Are Auto-Adjusting Wire Stripping Tools For You?

-

Joeychgo

FABO Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Apr 24, 2005
Messages
4,697
Reaction score
6,622
Location
Chicago, Illinois
Buy the Summit Racing Spring-Loaded Wire Stripping Tool at: Summit Racing® Spring-Loaded Wire Stripping Tools SUM-900031R

Pin Crimper: Summit Racing® Weather-Tite Crimping Tools SUM-900401

I also found this one on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CXKOEQ6/?tag=joeychgo-20

Electrical work on cars, buggies or trucks can be a lot of fun because you can make your work your own. There are many options from slamming it together to spending more time on complex and clean wiring solutions. So many cool things can be done. That is why we normally ditch any factory wiring harness that comes with lights and make up our own. Sometimes these wires are less than desirable to work with as they are tiny wires caked in insulation to give the user the feeling they are getting what they paid for. Stripping this wire can be a pain with normal wire strippers. Picking the right gauge is not easy and with Jeff's failing eyesight close up we had to make some adjustments.

While looking for parts, we found that Summit Racing has an Auto-Adjusting Wire Stripping Tool. This tool will strip anything from 10 to 24 gauge wire without the need to pick the right place. The tool also has cutters, crimpers and other electrical tools inside the handle. This tool is $18 dollars and was well worth trying! What we found was a tool that made stripping wire simple and fun. This tool will easily strip wires of varying gauge back to back without changing anything. This was great while working to wire a group of switches at the bench and even better while working inside the Can-Am X3 for small wiring projects.

While there are a lot of upsides to this tool, it does have one downside. If you do not strip the proper amount of insulation the first time, you have a 50/50 chance of it stripping more the second go around. Sometimes it will strip a bit more no issue and other times it will just chew up that small section without removing it. With a little practice, you will rarely have that happen. Check out our video below to watch us use this tool and explain how awesome it is to use on UTV wiring.


 
I sold hundreds of them on the tool truck like that. The don't cut the insulation though. They grip and tear as you can see in the photo. They work well with new wire but not so swell with old hard insulation.
 
My son bought me the Lowe’s brand of these. I use them all the time. They work great!
 
I have used this style for years, and they are great in tight spaces.
s-l640.jpg
 
I've never had a pair of the automatic strippers that lasted more than a few months. I'd much rather have a couple sets of Greenlee or Klein to cover everything from 30-8 ga.
 
I have a very similar one from the 1980's

It does have gauge specific half circle stripper sections but after stripping- it pushes the stripper jaw back into the wire, bending the newly exposed section if solid, or fraying it if stranded.

So, put me down as "no".

For ten bucks I prefer these-

032886908477.jpg


Back when I was an electrician's apprentice I actually preferred standard straight wire cutters. If you use them enough you can feel when you are through the insulation without nicking the conductor, and it's one less tool to carry.
 
I found one of these mechanical ones, name brand. always used the $.99 (red stamped steel version) stripper before that. Its nice that you can make a tap in the middle of a wire with them. Good stuff.
 
Same as in post #6 for the last 30 years. Work great once you learn how to use them. Wow, does that make sense ?!
 
Just got the Klein strippers last week. Very nice. Easy to use. I’ve had good luck with Klein products
 
Last edited:
Last week at work I was getting ready to do some work and walked into our office and said
"I need a Knife, a Tweeker, a Stripper, & a pair of Dykes." The girl I work with says- sounds like the makings of a movie.

In the electronics biz, a Tweeker is a tiny screwdriver.
 
don't forget the rigid nipples...
 
-
Back
Top