Shoutout to the guy who showed me I was stripping NM-B wrong

I been using my lineman's pliers to strip the outer jacket on Romex for like 5 years now, always nicking the wire insulation and just dealing with it. Saw an old electrician at a supply house in Columbus last week use a cheap razor knife at a flat angle instead, and it came out perfect every time with zero damage. Anyone else switched from pliers to a knife for stripping the outer jacket?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryanj601mo ago

Who really thought using pliers on a jacket was the right move in the first place? Honestly that's like trying to peel an orange with a sledgehammer, you're gonna get juice everywhere. Tbh I bet the old guy just laughed and handed you the knife, probably seen this a thousand times.

julia_jones721mo ago

Heard a sparky on a podcast say the same thing, said pliers just chew up the insulation over time compared to a good sharp knife. Makes sense, way cleaner cut.