# What to use when stripping romex?



## 480sparky

Just about every tool maker these days has special strippers for NM.


----------



## Gents

Is there anything that does all different types of cable? other then a knife?


----------



## 480sparky

Gents said:


> Is there anything that does all different types of cable? other then a knife?


They're designed to cut through just the sheath and not the insulation on the wires inside. Some only do one size (14/2 or 12/2), some do both. I think one model does 10/2.

The bottom photo is one that does both 12 and 14. That will do 98% of the stripping needed in resi wiring.


----------



## electricalperson

i like to use one of these







you can also use your lineman pliers or a razor knife. a razor knife is easier to mess up with


----------



## william1978

electricalperson said:


> i like to use one of these


Yes sir, I love my hawkbill.:thumbup:


----------



## daddymack

william1978 said:


> Yes sir, I love my hawkbill.:thumbup:


 
old schoolers:notworthy:. I use whatever is nearby. Don't do much romex.


----------



## william1978

daddymack said:


> old schoolers:notworthy:. I use whatever is nearby. Don't do much romex.


 I don't do that much romex either, but my hawkbill will tear up some 500 and 600 mcm. oops I called it MCM and not KCMIL.


----------



## electricalperson

william1978 said:


> I don't do that much romex either, but my hawkbill will tear up some 500 and 600 mcm. oops I called it MCM and not KCMIL.


i use mine like that too. usually before i start stripping stuff like that i sharpen it for a few minutes and go to work


----------



## heel600

480sparky said:


> Just about every tool maker these days has special strippers for NM.


 
That bottom one from Klein is EXACTLY the one you want. Very ergonomic!

You can strip 10ga solid with the 14-2 hole too! 

I use the 14-2 hole to strip everything up to a 4 ga. Practice makes perfect!


----------



## BIGRED

Try the T&B s-stripper #s18-223 or 18-223, strips 14 & 12 on one side and 10 on the other. I have been using the s type for years.


----------



## Greg

I also use the Klien in the bottom picture and love it. Nice clean, professional strip. Actually had an inspector ask how I got the straight edge on romex, I showed him and he liked them also.


----------



## nolabama

do not use your linesman pliers, 9's, kliens or whatever they are called were your at - i have heard and do not know the validity of this but i have heard that if you use your kliens they can mess up arc fault breakers


----------



## Bruce H.

*Romex Strippers*

I like the Ideal #45-621 model. The latch on the Klein gets in the way, bumps into the locked position. The Ideal locks and fits into J boxes better.


----------



## MF Dagger

nolabama said:


> do not use your linesman pliers, 9's, kliens or whatever they are called were your at - i have heard and do not know the validity of this but i have heard that if you use your kliens they can mess up arc fault breakers


I think more accurately Klein's can mess up romex


----------



## MechanicalDVR

It's very rare that our company uses romex, the last job I was on that the guys were using it they had a small yellow tool from Ideal that you slide on the cable and it slits the jacket, it has a blade to cut the jacket and a built in stripper. Found it...
*Lil' Ripper Stripper™*

*Catalog # 45-025*










*Features*


Rips ROMEX® outer jacket cleanly and quickly.
Clips outer sheathing to remove excess ROMEX® jacket.
Strips inner conduit wires.
Looping holes loop wire for screw-on connections.
Twist-Assist™ tightens most popular sizes of winged twist-on wire connectors.
Injection molded elastomer grip provides a comfortable, slip resistant grip.
Strip length measuring scale allows for quick and easy measurements.
Conveniently fits in your pocket.
*Product Resources*


45-025 Lil' Ripper Brochure (PDF - 1102K)


ROMEX® is a registered trademark of Southwire Company


----------



## electricalperson

the worst romex strippers are those cheap stamped metal ones. i bought an electricians tool kit from greenlee and it came with one. i threw it away still in the package. i hate those things

using that sheepfoot knife ill never go back to anything else. razorblades work pretty well but i find its easier to mess up romex with. 

i had a set of those klein romex strippers and i ended up giving them to my helper who lost his pair


----------



## gilbequick

When I was doing houses this is the only stripper I used, and it saved me TON of time. I'd get a new pair every few months just so I'd have a sharp edge. I've tried the Kleins and the Ideals and I like the Kleins way better.

