Lightest possible fingernail clippers

[Monte Masterson]

On longer multi-day hikes I always bring along fingernail clippers, but at 13 grams I detest the weight. The only nail clippers I’m aware of are the ones I see at drug stores, the ferrous type. Anybody know of any aluminum or titanium ones?

[Matthew / BPL]

I find the scissors on a SAK do just fine as fingernail clippers. Have you tried them?

[Monte Masterson]

I know I sound dumb here, but what is an SAK? Do you mean FAK (first aid kit)?

[Jim C]

Swiss Army Knife

[Kevin Babione]

He means “Swiss Army Knife”.

I carry the Swiss Army Clipper:

The clipper works well enough for fingers, but I’m not sure it would be up to the challenge of a toenail.  The whole thing weighs 37 grams and, for me, gives me the best of all worlds – scissors, a small blade, and the clipper.

[MJ H]

Fingernails are easy. Your teeth are multipurpose.

Toenail clippers would be my worry, if I were ever out long enough that it was an issue. My big toes have very thick nails and I don’t know that the little scissor on my SAK would cut them.

[Dale Wambaugh]

Swiss Army Knife scissors are the lightest and best multi-purpose option if you are already carrying some version with scissors. Embroidery scissors are the lightest fully functional scissors I know of.

I doubt very much that you will find non-ferrous clippers and they wouldn’t hold an edge well if you could. Toenails are tough. If through hiking you could put some heavy duty clippers in your bounce box. An emery board file would be light and allow smoothing up big nails after hacking at them with small scissors.

[Kenneth Keating]

You could try using baby finger nail clippers which are a few grams lighter.

[Link .]

I use the baby fingernail clippers like Kenneth, and it is very easy to remove the glued on plastic cartoon picture to the top of them making them even lighter.

[Kevin S]

.6 oz SAK Classic Alox is the ticket.

I carried a pair of tiny folding nail clippers for the first 700 miles of the PCT this season, but found that the 58mm SAK scissors do everything I need. Including toenails, hangnails and callous removal.

[Don A.]

I’ve always managed my finger/toe nail clipping chores on a long hike with a classic swiss army knife. The file is also a good one for finishing trimmed fingernails.  I find the classic a marvel of useful tools in a single, compact and light package.  I just returned from 22 days on the trail and used my classic and it’s many tools every single one of them.

Granted, everyone has different “nails” and may require a more robust tool for trimming. My problem is being able to get close enough to my toes to trim the nails.  Age is a pain.

[David Thomas]

I’m another one on Team Classic.

21 grams and the scissors can trim my fingernails and my toenails.  And it has a knife, tweezers, and nail file.  For me, while the scissors suffice for my toenails, I want smoother fingernails, so I use the nail file to smooth them (or usually to do all the job).

Used, TSA-seized ones are on eBay, in lots of 1-5-10-20-50 for $5 to $2.50 per knife.

At that price, I often carry one with me while flying.  TSA only finds them 1 in 6 times.  42 cents per trip.  I’m doing my part for economy and to assist TSA in their security-theater performances.

[David Thomas]

I found some aluminum-bodied, steel-bladed nippers meant for fly fishermen.  I’m not sure they offer enough mechanical advantage for toenails, but they look cool.  If you think we spend too much on our toys, check out fly fishing gear.  $79.

[Matthew / BPL]

le gasp @$79 clippers

[MJ H]

Why don’t they just throw twenty dollar bills in the river and try to catch them with hooks before they float away?

[AK Granola]

I can’t believe you’re openly challenging the TSA, David. I’m horribly obedient to those jackboots and they still molest me every time, especially if I start my flight in Anchorage; they’re the worst. If anyone else touched me the way they do, I’d kick em in the… and then call police. I’ve filed complaints, asked our congressional delegates to take action, but the TSA are more powerful than our own elected officials, sad to say. I now dread flying more than anything.

Back to nail clipping. I haven’t been out hiking long enough to need to do toenails, which grow very slowly, and en emery board suffices for fingernails. I do regularly soften my toenails at home with epsom salt soaks and Shea butter, which helps when cutting with scissors. I also now make a point of sitting in a chair or the floor with feet near me, to stay flexible with aging. It’s definitely use it or lose it.

[David Thomas]

Karen: Then you’ll like this true story.  We were heading out of ANC one winter with our infant in a child carrier.  We were behind Ted Stevens back before he was convicted on 6 of 7 felony counts, not re-elected, and, well, dead.  Anyway, a TSA agent decided they needed to fondle our sleeping infant’s bottom to make sure he didn’t have an AK-47 or more than 3 ounces of liquid / gel back there.  I think (hope) they were aiming between the diaper and car seat but instead got between the diaper and the baby.  And there was more than 3 ounces of semi-solid material back there.  Suddenly everyone was rushing off the bathrooms to wash off.

Back to nail clipping:  Your comment about soaking gives my an idea: I always shave in a hot shower because my whiskers are softer then.  Likewise, nails are softer after they’ve soaked.  If someone was struggling with cutting toenails while hiking, they could do it after a lot of stream crossings and have an easier time of it.

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Neolithic man relied on pressure-flaked knives for nail trimming. COWBOY UP and user yer knife! ;o)

 

@ Karen, Just wait. As you age yer toenails (& fingernails) grow faster – and faster!

[John K]

Most stones seem to work pretty well. A fingernail/board (sandpaper on a Popsicle thingy…emeryboard) only weighs a couple grams.

[David Thomas]

Something that I, perhaps uniquely, sometimes hike with is a 2-inch length of 1-inch-wide plumber’s sandpaper.

It is waterproof, flexible, more abrasive then metals and can:
File a finger nail,
Sharpen a knife,
Smooth a burr on a metal object (tent pole, stake, pot, trekking pole, etc),
Smooth any wooden object,
Sharpen a fish hook,
Remove corrosion from your car’s battery terminals,
Give some “tooth” to a pad or tent prior to applying a patch,
Remove the most stubborn charred food from a pot,
and, you know, let you clean plumbing pipes.

[Dave Heiss]

I bet we could populate a whole thread with TSA stories. A recent one for me was flying out of Santa Barbara, and I had one of those ubiquitous Swiss Army mini’s with me. I decided to put it in my checked luggage. Right on top, no hiding even attempted. Hey, just being honest, right? Well at Santa Barbara all checked luggage is taken from you when you pass through security, so of course the little SAK was found when my luggage was unzipped for inspection. I was told by the TSA agent that he would have to confiscate it. I said why? I won’t even see this bag again until after the plane lands in Seattle. Didn’t matter he said. He found it, so he had to confiscate it. I can only assume they’re on a quota? I’m sure everyone on that flight felt safer knowing that no tiny knives were being carried in the plane’s luggage compartment.

Getting back to the OP’s topic, I’m with Kevin and carry the Swiss Army Clipper. Great multi-function set, and I don’t give TSA any chances to get their hands on it.

[Author]

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