Old timer told me I was stripping wires wrong

Guy with 40 years in the trade watched me use my lineman's pliers and told me I was nicking the copper. He showed me his method with a dedicated stripper and I haven't had a broken strand since. Anybody else have a stubborn old habit an old head broke?

3 comments

3 Comments

blair_martin17d ago

Caught myself doing the same thing for years until a crusty old electrician basically laughed at me for using my linesmans like a caveman. Now I feel dumb every time I reach for a stripper but my wires are way cleaner.

tylerj2217d ago

You might actually have a better grip for twisting wires together after stripping them clean.

anthony12917d ago

Man I heard this exact thing from a guy on a job site a few months back. He said he's been doing this for 30 years and he told me that using lineman's pliers to strip is like using a sledgehammer to crack an egg. You might get it done but you're leaving a mess behind. He showed me how he strips with a regular pair of strippers and even lets the tool do the work instead of yanking. It's wild how much cleaner the copper is when you stop fighting the tool.