In many European countries (I'm in Belgium), this is practically all you need to wire an entire newbuild house. 2.5mm² for sockets, 1,5mm² for lighting and we always use either round PVC equivalent (these days you often need to use halogen-free cables, so no chloride) cable, or preflex. Never see any of that weird romex stuff :) Nearly all cables terminate in wallboxes, often drywall and it can be a pain to strip in tight quarters. These pliers are one of the many solutions available. It's funny, when a tool is not common in the USA, there is often very little on youtube, amazon reviews, etc.
That sounds so nice. I do a lot of repair on old RV and long ago diy wiring jobs, so it's sort of a dice roll each time as to what wire/hardware/fasteners will be there when I dig in. It's good to have options in the toolbox. 😁
Ya in the US you see Romex instead those applications which you use cable rippers for that. Rom x is basically the same thing but the external jacket is much looser and it has a layer of paper insulation between the wire insulation and the outer jacket.
@@courier11sec Yea I know what you mean, that's why I specifically said newbuild house :) We have a lot of +100 years old monstrosities over here; toolbox options are essentials indeed, why else are we watching this channel :p
@@keldon_champion In the UK, you also see this twin&earth flat cable, which is rather similar (no paper though, I believe). On the continent I've never seen flat cable being used except for appliance cords.
@@koffibanan3099 in Germany flat cable was used(not common) in the sixties to eighties for "inputz Verlegung" "in plaster installation"( without tubes,On the raw wall and then plastered over it)
I do 12v wiring on boats. Traditional strippers have too many limitations. This tool would be great for battery cables. For smaller wires I use the Knipex Autostrip which is fantastic. Ordering a pair of dismantling pliers today. Thanks!
I've always liked your videos because you have dug so deep into tool usage that you know to identify that some tools are made for the American market and some are not. Industry norms vary greatly from region to region. Those pliers look like they would also work great here in Asia for household appliance wiring where most of the 10-13 amp rated wires are around the size of that main stripping jaw. Conversely, it's hard to find hardware stores here in Asia that stock Klein tools, (even high end ones) because the industry norms and users are so often sized differently. I love my Fujiya Lineman pliers more than my Kleins not because the Kleins are good but simply because the Fujiya's are sized right for me and the work I do here in Asia.
If you can, klein has one of the best automatic adjusting wire strippers available. Klein Tools 11061 Wire Stripper 10-20 AWG solid 12-22 AWG stranded wire, so .5mmsq to 6mmsq and .34mm to 4mm stranded, but I've used them on thinner stranded wire down to 26AWG or .14mmsq. As for pliers, I use a complete grab bag, who knows what brand each time.
By “dismantling”, one means removing the outer jacket of a cable. This tool will not have much application in the North American market since most NM cable (“Romex”) is flat, unlike typical household wiring cable in EU. Would possibly work for some round jacketed 12/3 AWG cable in ‘Murica. That said, looks like another great Knipex tool for our European friends.
I think it's funny how some craftsmen can't see out of their own trade. Plenty of uses in the US for those pliers. Anytime someone is stripping anything over, say 6AWG, would be able to use these effectively.
@@magnusnordstrm2827 I bet our danish neighbors have a long relationship with this brand as well. I am 41 now and the 88/26 I stole from my Dad 30 years ago has no more teath left in the front and the rear is almost flat. In shoumakers terms those pliers are called Oma (Grandma) here 😁. Sometimes a no teeth plier is a good choice.
I have both of them, and my Knipex is tested on 1000 volts, it's excellent tool for 3x2.5 and 3x1.5 European cable. And for wire, they are extraordinary. I use them every day. I paid them 90 $ in my country. That Wiha is paid the same price, but it's peace of junk, i try to use them but it's just won't work. Now i know, but it's to late...
I bought these a few months ago and use them almost exclusively on Helukabel 7.2mm, 3 conductor 22awg with foil shield, braid, and bare ground. It’s spec’s by our company to build CAN cabling and harnesses between our gateway and MODBUS to Ethernet converters. I’ve tried it on a few other cables with mixed results. For the cable mentioned above, the only problem I have is trying to strip the third conductor (it has thinner insulation). Not perfect and definitely application-specific, but it does help speed up things. If nothing else, I have another high quality tool in my toolbox. I can see the angle of the Wera being a possible advantage.
