Cable stripper

[Trazor]

When you use the cheese wire method, the CPC always ends up longer than the live conductors.

That is caused by excess play in the sheath, no one has the strength to actually stretch the CPC.

 

[RF Lighting]

How can it be play in the sheath. You start with a cable which has been cut square, so all three conductors are the same lencth. When you have stripped the cable, the CPC is at least 5mm longer than the copper in the live conductors. I could quite easily snap a CPC should I have the urge for some strange reason.

 

[electronicsuk]

While I agree that the cheesewire method of stripping T&E cable isn't the best I don't believe in this stretching the cpc business.
I didn't believe it when I was told about it 20 odd years ago and I don't believe it now.

Same here. And regardless of which side of the fence you sit, nobody has yet been able to provide any evidence that this method of stripping T+E is damaging to the cable.

 

[RF Lighting]

I'll post some photos after lunch.

 

[electronicsuk]

I'll post some photos after lunch.

I've just has a go for myself, and have to admit to being partly wrong. Stripped back approx. 150mm of sheath from 2.5mm T+E directly off the reel. The CPC ended up approximately 3mm longer than the live conductors. However, by flexing the sheathed portion of the cable up to the point where the sheath has been removed and then straightening out again, all conductors including CPC returned to the same length. This would lead me to believe that the 'play in the sheath' theory is very likely correct.

I still find it very hard to believe that the amount of force required to strip the sheath using the CPC would be anywhere near enough to stretch the copper.