How to not damages cables

[DiyNutJob]

How do I strip the outer jacket of a cable without damage to the inside of it? With a tight fitting cable, it takes a lot of effort.

While using heat gun on thick 4:1 heat shrink, if the heat isn't high enough, the shrink doesn't shrink. If the heat is high enough, it also melts the cable. So, how can this work?

 

[Diver Fred]

How do I strip the outer jacket of a cable without damage to the inside of it? With a tight fitting cable, it takes a lot of effort.

Score the outer sheath - just enough to penetrate the 'skin' of the cable then bend at the point of the score.
If it's flat cable with solid cores after doing the above cut through the cable at the end and locate the centre core, with pliers holding the wire use that to extend the cut in the sheath to the score line.

While using heat gun on thick 4:1 heat shrink, if the heat isn't high enough, the shrink doesn't shrink. If the heat is high enough, it also melts the cable. So, how can this work?

The heat shrink needs to be at least as long as the outlet of the heat gun, better twice as long as a minimum. Start the heat shrinking in the middle and once the shrinking starts work to wards the edges.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

How do I strip the outer jacket of a cable without damage to the inside of it? With a tight fitting cable, it takes a lot of effort.

For flex, you just nick the outer jacket around the circumference, without going all the way through, then bend the flex so the jacket splits at the nick. For T&E, you insert a blade along the side of the earth wire and follow the side that as far as you need to, peel the grey off, then trim it off.

While using heat gun on thick 4:1 heat shrink, if the heat isn't high enough, the shrink doesn't shrink. If the heat is high enough, it also melts the cable. So, how can this work?

The heat shrink will shrink long before the cable melts, because the heat shrink is much thinner.

 

[DiyNutJob]

The heat shrink will shrink long before the cable melts, because the heat shrink is much thinner.

My 4:1 heat shrink after shrinking is at least twice as thick as the wire jacket.

 

[DiyNutJob]

The heat shrink needs to be at least as long as the outlet of the heat gun, better twice as long as a minimum. Start the heat shrinking in the middle and once the shrinking starts work to wards the edges.

To shrink the edge, that ends up heating the cable. Same problem as described.

 

[DiyNutJob]

First time scoring on the cable is a bit scary. I spent hours doing crimps on that cable. The knife seemed be going too deep. This worked for me: shallow score, bend cable to open the "wound", then shallow score some more. Eventually, the jacket is thin enough to tear open by the bending.

 

[SimonH2]

While using heat gun on thick 4:1 heat shrink, if the heat isn't high enough, the shrink doesn't shrink. If the heat is high enough, it also melts the cable. So, how can this work?

When BT (would be BT OpenReach now) people are doing this, their joint kits include foil tape to wrap around the cable. The first time I watched this being used, I asked what it was for - it reflects the heat and stops the jacket melting just past the end of the heat shrink.

If it's flat cable with solid cores after doing the above cut through the cable at the end and locate the centre core, with pliers holding the wire use that to extend the cut in the sheath to the score line.

And if you were doing work for me, I'd "very insistently" tell you to scrap that piece of cable before removing yourself from site.