KLEIN TOOLS - Klein Connection: Strippers, Cutters, Crimpers - Wire Strippers/Cutters - Klein-Kurve® Dual NM Cable Strippers/Cutters - K1412


----------



## randomkiller

Caulk one up for the old timer with the hawkbill.


----------



## mattsilkwood

ive got one of the kline 12-2 14-2. i dont even know if they will open anymore, in the rare event that we get a romex job i normally dont have to do it.

imo romex is good for tieing down ladders and temping lights


----------



## MDShunk

Call me crazy, but this is all I've ever used. Never had a lick of trouble. It's good for opening boxes too:


----------



## gilbequick

Yeah but you've still got to use a pair of strippers for your terminations. The sheathing strippers are great for recessed cans and some 3 and 4 gang switch boxes. Everything else gets the utility knife.


----------



## Pierre Belarge

MDShunk said:


> Call me crazy, but this is all I've ever used. Never had a lick of trouble. It's good for opening boxes too:


 

When I was in the field, this is what I used as well. I tried some of the other tools, but always came back to the knife...it is a multiuse tool as well.


----------



## electricalperson

i like razor knives but id rather use my hawksbill knife. all i haveto do is sharpen it and not worry about replacing blades. a nice sharp hawkbill is just as good as anything else


----------



## niteshift

I too always liked using razor knives to strip wire/cable with, that is until I found something I believe to be better, at least for me. A utility folding razor knife. They come in multitude of finishes/colors so it is easy to find one pleasing to your eyes. Has a belt clip, on board blade storage. Don't have a picture, but you can google it. they work great.


----------



## JohnJ0906

MDShunk said:


> Call me crazy, but this is all I've ever used. Never had a lick of trouble. It's good for opening boxes too:


Same here. Works for all kinds of things, and never needs sharpening - just change the blade.


----------



## rude boy splicer

I always use my razor knife. The thing i don't like about the jacket strippers is that it's not as easy to get to the back of the box. I'm just used to using a knife i guess.


----------



## 480sparky

rude boy splicer said:


> I always use my razor knife. The thing i don't like about the jacket strippers is that it's not as easy to get to the back of the box. I'm just used to using a knife i guess.


Strip it, _then_ stuff it in the box. :thumbsup:

BTW, welcome to the forum!


----------



## rude boy splicer

480sparky said:


> Strip it, _then_ stuff it in the box. :thumbsup:
> 
> BTW, welcome to the forum!


Haha, thanks for the welcome! Thing is, I usually land all my wire in the boxes and label it, then come back when i'm finished roping and splice it all. Seems like every job i run comes with tons of adds and changes... "yeah the owner wants some puck lights in that little niche over there." I know it's T and M but i hate pulling already spliced wires out of a box because i have to change a three gang box to a four for example.


----------



## Kevin J

I have done service work where arc faults are tripping. Come to find out, a razor knife was used to strip the jacket off. I'm not saying that a guy thats been using a razor knife for a while will nick the wire, but for someone new, I'd make them use a multi-stripper like the klein 1412.


----------



## 480sparky

rude boy splicer said:


> Haha, thanks for the welcome! Thing is, I usually land all my wire in the boxes and label it, then come back when i'm finished roping and splice it all. Seems like every job i run comes with tons of adds and changes... "yeah the owner wants some puck lights in that little niche over there." I know it's T and M but i hate pulling already spliced wires out of a box because i have to change a three gang box to a four for example.


So if it's already made up, what difference would it make how you stripped the sheath of the NM?

Here's my method: Any NM in a switch box that isn't a switch leg or switch loop doesn't get marked. It's power, either in or out. Switch legs & loops get a slight crimp with the strippers near the end. If there's more than one 'gang', the left switch leg/loop gets one crimp. The next switch to the right gets two, the next three.... etc.

