[joyridin']

I am not sure I would worry about the length as much as where they are manufactured. A company I visit manufactures these pliers. They have the cheap line made in China with garbage forgings that don't exactly work correctly, or the USA made version that are totally machined from bar stock. The pitch on the Chinese versions aren't exactly correct, so you get bind-up when you are pulling the spinner back every 1.5 revolutions. With the USA version, there is no bind and pulling the spinner is smooth.

Granted you probably won't use them for a living like Stearman, but considering the wire is holding the spinner in place, maybe it is a bit more important than saving $30?