for you EMTs and other medical professionals: What brand of medical shears do you recommend? I would like them to be as heavy duty as possible. I have cheap ones, but I do not have very much confidence in them beyond light cutting. Can you educate me on how to choose the good ones? Thanks to all in advance.
I've been messing with cheap EMT/bandage scissors for a while and found that most of the cheap ones are remarkably strong and durable. The key to gaining confidence is to buy a pair and go out cutting stuff. I once took a pair I got at a local drugstore for about $4 out to a abandoned car, punched the pointier blade through the door panel and proceeded to cut a piece out of the steel a foot wide. Yes, they showed some wear, the pivot was a touch looser and the blades were a bit duller but it still worked.
I peened the rivet a bit to tighten them back up and took a file to the edges and they cut like new. I stuffed them into a emergency kit I pensioned off.
The way I check them is to look closely at the pivot to see that it is sturdy. The only pair that failed, and that after a lot of abuse, was one with a sloppy and undersized rivet. I like the ones with a sturdy screw but rivets work also. And rivets don't vibrate out and get lost.
Then I break out my Leatherman and use the knife blade and file to see if I can scratch the stainless near the cutting edges. The knife should leave little or no mark. The file, only a small mark. This tells you the steel is hard and likely to resist dulling. I also give the plastic over-mouldings on the handles a good twist and pull to make sure they won't quickly break or pull off.
It isn't a scientific study but of the EMT shears I've tried, all under $10, only the cheapest one failed, and that after some serious pounding. Just cutting bandages all of them would, IMHO, last indefinitely.