Then, when I come back to stuff the box, I have made each cable recognizable. If there's no crimps, I strip 'em and stuff 'em. If there's a crimp, I strip it, stuff it, then move the appropriate conductors to the appropriate location at the top of the box, as noted by the number of crimps.

When I start to make the box up, I have all my hots & neutrals along the bottom of the box, and the switch legs & loops placed left to right along the top of the box. All the grounds get made up, pushed to the back, with a pigtail for each device. Then the neutrals, pigtailing if needed. Then I make up the hots, with a pigtail for each switch if needed. 

All made up, and each set of conductors for each device is twisted slightly together. Switch legs and commons get swapped around the hot/ground/travelers, and each set of conductors is placed in a folded manner into the box.

When I come back to trim, each set of wires is already in place, awaiting a device. If there's two wires and a ground for a switch, it's a single pole. Three wires, it's a three-way, and the common is wrapped around the others. Four-ways have both pair of travellers twisted together, and the ground lightly wrapped around the 4.


----------



## Kevin J

480sparky said:


> So if it's already made up, what difference would it make how you stripped the sheath of the NM?
> 
> Here's my method: Any NM in a switch box that isn't a switch leg or switch loop doesn't get marked. It's power, either in or out. Switch legs & loops get a slight crimp with the strippers near the end. If there's more than one 'gang', the left switch leg/loop gets one crimp. The next switch to the right gets two, the next three.... etc.
> 
> Then, when I come back to stuff the box, I have made each cable recognizable. If there's no crimps, I strip 'em and stuff 'em. If there's a crimp, I strip it, stuff it, then move the appropriate conductors to the appropriate location at the top of the box, as noted by the number of crimps.
> 
> When I start to make the box up, I have all my hots & neutrals along the bottom of the box, and the switch legs & loops placed left to right along the top of the box. All the grounds get made up, pushed to the back, with a pigtail for each device. Then the neutrals, pigtailing if needed. Then I make up the hots, with a pigtail for each switch if needed.
> 
> All made up, and each set of conductors for each device is twisted slightly together. Switch legs and commons get swapped around the hot/ground/travelers, and each set of conductors is placed in a folded manner into the box.
> 
> When I come back to trim, each set of wires is already in place, awaiting a device. If there's two wires and a ground for a switch, it's a single pole. Three wires, it's a three-way, and the common is wrapped around the others. Four-ways have both pair of travellers twisted together, and the ground lightly wrapped around the 4.



Sounds like a good plan to me. Its the way I do it also. Strip it before you stuff it makes for a neater job too.


----------



## oldman

randomkiller said:


> Caulk one up for the old timer with the hawkbill.


'chalk':whistling2:


----------



## aricsavage

MDShunk said:


> Call me crazy...


 I'm with MD on this one, but mines good to have on you after work too.


----------



## TheRick

Greg said:


> I also use the Klien in the bottom picture and love it. Nice clean, professional strip. Actually had an inspector ask how I got the straight edge on romex, I showed him and he liked them also.


These are the cats A$$! I use them on the rough-in before the cable goes into the box, leave the outer insulation in place...go back later and slide it off to expose your conductors and terminate. :thumbsup:


----------



## Control Freak

nolabama said:


> do not use your linesman pliers, 9's, kliens or whatever they are called were your at - i have heard and do not know the validity of this but i have heard that if you use your kliens they can mess up arc fault breakers


 

What? why would your linemans mess uo arc faults? that isn't a valid point. I use my linemans to skin about three inches off and then grab the rip cord or any wire inside and give it a tug and the insulation splits right off and then grab the insulation itself and peel it back. then cut off the first couple of inches that you stripped where it culd be nicked! 

How would that affect arc-fault cb's?


----------



## 480sparky

Control Freak said:


> What? why would your linemans mess uo arc faults? that isn't a valid point. I use my linemans to skin about three inches off and then grab the rip cord or any wire inside and give it a tug and the insulation splits right off and then grab the insulation itself and peel it back. then cut off the first couple of inches that you stripped where it culd be nicked!
> 
> How would that affect arc-fault cb's?


