Wire Stripper 10-20 AWG Solid (12-22 AWG Stranded) (POLOLU-1922)

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This wire stripper and cutter works with six standard wire sizes from 10 to 20 AWG solid (12 to 22 AWG stranded). It has curved, cushioned handles for added comfort, and the serrated nose can be used to bend and shape wire.

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Maybe i’ve got it all wrong, and I’m not intending to be a nuisance … but it looks to me as though you sell a variety of colours and thicknesses of wires from 20 AWG down to 30AWG; where the larger AWG numbers actually mean thinner wires.

Yet the majority of wire strippers you sell are for wire thicknesses in the 10 to 20 AWG sizes … which would not work on the thinner wires.

My soldering and eyesight is such that I don’t feel confident with thin wires, and wonder if there is a particular reason you don’t sell the thicker wires ?

Hi @Donald23173

If you’re needing strippers for smaller gauge wires, we also stock Wire Stripper 20-30 AWG Solid (22-32 AWG Stranded). As for thicker wire, we stock 10-18 AWG stranded wires which you can find here.

Thanks Dan,

Years back when I started on my robotics journey (interrupted) I stupidly assumed that all wire strippers were basically the same. I have now purchased the model you pointed to, after getting fed up that the smallest setting on my old wire stripper barely touches the outside shielding of AWG24 hookup wire.

I hadn’t paid attention to those wires you referenced - it looked as though they for specialist high temperature applications - in the same way I ignored the EL wires.

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Hi Donald
That type of stripper is on the better side of most offerings. When using try to keep the wire and stripper at right angles to each other and remove the insulation by pulling STRAIGHT off the wire. Any twisting or angular motion could nick or scrape the outer strands. These strands are likely to break over time and if they do will create a domino effect where all the strands are likely to break (over a fairly long period).

These strippers are usually marked in AWG which suits most imported wires. Locally produced wire could be sized in a metric system. That is square mm or stranding, like 16/0.20 which is 16 strands of 0.20mm diameter.
These systems are not interchangeable. The metric does not agree EXACTLY with the AWG sizing but is very close. I have strippers in AWG but find are effective with metric if I use a size slightly larger in the AWG range. If the actual wire size in not known I find that if I select a stripper size that JUST touches the outer insulation then strip with one size smaller this is good in almost all cases. There are comparison charts floating around on line if you are interested.
I personally use an “Ideal” (brand) stripper which is comparatively expensive but is a left over from my full time working days. This is fitted with AWG dies (a metric stripper is available) but so far I have got away using the die selection method above for metric sizes. These types were mandatory as they were the only ones in those days that could be calibration checked and you could be sure the insulation was removed in a correct straight manner. In other words you had to be pretty careless to stuff it up.

Regarding the Pololu strippers linked it would not hurt to have both sizes then you have pretty much everything covered.
Cheers Bob

Note to Core:
Copied from your description
“but small pieces of wire can fly off when cut or stripped.”
If wire flies off during or after stripping this tool is either useless or it is being used incorrectly. I suspect the latter.
Cheers Bob