A brief history of Snips

16th August 2021

	A Brief History of Snips


	Shop for Tinsnips and Aviation Snips


			Snips are derived from scissors and shears. Scissors were probably invented around 1500 BC, by the ancient Egyptians.

			The original design consisted of two bronze blades connected at the handle by a flexible strip of bronze. Referred to as ‘spring scissors’, they worked with a pincer action, where the user would push the blades together to make a cut. They would have been used for cutting things like fabric and shearing sheep’s wool.This design was used across Europe until the 16th century.

			Modern day scissors, made of hardened and polished cast steel, were first mass produced in Britain in 1761 by Robert Hinchliffe. Since then, scissors and other similar tools have developed many variations, for different industries and uses.

			The development of tin snips
			The design of scissor and snips we are more familiar with today, with two blades which pivot past each other as the handles are opened and closed, was invented by the ancient Romans. This design was also found in use across ancient China, Japan, and Korea.

			There is evidence that suggests tin snips used to cut sheet metal were also developed at this time, as large, very strong pairs have been found.



			The development of aviation snips
			Aviation snips share the same basic principle as standard tin snips, but with a compound action lever. The compound action consists of a system of levers where pressure on one lever creates the power for the next. This means that the force being applied is increased from one lever to another.The first compound levers were thought to have been invented by Archimedes in Ancient Greece.

			A link with aviation The Wright brothers famously designed and flew the first powered, heavier-than-air, planes, and their first sustained, controlled flight took place in 1903. After this, developments in aviation were fairly rapid.

			Aircrafts were first used in the military by Italy during the Italian-Turkish war (1911-1912). Then Britain, Germany, France and Italy were leading manufacturers of fighter planes during WWI. It was during WWI that the first practical, all-metal aircraft was constructed. This replaced the original wooden and fabric planes.

			Between the two World Wars, developments continued to move quickly. Advancements with aluminium meant it could now be used as an alternative to steel. High-powered monoplanes (single-winged), made from aluminium, replaced the low-powered biplanes (double-winged).

			In 1934, a German man named Karl Klenk invented aviation snips for cutting the sheet metal on these new plane designs.These days, aviations snips are also used for other applications and on various materials, for many different industries and crafts.

			Karl Klenk incorporated a compound lever system into the traditional tin snips design, which increased the force being produced from the blades but meant the tool could still be carried easily.

			Because the tool could remain relatively small, but still cut tough material, it could be used for cutting fairly intricate shapes. However, aviation snips are more complex to operate successfully than tin snips, which are still a popular choice for rough cutting sheet metal.