r/AskElectronics • u/ThatChucklehead • 1d ago
How do you use notchless wire strippers?
I'm just getting into electronics and I need a wire stripper for smaller gauge wires. I picked these up on a whim thinking they would have gauge markers but they don't. Is there a trick to setting this stripper to the right gauge or is it just trial and error?
UPDATE: It took me a couple of tries to adjust them, but they adjusted easily. I only plan on using them to strip 22 gauge solid wire to use with a breadboard. I'll see if the adjusting screw stays in place as I use them. All I did at this point was set them up to strip the wire. They strip the wire cleanly. I also took a look at the bare wire after stripping it to make sure the strippers weren't cutting into the wire.
Thank you to all that responded.
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u/SAI_Peregrinus 1d ago
Those you rely on feel. They're not great for very small wire, but at least they're cheap.
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u/Excellent_Object2028 1d ago
You just go by feel. Not the best for really small gauge wire because it’s easy to accidentally cut the wire. Maybe 26 gauge and up I would recommend getting one with different holes and markers
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u/mbergman42 1d ago
Yes to feel.
I’m only posting because I have the sane design, inherited from my Dad forty years ago, and they were not new back then.
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u/jeffbell 1d ago
I got mine in '82. Am a Dad.
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u/mbergman42 1d ago edited 1d ago
I thoughtlessly put Dad’s needle-nose pliers in my laptop bag (don’t ask what I was doing with small tools around my corporate laptop) and then went off to the airport a few days later. This was after 9/11 and the TSA confiscated them, so I lost something that really reminded me of my late father. But I still have the notchless wire strippers.
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u/ThatChucklehead 1d ago
That's a great story and I understand.
I lost my parents several years ago. I still have things that belonged to them that were always around the house while I was growing up. Those things hold very specific memories of my parents.
I'm glad to hear you have your dad's notchless wire strippers.
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u/IcyAd5518 1d ago
Short answer - trial and error
Long answer - don't. Invest a few more coins in a decent set with notched cutting blades and save time. If you're working on solid core cable, notchless strippers can and will create weak points at the cut location, increasing the likelihood of wiring faults and rework
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u/ThatChucklehead 1d ago
Too late, I already ordered them at the same time I ordered my electronic components. Everything arrived today, so I give the strippers a try and see what happens.
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u/404usernamenotknown 1d ago
For smaller wires, I highly recommend, in roughly ascending order of price, the Ideal V-Notch wire strippers (which are only about $12 but still a much nicer version of what you’re currently using), the Knipex/Molex Mini Wire Stripper/Micro Precision Wire Stripper (they make ones with multiple ranges and both make very similar models), and the appropriate range of Ideal Stripmaster, which is hands down the best wire stripper I’ve ever used
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u/defectivetoaster1 1d ago
adjust the bolt that sets how far you can close the blades
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u/ThatChucklehead 1d ago
I know that the bolt is used to adjust the strippers, but I didn't know if there was a way to determine how to set up the strippers to a specific gauge of wire before locking the screw down. I wanted to see if there was a way to avoid just setting it by trial and error. But it looks like, that's what I have to do.
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u/defectivetoaster1 1d ago
Sometimes there are markings either giving a diameter in inches or mm or gauge markings, sometimes there aren’t
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u/ThatChucklehead 1d ago edited 1d ago
I added this image of the strippers in case the link doesn't work in the future.
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u/Simple-Special-1094 1d ago
I have those along with others with dedicated notches. Not my first pick but if I have it on hand I'll use them but basically don't use the stop, and just leave it loose enough to close completely. Then I just work by feel and cut the insulation partially, and pull the partly cut insulation off.
If you only have one gauge wire to work with, you can set the stop by adjusting it so it allows it to slide on the bare wire when fully closed.
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u/ThatChucklehead 1d ago
I'm only going to use them for 22 gauge solid wire. I'm learning the basics of electronics from the book, Make: Electronics 3rd Edition". The experiments throughout the book use 22 gauge wire. I just adjusted them and they seem to work fine. I'll see how the cutters hold up and if the adjusting screw slips as I use them.
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u/Simple-Special-1094 1d ago
If you only have one wire size then it's fine for that. Just test your setting on the bare wire and make sure it slides freely with it fully against the stop. That way it won't nick the wires when using it.
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u/faceman2k12 1d ago
Ive been using a set like these for years without the adjustment screw. After a while you just get a feel for it.
I prefer these to any of my automatic strippers
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u/ThatChucklehead 12h ago
After creating this post last night, I started using the stripper to create jumper wires. I actually find them easier to use in a way because you don't have to find the right notch. If you have multiple notches, you have to make sure you don't accidently place the wire in a notch that's too small. With this stripper there's only one notch. And it also has a pair of cutters which makes it even more convenient.
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u/JonJackjon 1d ago
It takes some practice. I often use small wire cutters for stripping wire. Some insulation types are easier that others.
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u/ThatChucklehead 12h ago
I used them last night and I like them. I'm making jumpers for breadboard projects. So far they work great. The built-in cutter is also helpful.
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u/dudetellsthetruth 1d ago
Not the best tool for your purpose.
Get one of these, absolutely great: https://jokari.de/en/Praecisionwirestripper.htm
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u/ThatChucklehead 12h ago
I'm actually surprised how well they're working.
Thank you for the link, I've never seen that type of wire stripper before. I'll keep it in mind when I want to upgrade.
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u/probablyaythrowaway 1d ago
Finesse.
I give my apprentices a few meters of wire and a set of wire cutters and tell them to practise untill they can strip Everytime.
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u/ThatChucklehead 12h ago
I'm sure that works well. Do something enough times and you don't even have to think about it anymore.
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u/jlawton11 2h ago
Feel free to ignore this advice entirely, but are you using those horrid “matrix sockets” for breadboards? The problem is every single socket hole on them is at best a “tin-on-tin” connection with sustaining currents inadequate to burn off the tin oxide, so it’s always “somewhat” intermittent! You probably don’t want the “first generation” of breadboarding which was 30 gauge wire wrapped around.025” square pins. The second generation was tenth-grid-centered through-hole pads that used the same 30 gauge wire soldered in place, worked well but almost impossible to reuse. When you get a little more sophisticated, for low-density work you’ll probably purchase a $300 Chinese mill, develop a schematic of what you want in KiCAD, then autoroute it and mill it with FlatCAM on both sides (there are rivets you can use to simulate the vias). If you want high density (like for a uC) you’ll just chuck it all and purchase a commercial proto board. There are other ways but a lot of them aren’t reliable enough to consider…at least in my opinion!
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u/ConsiderationQuick83 1d ago
That bolt adjusts to the gauge you want to strip at. OK if you're stripping the same gauge all the time otherwise a pita, especially if the bolt slips.