Piscifun Fishing Pliers Review: A Season of Hook Removal

If you fish the same stretch of the Great Miami as often as I do, you know the moment. A bass takes the crankbait, you get it to the boat, and the treble hook is buried past the barb in the corner of its jaw. You reach for the cheap pliers that have been rattling around in the tackle bag since 2019. The jaws slip. The fish flops. You spend ten minutes with a hemostat and a bad attitude. I got tired of that scene, so this past spring I picked up a pair of Piscifun Saltwater Fishing Pliers and put them through a full season of hook removal.

I am not a tournament angler and I do not pretend to be one. I am a retired machinist who has been fishing Ohio water for about 45 years, mostly from a 14 foot aluminum jon boat with a small trolling motor, and plenty of days from the bank. My grandson Caleb, who is 13, fishes with me when school lets him. We chase largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, and channel catfish on Caesar Creek Lake, the Great Miami River, and a few farm ponds. That is the context for this review. It is not a lab test. It is a season of real use.

How I've Used It

I carried these pliers from the first warm weekend in April through the last afternoon on the water in late October. That is roughly six months of bank trips, jon boat trips, and one long weekend on a farm pond where Caleb and I caught more bluegill than we could count. The pliers lived in the nylon sheath on my belt for most of that time, and they also spent plenty of hours loose in the tackle bag when the sheath was in the way.

The job I used them for most was hook removal. Treble hooks, single hooks, bass, crappie, bluegill, the occasional catfish that swallowed a hook deep enough to make me reach for the cutters. I would guess I used them on a few hundred fish over the season, and the only tool I reached for more often was my line clippers.

The one handed spring action is the feature that matters most. When a fish is still green at the side of the boat, you do not want to fiddle with a tool that needs two hands to open. These jaws open on their own and stay open, so you can grip the hook, twist, and back it out without losing your hold on the fish.

Most of my fishing is from the bank or the front of a 14 foot jon boat, so gear has to earn its space. These pliers earned theirs by being where I needed them. I clipped the sheath to my belt loop on bank days and left it loose in the bag on boat days. Either way, they were never more than one reach away. I have owned a lot of pliers over the years, and most of them are in a drawer somewhere. These are the first pair that stayed on my belt.

What the Pliers Actually Are

The listing calls these Piscifun saltwater pliers, and the aluminum handles and tungsten carbide cutters are the reason. Aluminum keeps the weight down, and the whole tool comes in at 3.6 ounces, which is light enough to forget on your belt. The handles are CNC machined, and they feel solid without feeling heavy. The grip is shaped to fit a hand, and after a season of use I still do not have a hot spot on my palm.

The cutters are tungsten carbide and they are replaceable, which is the detail that sold me. Most pliers in this class have cutters you cannot do anything about when they dull. Here, if I ever wear them out, I can swap in fresh ones without replacing the whole tool. The listing says they are the sharpest on the market, and I will not argue with that. They cut braid cleanly every time I used them.

The split ring tip is a small thing that earns its keep. When a split ring on a crankbait is bent or a swivel needs to come off, I can open the ring with the tip instead of prying at it with a knife blade. The braid cutter is on the same tool, so I do not carry a second pair of cutters in the boat.

The nylon sheath is part of the package, and it is worth talking about because it is the thing most people overlook. It holds the pliers snugly and keeps the cutters from poking everything else in the bag.

How It Handled a Season of Hook Removal

The test that matters for me is a buried treble hook in a bass jaw. You have a fish that is still fighting, a hook that is in deep, and a boat that is rocking. With these pliers, I can open the jaws with one hand, slide them down the shank, and twist the hook out. Most of the time the fish is back in the water before Caleb has the net ready.

The spring loaded action is the reason. Because the jaws stay open, I do not have to pinch the handles while I line up the hook. I can set the pliers on the hook and let the spring do the work. On a moving boat, that is the difference between a quick release and a long cuss.

