What wire strippers?

[Mark Black]

... You can set the depth screw, but no one ever does.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]43252[/ATTACH]

Nice to know I'm not unique in that - haha! My similar strippers actually have an offset thumbwheel depth adjust, but require a screwdriver so just stays set the same all the time. I think they came from Radio Shack several decades ago...

Edit: Ahh - here they are - Xcelite 103's:

[Enzo]

They work, and you can develop a high level of skill with them, a sense of feel cutting through the insulation. But once I got my pro tool, I never looked back.

[dmartn149]

I got these not super fast or fancy, but they work and don't give me any surprises.

[dmartn149]

I got these not super fast or fancy, but they work and don't give me any surprises.

[nosaj]

I got these not super fast or fancy, but they work and don't give me any surprises.[ATTACH=CONFIG]43457[/ATTACH]

I got these in a bulk handtool buy. They look like a manual version of the Paladin strippers Enzo described. They're made by Facom

nosaj

[Chuck H]

I'm using the nut adjust type shown first in post #2 (yellow handle) and then post #8 (red handle). I always thought I was missing something, but I guess not. Pretty easy to snip off a strand or two of conductor if you're not careful. I actually use the nut adjustment when "building" an amp because I can adjust it for, say, 22ga. and stuff the board or adjust it for 18ga. and wire up the filaments. When I'm working on multiple gauges, for mods or voicing a build, I just leave it adjusted small and "feel" my way in. You can definitely feel when you reach the conductor. Then I just relieve the pressure a tad before I strip. On fine stranded lead with a bunch of filaments I can still get some copper in the strip. NBD, there's a bunch of them. On lower strand count lead I've gotten pretty good at keeping them whole. This as it applies to chassis work. For a bench stripper I've read here that the thermal type is the way to go. Still need to get and try one of those.

[R.G.]

If you ever use one of these:
The PTS-10 Patco Inc wire strippers, thermal wire stripper, wire stripper cutter, wire cutter, cable stripper, coaxial cable stripper, wire stripping, cable stripping tool
you'll never go back to what you used to do before.

Heat up time is a few seconds. The wire is >> NEVER << nicked. The wire stop lets you get every wire stripped the same amount. The wire blade is hot enough to strip wires, but low enough thermal mass that it will not burn your fingers.

I got mine for about $30 from ebay, used. But they're only $65-$80 new, over the counter.

I repost this advice every time this question comes up on the assorted fora that I attend. Comes up about every year or so.

Edit: I got curious and went off to ebay. There's a PTS-10 there for $44, free shipping now. Although the ad is a little wonky - a buyer would do well to pin the seller down to whether it works or not, from the repetition of "no returns".

[Chuck H]

That looks pretty great. I bet there's be an issue stripping some jackets though. Like the faux cloth covered stuff, PTFE and silicone. I've used PTFE and silicone in builds that will be examined because my solder skills are mediocre and I hate jacket shrink. I've pretty much settled on irradiated PVC now because it performs really well compared to the plain stuff. Especially WRT shrink. I'd bet that stripping with heat would reduce shrink even further $80 (or even $44) is a jagged pill though when you already have a wire stripper. And that unit probably won't be next to the soldering supplies at Radio Shack or at the hardware store when you actually NEED a stripper. But I want one, I want one, I want one

[Tom Phillips]

...The PTS-10 Patco Inc wire strippers, thermal wire stripper...

I bought one after learning about it on MEF a few years ago and it is the best tool I have for stripping Teflon wire,