How mad were you when you went to edit this and noticed how much of the demonstration you did out of frame. 😄 I have a rather severe pliers addiction and came resist stuff like this. Thanks for the video!
That first kind of wire is called multi-conductor cable. I use them most often for routing industrial signals, positional feedback, or on servo/stepper motors. Cool tool, I adore my knipex stuff, but this one I don't have use for as an industrial dude; we have cable stripping tools which are much more precise and less multi-tool-ey overall. Once you get into the aughts, I think most dudes prefer a razor knife for single conductor.
They look as if they're meant for the 'flat' grey PVC coated twin&earth as used in UK wiring. The 1.5/2.5 rating is specific to the 240V system (same in the US?) but the 'oval' shape of the cutting ends seems suited to the 'flat' PVC used in the UK and, presumably, other places?
They seem kind of like end cutting wire strippers. I got the snap on and the icon ones to try but I haven’t used them much. I did use the snap on ones once in an automotive application for my horns but that’s it. I’m just way more used to the knipex, craftsman or Klein I use all the time to make sure I don’t touch the wires under the outside insulation. I usually make a score barely through the insulation and bend back and forth until it breaks the insulation apart. Might have to make another cut on a part it didn’t split right but I don’t cut the insulation on the inside on the individual wires
It's not curved at the end, but I have a Klein K1412-3 stripper for 12/3 and 14/3 cable ( Apparently it's no longer in production). I absolutely love it. I haven't had to buy wire in several years and I'm worried they changed the wire somehow and this stripper won't work anymore. I have no idea why they would discontinue this stripper otherwise.
There are lots of interesting European tools that don't work well on our wiring. It needs a stiff, slippery jacket to be cut properly by something like that. Try stripping SOOW cable with those things and I'm sure you will be in for a bad time. It would be nice if it worked for our wire, but it will not. We are not the market for this tool (or many others).
These would not be of much use in the UK as we wire houses with flat twin and earth cable. The earth wires are now insulated, earth sure cable by Doncaster Cables, therefore new cable stripping tools have been introduced by companies like Quickwire.
In Europe, electrical cable is round unlike in the US where it is flat (nm aka romex). Not sure these are much use in the US. The pick your brand nm strippers are what I see pros using (my house is all conduit so I have no need for them). Maybe they would work on 14-2-2 romex, which I understand exists, but I have never actually seen in person …. 😂
The Wiha would work inside a box much more easily. I dont think you'd be able to use the Knipex in a box even with the right cable type. I dont know anyone that uses a stripper in North America in a box though - just use a curved knife to remove the outer sheath on Romex. If Knipex or Wiha made a plier set that worked perfectly for a flush strip on Romex along with 14 and 12 gauge strip, I'd buy them in a heartbeat.
Any reason, engineering, for 'Step down' ? 2:20 Pliers hold beyond Cutting area, type of depth 'stop'? ? May be reason for cost, but after machines are 'tooled', configured to cut, it's quality of material they're made.
Most wiring coming in to j boxes in residential construction is Romex which is flat not round and commercial is many times individual wire, those pliers appear to be task specific and not all that useful at all.
instructions unclear, dismantled neighbor and neighborhood, now arrested, 1\10 pliers ruined my future. on a serious note,looks interesting, probably something my dad would've bought back in the day,he's a journeyman electrician who's worked on tech from all over the world and over decades of time, man lived,worked and thrived through the tech boom,selling, repairing, installing, wiring,sound systems, industrial wine equipment etc etc.
Always great to see the end user's experience vs. manufacturer/engineer's intent. Good Stuff. Knipex's video here shows its purpose, and yours gives context for its practicality. Keep it up! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bGS1kL3Umpk.html
These tools are overpriced junk. My KNIPEX Electronics Super Knips failed after a couple of cuts. The two blades now overlap and they should come together at the cutting edge. Really disappointed.
I started wiring in 1976 and used Kline lineman pliers a knife and a drill to rough in a house. Thats it. Cable should be stripped before inserted into the box not during finish wiring. Nicked insulation or worse nicked conductors are all bad news. The tactile feel of a sharp knife is better, faster and safer than ANY of these new tools that attempt to save time and reduce labor at the cost of quality and safety.
The biggest issue with any tool where you have to pull items is the grips sliding off the tool. If you leave these in a hot vehicle, they may develop that problem.