By Louis Cahill
There’s good stuff coming out of Salt Lake City.
Every now and then I run across an innovative piece of equipment that changes the way I do things. To find a single product like that from any company is a home run but I found three amazing tools from Rising, that have not only changed my habits but done it at a price that’s hard to believe.
The first thing you notice about Rising tools is their innovative design. They don’t look like fishing tools, certainly not the old school tools I grew up with. These things look like some kind of surgical implements. And I’m not talking about hemostats. These tools are heavy duty, precise and beautifully finished. Absolutely the nicest fishing tools I’ve ever used.
You’d expect that kind of quality in a pair of saltwater pliers that you dropped a couple of hundred bucks on but not when you spent twenty. That’s right, $20 for the Rising Rancher, which has quickly become my favorite fly fishing accessory ever. I honestly don’t know how they make a dime at that price. So I called them up and asked.
I spoke to Dylan Rothwell, the man behind Rising Tools. It was an interesting conversation. Dylan is clearly a super smart guy with a lot of fishing days under his belt who isn’t afraid to make a living using his hands. He told me his original vision was to make all of the products there in Salt Lake but he was quickly priced out of the market. So he came up with a solution that’s pretty clever and is working very well.
Some of Risings products are made in America. Others are made in Asia and finished in the shop in Salt Lake. That means that they are fitted, polished and sharpened by the man who put his name on them. What you get is a remarkable product at an amazing price. So you can buy another company’s made-in-America nippers for $50-$100 and they’ll be pretty good, or you can buy another company’s Asian knock-off of those nippers for $30 and they’ll be so-so, or you can buy Rising’s Big Nippa for $12 and they’ll out-perform the $100 pair. I’m not kidding.
So here are the three Rising fishing tools that I use and love every day on the water.
The Big Nippa $12
These are the nippers from hell! Heavy duty stainless steel with no-slip rubber coating. 3 1/2 inches long with a 3/4 inch wide cutting blade. These babies are so stout you can not hurt them. They have the traditional wing and pick design that other companies have moved away from. It’s very useful for jobs like tying surgeon’s knots or opening wind knots. They have handy ergonomic dimples for better grip. Sharp? Holy cow, these things are amazing. They cut braid, which is impressive enough but I use them like scissors to trim the wool of my New Zealand Indicators. I’ve never seen another nipper that will do that.
Get Yours Here
The Rancher $20
The Rancher is one of a family of multi-purpose utility tools from Rising. They are all great but this one is my favorite for its size and versatility. 6 1/2 inches long and made of stainless steel, the Rancher has all the features of high-end pliers and is barely larger than a pair of hemostats. It has become so indispensable to me that it is often the only tool I carry. For steelheading or bonefishing, it’s all I need.
The Rancher has precision cutters, ribbed inner jaws for grip, ground tip jaws that will pinch barbs on #22 dry flies and a closed ring for testing knots and removing hooks. They are heavy enough to apply serious pressure and light enough that you don’t know they’re there. They have a three click locking handle that works beautifully. Just squeeze past the third click to release and once they are locked, they never let go. This is super handy for locking them to a pack, vest or even a belt loop. You’ll never lose them.
Get Yours Here
The Crocodile $22
The Crocodile is a brilliant design. 7 1/2 inches long, made of Stainless steel with comfortable loop style handles it may be the ultimate all-purpose tool. It sports scissor style cutters, ribbed jaws for gripping, ground jaws for crimping barbs, three-click locking jaws and the best catch-and-release tool made. Just lock the ring around your tippet and slide it down to the fly and into the bend of the hook and remove the hook without ever touching the fish. Remarkably effective and easy to use. This is my go-to tool when fishing in the boat.
These three great tools are just the tip of the Rising iceberg. There’s tons more on their site including some awesome tying tools and even a righteous barbecue set. Get yourself some of these innovative tools and support a great small company.
Check out this video of the Crocodile in action!
Louis Cahill Gink & Gasoline www.ginkandgasoline.com hookups@ginkandgasoline.com Sign Up For Our Weekly Newsletter!
I just got the big nippa and the crocodile. Top o’ the line. I also started using the tweezers they make for tying, and they are excellent. Good to see a local company from Utah making such great stuff.
Awesome company! Glad to see other people discovering Rising. Bob’s Tactical Scissors are the only hemos we use on the river anymore. They’re bullet proof! They cut any size of tippet with either the serrated edge or smooth, crimp barbs down, crimp split shot, and are big and easy to use. And the bright red color is easy to see when you drop them in the water . . . because we’ve all been there before. Amazing stuff!
Thnak you Louis !!, and thanks Cheech
So honored to have such an awesome review of our tools. What makes it all the better is I know it was the result of days and weeks of use. You had the tools for months before you determined they were awesome and what you needed and would endorse. This sort of product review is the best, and sadly one that is not very common.
CROCODILE RELEASE VIDEO — SO sweet.. You can really see the tool working as it was designed.. What I love is you did it in the net.. All our videos show us doing this by holding the tippet with the fish in the water without a net, in the net makes for much better angle .
Have big old smile on my face, that will last all day because of this review and the recognition you have given Rising. You’re the man, you’re blog is the best (Cameron at Fiberglass Manifesto awesome too) and you know you’re shit – so it’s pretty special to get a blog post Hi-FIVE from you.. THANKS
Anyone tried these in salt water? Quite interested, but that is where I would use them.
I will be soon. Should be fine. They are stainless.
Louis,
Nice find on the equipment…no better place to test than Andros! Pete
Hey Louis. Not sure if you’re still monitoring this post about Rising tools but I just got told by one of their retailers that they are discontinuing the Rancher 6″ pliers. Do you know more? Kym
Hey Kym
As I mentioned on email earlier, we will stop producing Rancher 6″ in 2015. We have stock through this year.. While it is an awesome tool, and one we like as much as Louis – it is very hard for our manufacturers to produce. The toleranaces on the pliers arms have to be within a small range or they are either too stiff for most people to operate easily, or so soft they bend.. It’s a balance that foreign manufacturers have not been able to find, and since we can’t make them in our shop and retail for $20, we decided to put our cash and energy into pliers we can count on being consistent high quality… Thanks for interest, we will take care of you on this pair though…
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Just returned from trout fishing, saw this article, tried to buy but out of stock! Got any ideas?