He's referring to using the tools to cut the sheath, but you can cut the insualtion as well. If you cut the insulation deep enough, you create an arc-fault condition, and the AFCI breaker will trip.


----------



## rude boy splicer

480 wrote:So if it's already made up, what difference would it make how you stripped the sheath of the NM?

Oh, it wouldn't.

What i do: Mount all the boxes. Start roping all my wire, as I land my nm's in boxes I label them with a sharpie (for instance: hot, sl, sl center light, sl perimiter cans etc. All my things are labeled to avoid confusion in case changes happen later. Then, when all my wire (or most of all) is roped stapled and stacked I make the boxes up.


----------



## 480sparky

rude boy splicer said:


> ....What i do: Mount all the boxes. Start roping all my wire, as I land my nm's in boxes I label them with a sharpie (for instance: hot, sl, sl center light, sl perimiter cans etc. All my things are labeled to avoid confusion in case changes happen later. Then, when all my wire (or most of all) is roped stapled and stacked I make the boxes up.


We do the same thing, in essence, but I don't use a sharpie. I just use a tool already in my hand with I cut the wire..... my strippers.


----------



## gilbequick

I also use a sharpie, every wire gets labeled. Not just for me but mainly so I could check behind apprentices. I've had to fix MANY cut in mistakes. It's a lot tougher to check if you can't quickly tell what's what.


----------



## 2towbot

I agree with Rude, its all those OBTW oh by the way can i get a
light in that corner or we added an entertainment center ..........
nothing sux more than tearing apart boxes that you have already made up
not cost effective doing things twice. So i try to do a walk around with the owners or General and sell em on what i see thay have missed in the prints.
Then it becomes T&M and the job profit goes up.
Dave


----------



## BIGRED

Hey 480 Sparky, I like the way you cut in boxes, that's just the way that I do it! Ever tried an "S" stripper?


----------



## 480sparky

BIGRED said:


> Hey 480 Sparky, I like the way you cut in boxes, that's just the way that I do it! Ever tried an "S" stripper?


No. I stay away from the Red Light district.












Actually, I use Ideals Reflex Super 45-618.


----------



## Nosparxsse

These things save a lot of time...

All I use!!:thumbsup::thumbsup:

The former version of this Klein had a straight cut at the bottom, but they started using a jagged one on these new ones.(makes easier for cutting multiple wires...lasts longer)
Greenlee was using the old design for a while, but haven't found any lately..


----------



## Nosparxsse

Here's one......


----------



## 480sparky

Nosparxsse said:


> These things save a lot of time...
> 
> All I use!!:thumbsup::thumbsup:
> 
> The former version of this Klein had a straight cut at the bottom, but they started using a jagged one on these new ones.(makes easier for cutting multiple wires...lasts longer)
> Greenlee was using the old design for a while, but haven't found any lately..


 
I have those, but only use them when I'm wearing my SFD hat. I still have my 618s handy for stripping the insualtion off 10, 8 & 6.


----------



## Lz_69

electricalperson said:


> the worst romex strippers are those cheap stamped metal ones. i bought an electricians tool kit from greenlee and it came with one. i threw it away still in the package. i hate those things
> 
> using that sheepfoot knife ill never go back to anything else. razorblades work pretty well but i find its easier to mess up romex with.
> 
> i had a set of those klein romex strippers and i ended up giving them to my helper who lost his pair


I use my pocket knife 99% of the time, and sometimes my utility blade if I left it at home but I don't like to because you have no feel and it's so much easier to nick a wire with one.

As for the stamped rippers the standard ones like this are not too bad. I have an old hand me down one for when I need a bunch of wire for pigtails.

http://www.tequipment.net/Ideal45-018.asp

One of the guys I work with saw mine and bought the Greenlee side entry one and I saw him struggling with it so I gave it a try and they are total garbage compared to the standard ones because they they have a tendency to twist as you pull them and nick into wire.

http://www.tequipment.net/Ideal45-118.asp


----------

