now you guys got me worried. I bought the Orvis ceramic nippers three years ago and haven’t used them yet. Now I’m not looking forward to using them either.
A couple of friends of mine owned an Orvis store which they sold about 4 years ago. Even back then they stopped selling the ceramic nippers because the ceramic inserts fell out or worse.
That being said, I have been using the plain old Orvis metal nippers for as long as they have been made. I have tried a few other brands of similar design, as well as a few knock-offs of the Orvis design and none have worked as well for as long. I admit the price is ridiculous, but they give me many years of excellent service and have a handy eye clearing pin that WON’T jab you like other brands out there. They are one piece and can be sharpened easily since the blade edge is flush on the outside of the nippers. The blade edges being flush also makes it easier to cut off your tippet, flush to the hook eye. When the blade edges are recessed like they are on ceramic or other types with plastic handles, it is harder to see where you are cutting which can lead to a cut on the hook eye which will dull or break your nippers in short order.
I went the plain old Trim or Old Pal nail clipper route many years ago, but when they are aren’t folded up, they catch on stuff when hung from a zinger. When they are folded up, you have to unfold them to use them. Not a huge deal but a PIA I prefer to avoid. There are also three parts to a regular nail clipper. If you buy a cheapo pair, expect them to fall apart at the most inopportune time at some point. Of course you can ditch the lever and pin and use them as a one piece nipper but they are harder to squeeze together than the one piece fishing nippers designed to work without a lever.
Finally, if you are inclined to worry about such things, regular nail clippers only come in one finish, bright shiny fish scaring chrome. Could you sand them to dull the finish or paint them black, of course but I’d rather be fishing than painting nail clippers. 
JMHO
Go get yourself a pair of those Orvis nippers. I have a pair of nailclippers on my warmwater vest…what a pain!
I initally put off buying the Orvis type thinking how in the world could those blades remain sharp and not get dulled and … Man, was I surprised.
I’ve had mine for 8 seasons now. A fine, fine tool!
Nail clippers are a PITA!!
Thanks for the heads up Bob. 8)
After trying what must be every tippet cutting device on the market over the past 40 years, I most like the Angler’s Image nippers. Not the ones with the retractable pin and little D ring (the pin seems to “un-retract” right when my fingers are in firing zone!). The model I prefer is dull, plain high quality Japanese stainless (also come in black), with a shielded pin at the tail, a nice sized head (not too wide nor too narrow), and is razor sharp. They aren’t all that pricey, compared to a lot of other junk that we tote around. For really small stuff, there is a Japanese model that Orvis used to carry that has razor sharp blades, a retractable threader under the lower blade that’s better than the C&F type, and an adjustable magnifier that can be positioned over the threader and/or blades so you don’t cut the wrong part of the tippet–a bit pricey, but worth every penny if you fish midges and are over 45! For heavy mono, I’d go to something like scissor clamps and save the nippers for fine tippet.
-CC
I’ll basically agree with BAM. I’m all about convenience when it comes to fishing tools. Used the nail clippers for years. Now, I prefer fishing clippers for the reasons bam stated.
Fritz - don’t fret. I’ve used the ceramic ones for about 4 years beause they remained sharper longer than others I’ve use. I just this week threw away my last pair of ceramic nippers after two years of use. The biggest issue I’ve had is you can’t resharpen them. So once they’re dull that’s it. They will also chip. I just bought a metal clipper from Orvis. It’s fine but doesn’t cut as easily as the ceramic. Here’s two tips that seemed to work for me when using the ceramic ones.
Use the middle of the blade for clipping knots off flies and for heavy mono (2x or larger). This will help prevent the blade from chipping if, like me, you sometimes catch the hook eye.
Use the blade ends for fine tippet work and clipping tag ends.
Do this and you’ll get a couple of years out of them. Since some people said the bades fall out you might want to put a drop of super glue on each piece. I never had an issue but a small drop of prevention sounds like a good precaution.
Cross creek - thanks for the tip. I’ve been through too many nippers looking for the holy grail of nippers. It’s much cheaper having you do the work.
Tie-Fast clippers are designed to be easily sharpened, and they have an excellent nail knot tool attached.