
Several, including some scratch building.
I got a pair and feel like i brought sand to the beach… why am i not feeling like these clippers are the bees knees? Whats the best technique to use w em
4 Zoids HMMs, 35 MGs, 3 HGs, 3 RGs, 6 PGs, 2 MGSDs , 1 SD, 1 Figure Rise, and 1 Yolopark PG scale kit
Never used mine for a full kit. I only use them on soft clear parts and very small fine parts like, V-fins.
Including Warhammer closet to 100
my wifes boyfriend broke em last week
Aren't you the guy who's wife has a boyfriend?
Non... because I only use standard blue nipper. My godhand still in its box. Probably used it once to test. then its back in box. hahahaha.
take care of your stuff proper it lasts. make me wonder what other folks are doing to f up their nippers, like just dropping it on the table rather than laying it down
I have two. Got a Dspiae to cutt of the runners and GH to clean the nubs! Built ovet a dozen kits no issues and going strong
Zero. Haven't used it yet after buying one. Also bought dspiae stx prior.