# Fishtape



## DMILL (Oct 26, 2010)

Whats the best fishtape you have used? ( how easy to un reel, and reel back up, and strength)


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## zwodubber (Feb 24, 2011)

my only experience is with Klein. I have a 25ft and 250ft. They both work but I hope their are better ones out there. Once they get damp or wet they start showing rust discoloration and become harder to unroll.

I have been looking at ideal as they have different materials to choose from. I am also looking for suggestions


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## DMILL (Oct 26, 2010)

Ya, i need to get a fishtape, and my JW's greenlee steel one sucks.


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## B W E (May 1, 2011)

DMILL said:


> Ya, i need to get a fishtape, and my JW's greenlee steel one sucks.


I have a GB 240' and a Klein 240'. The Klein has laser etched foot marking which is very handy. Any fish tape will rust if they get wet, and I'm pretty sure they're all made of the same stuff. I think I'll pick up one of the new Ideal tapes, which is a flat nylon, as opposed to the round nylon, which suck.


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## LARMGUY (Aug 22, 2010)

None of them.

We had a joke among our crew, if we were in an airplane and it was going down, we would want a fishtape because it would hang up on something before we crashed. My luck it would be the airplane.


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## zwodubber (Feb 24, 2011)

looks like blued steel and zoom versions resist rust, photo just taken from ideals new catalog


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## chewy (May 9, 2010)

I got so hacked off with mine jamming that I stomped the plastic casing it came in then fed it into some 25mm PVC conduit I made into a gentle 180. Its alot easier to deal with now, its only a 30m one though which is about 100ft I think.


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## zwodubber (Feb 24, 2011)

BTW, I use sticks for the majority of wall fishes and the tape on conduit runs


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## DMILL (Oct 26, 2010)

zwodubber said:


> BTW, I use sticks for the majority of wall fishes and the tape on conduit runs


Same here


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## Jlarson (Jun 28, 2009)

I love our Greenlee stainless steel tapes. Only time I use anything else is for aluminum conduit, then it's usually a Greenlee fiberglass or an ideal.


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## oww-is-that-hot? (Jun 26, 2011)

DMILL said:


> Whats the best fishtape you have used? ( how easy to un reel, and reel back up, and strength)


Ideal is the best. Absolutely hate GB and klein is a close second. Haven't tried greenLee yet though so cannot vouch for them. And never get the harbor freight brand it doesn't work after 5ft brand new.


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## fire65fighter (Jun 23, 2011)

zwodubber said:


> BTW, I use sticks for the majority of wall fishes and the tape on conduit runs


I love my Klein 12' stick set.


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## amptech (Sep 21, 2007)

I like my Greenlee stainless for everything except alum conduit. I have a Klein steel 240' as well but it isn't the quality of the Greenlee. Since I got my Milwaukee cordless vac I rarely use a fish tape in conduit. I never had too much luck pushing a fish tape in any pipe bigger than 1-1/2" if the run was very long and had more than (1) 90 in it.


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## MattMc (May 30, 2011)

I sold my greenlee 240 and got the Klein one with footmarkings, it was awesome but now has some minor rust... Wish they had stainless in stock when I bought mine.


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## B W E (May 1, 2011)

amptech said:


> I like my Greenlee stainless for everything except alum conduit. I have a Klein steel 240' as well but it isn't the quality of the Greenlee. Since I got my Milwaukee cordless vac I rarely use a fish tape in conduit. I never had too much luck pushing a fish tape in any pipe bigger than 1-1/2" if the run was very long and had more than (1) 90 in it.


In bigger conduit, tape a little shop rag to the leader and squirt some lube on it, goes through 10 times easier.


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## amptech (Sep 21, 2007)

B W E said:


> In bigger conduit, tape a little shop rag to the leader and squirt some lube on it, goes through 10 times easier.


In my experience, in bigger conduit, the fish tape coils and bunches up creating more drag than you can over-come by pushing. It is magnified x10 when you push a SS tape in aluminum conduit. The drag is way more than you can push. Aluminum is a non-skid surface to SS.


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## Cletis (Aug 20, 2010)

*not*

I havent' met one I liked yet. They all either jam up eventually or plan on losing 20-50ft per year. I like to start with 240ft ones...


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## erics37 (May 7, 2009)

Those orange flat nylon Ideal ones are pretty handy, but the leader head on it is really bulky. Hard to push through connectors sometimes. Otherwise they slide through like butter.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

200' Stainless is really the only way to go. It doesn't rust and is a bit more "slick" than just steel. I chose 200' so that I don't worry about needing to cut off 10' or so now and then for fishing through an outlet box or something.
I hate all of those years I used those rusty greasy steel fish tapes. Never again.


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## sparky970 (Mar 19, 2008)

Sandwich bag, string, and cordless vac. Anything bigger than 1 1/2" and a cordless vac doesn't have enough volume.