I also used the cutters more than I expected. Braid gets tangled, wind knots happen, and sometimes the safest way to free a deeply hooked fish is to cut the hook out and start over. The tungsten carbide cutters went through braid on the first squeeze, and they still do at the end of the season. I have not needed to replace them yet, but I like knowing I can.

The pliers also spent time on the deck in the rain, on the bottom of the boat under a seat cushion, and in a wet tackle bag. The aluminum handles did not show any rust, and the spring still works the way it did in April. I cannot speak to years of saltwater use, but for a freshwater season they held up.

One afternoon on Caesar Creek Lake, a crappie took a small jig and the hook ended up in the roof of its mouth. The fish was barely big enough to keep, and I wanted it back in the water fast. I opened the pliers with one hand, reached in, and had the hook out in a few seconds. That is the kind of moment these pliers are for.

Where It Falls Short

No piece of gear is perfect, and these pliers have two things I would change. The first is the nylon sheath. It holds the pliers fine, but the material feels like the cheapest part of the kit. After a season of being tossed around, the sheath is softer and looser than I would like. It still works, but I do not expect it to last as long as the pliers.

The second is the spring. It keeps the jaws open, which is exactly what you want for one handed hook removal, but it also means the pliers do not stay closed when you set them down. They want to sit open. That is a fair trade for the one handed use, but it is worth knowing before you buy.

The cutters are sharp, and they are meant for line. I would not use them to cut heavy wire or thick steel leaders. For braid and light mono, they are perfect. For anything heavier, I reach for a dedicated pair of cutters. That is not a complaint about these pliers. It is just an honest boundary.

What I'd Tell a New Angler

If you are just starting out, you do not need a tackle bag full of tools. You need one good pair of pliers, a pair of line cutters, and the habit of using them before you need them. These Piscifun pliers cover the first two jobs in one tool, and they do it without weighing down your pocket.

The thing I would tell my younger self is to stop buying the cheap pliers that slip. I lost count of the fish I hurt and the hooks I mangled because I kept picking the cheapest thing on the shelf. A tool you can use one handed, with cutters you can replace, is worth carrying on every trip. That is the whole argument.

Caleb has started borrowing them on days when I am not looking. That is the highest compliment a tool gets in my boat. If a 13 year old can use it without being shown twice, the design is right.

One more piece of advice: keep the pliers where you can reach them with your free hand. I used to bury tools in the bottom of the bag, and by the time I dug them out the moment was gone. Now the sheath rides on my belt or hangs from a zipper pull, and I never have to hunt for it. The best tool is the one you actually carry. A pliers that stays home in the garage does you no good on the water.

The moment that sold me was the first time I pulled a buried treble hook out of a bass jaw with one hand, no prying, no lost fish.

Who This Is For

These Piscifun pliers are for the angler who fishes from the bank or a small boat and wants one tool that does the common jobs. If you fish braid, if you use crankbaits with split rings, if you have ever tried to remove a hook while a fish is still green, you will get your money's worth from this pair. It is light enough to carry every trip and simple enough that you will actually use it.

They are also a good fit for someone who wants to hand a dependable tool to a young angler. Caleb uses them without fuss, and I would rather he learn on a pair with replaceable cutters than on something that slips and teaches him bad habits.

If you are the kind of angler who takes one rod and one small bag, these pliers fit that style. They do not need a dedicated pocket or a special organizer. They live in the sheath and come out when the moment calls.

Who Should Skip It

If you only fish a few times a year and you already have a pair of pliers that works, you do not need this one. There is no reason to replace a tool that is not broken. These pliers are an upgrade, not a requirement.

If you do most of your fishing in heavy saltwater surf and you need a tool that can handle thick wire and serious corrosion, this is not the pliers for that job. The aluminum handles and the cutters are built for light work. They will survive a freshwater season, but I would not push them into a job they were not made for.

If you prefer a tool with a built-in line cutter on a separate jaw, or if you already carry a multi tool you trust, you may not need another pliers. The Piscifun is good at its job, but it is not the only way to get the job done.