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## electrician2 (Oct 1, 2011)

B W E said:


> Any fish tape will rust if they get wet,


 
I roll mine all the way out every once in a while and WD40 the whole length of it.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

sparky970 said:


> Sandwich bag, string, and cordless vac. Anything bigger than 1 1/2" and a cordless vac doesn't have enough volume.


I have used my Dewalt cordless on a 300' run of 2" PVC with no problem.


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## kevmanTA (Jul 20, 2010)

We use a very old Greenlee, my problem, usually, is that I forget tape, and stuff it in the pipe with nothing to prevent it from getting hung up.

I should invest in a short 25' one, seems like recent runs are under 20'...


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## That's It? (Aug 31, 2011)

jrannis said:


> 200' Stainless is really the only way to go. It doesn't rust and is a bit more "slick" than just steel. I chose 200' so that I don't worry about needing to cut off 10' or so now and then for fishing through an outlet box or something.
> I hate all of those years I used those rusty greasy steel fish tapes. Never again.


 I agree with the longer length tape. I have a 100' greenlee that I think is down to 8' right now.


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## cdnelectrician (Mar 14, 2008)

I've always prefered Ideal's fishtapes, as long as you take care of them they seem to last quite awhile. Ideals little fishtapes that you can get at HD (25' I think) are garbage though.


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## dawgs (Dec 1, 2007)

A co2 tank, a mouse, and a bUcket of jet line.:thumbsup:


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## st0mps (Aug 19, 2009)

the ideal volt guard fish tape is waste of money it breaks and bends so easy they sells those in Lowes. most of the time at work its either a 100' klein fishtape or replacement snake with greenfield to hold it and greenlee nylon fishtape 100' shouldn't really need anything more then 100' on a fishtape


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## Flyinsparky (Feb 4, 2010)

reviving a dead thread!

ive used the off the shelf fish tapes and most are ok. the Klein 65' laser etched tape i had was ok for about 5 uses then went down hill from there. had to take the pile apart a few times undo the rats nest and rewind.

for the longer wire pulls or what i assume to be a hard pull i used the bosses old skool Lindsey wire puller. built like a tank and weighs as much as one with 250' of 1/8" in it. 










as a matter of fact i just picked one up from Craigslist for 10 dollars. all it needs is a new refill and away it goes.


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## eejack (Jul 14, 2012)

Flyinsparky said:


> reviving a dead thread!
> 
> ive used the off the shelf fish tapes and most are ok. the Klein 65' laser etched tape i had was ok for about 5 uses then went down hill from there. had to take the pile apart a few times undo the rats nest and rewind.
> 
> ...



Nice Craigslist find!

Welcome to the forum.


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## Flyinsparky (Feb 4, 2010)

thanks! been around since Feb of 2010, but i lurk and read the old threads when i can. most days when i get off work last thing i want to do is kill ALL my free time on electrician talk... i try and spread it around to the ford diesel pickup forums and welding forums.


back to topic, i love the Lindsey's and the panic it causes when a electrician gets a hold of one and trys to use it like the new fully enclosed plastic fish tapes. it states in bold letters do not rotate the drum with left hand. 

basically the tape will explode out of the drum if not used properly. and i assume y'all understand the fun of taking a fully wound fish tape apart can be.


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## Big John (May 23, 2010)

st0mps said:


> the ideal volt guard fish tape is waste of money it breaks and bends so easy they sells those in Lowes....


 I was trying to figure out what the hell it was made out of? I thought since they already had a nylon tape, maybe that one was coated steel, but I guess not....


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## Lone Crapshooter (Nov 8, 2008)

I have a Ideal Class S fishtape that was given to me. JUNK JUNK JUNK . I have had to have 2 ends put on it and it needs a third. The only good thing I can say about it is that I did not have to buy it.

LC


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## 12-Gauge (Aug 28, 2009)

*Buy Stainless Steel or Blued Steel Fish Tapes*



electrician2 said:


> I roll mine all the way out every once in a while and WD40 the whole length of it.


 
If you work on underground conduits (they get wet) or you work near the coast, spend the extra for Stainless Steel. For everyday conduit work, Blued Steel withstands rust better than regular steel tapes. IMHO.


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## Vintage Sounds (Oct 23, 2009)

I'm a big fan of the Ideal Zoom. Sadly the last time I worked for a contractor willing to buy one was two years ago


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## Lighting Bolt (Dec 2, 2011)

sparky970 said:


> Sandwich bag, string, and cordless vac. Anything bigger than 1 1/2" and a cordless vac doesn't have enough volume.





jrannis said:


> I have used my Dewalt cordless on a 300' run of 2" PVC with no problem.


Pull your wiring faster... I hear banjos. Are we workin' down on tha bayou?


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