"Hair Cutting Wire"

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jumper said:
To add, if you trim a conductor there is no way to determine the ampacity.
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Yes there is ,,,you count the number of strands in a good one,then divide that into the rated good ampacity which would give you the ampacity/strand,then subtract that from the good original ampacity,,,,,,now if you trim more than one you have to subtract the number again and again,,,make sure you don't drop one as they are easy to lose:p

The devil at play

dick
 
dicklaxt said:
Yes there is ,,,you count the number of strands in a good one,then divide that into the rated good ampacity which would give you the ampacity/strand,then subtract that from the good original ampacity,,,,,,now if you trim more than one you have to subtract the number again and again,,,make sure you don't drop one as they are easy to lose:p

The devil at play

dick
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Don't forget folding a small conductor over so it will work better in a large lug doubles the ampacity of the conductor, well at least for termination temperature rating purposes:happyyes:
 
kwired said:
Don't forget folding a small conductor over so it will work better in a large lug doubles the ampacity of the conductor, well at least for termination temperature rating purposes:happyyes:
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:jawdrop::lol::lol::lol:
 
K8MHZ said:
Remember, when cutting strands, only cut the center ones. Then, when you pinch the strands back together the cuts won't be visible.
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Same goes for upsizing: whatever you cram in there be sure to put it in the center of the strands, in a workman like manner of course.
 
ptonsparky said:
I will have to say, there are some professionals on here...kwires is the only one I've used.
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Then you need to step up! If you are interested, I believe I have a coupon for a correspondence course from Hack-U where you can learn many little-known techniques that the government is trying to suppress.
 
jumper said:
They do make these to avoid this situation:

View attachment 7686
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I still can't understand how it's logical to crimp on a smaller gauge terminal end and still maintain ampacity, but by cutting strands off you lower the ampacity - not that I use either method... I usually just grab a big blue wirenut and splice on a hunk of bare #10. It cools off fast. ;) My favorite is when guys split the strands on an SER neutral wire and use two or more terminals in the neutral bar for it instead of using a larger lug made for that purpose.
 
PetrosA said:
I still can't understand how it's logical to crimp on a smaller gauge terminal end and still maintain ampacity, but by cutting strands off you lower the ampacity - not that I use either method... I usually just grab a big blue wirenut and splice on a hunk of bare #10. It cools off fast. ;) My favorite is when guys split the strands on an SER neutral wire and use two or more terminals in the neutral bar for it instead of using a larger lug made for that purpose.
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Those were meant to be used when you have oversized the wire for VD I believe,at least thats what I have specified them for

dick
 
dicklaxt said:
Those were meant to be used when you have oversized the wire for VD I believe,at least thats what I have specified them for

dick
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Kind of makes the logic of cutting strands seem logical if conductor is oversized for voltage drop doesn't it?:angel:

We have had some good suggestions to determine just how many strands can be cut:cool:
 
I don't think the voltage drop would be the real issue. I mean, on a 50 foot run of 12 AWG, how much voltage drop would the last inch done in 14AWG cause?

I think the real issue is the physical compromise of the connection. I don't think the math supports a few thousandths of an inch of 4 strands of stranded wire being taken out of the picture as being a voltage drop issue. Remember, the decreased diameter only exists from the cut to the point where the conductor is screwed or bolted to the connector. What's that, maybe 1/8" or less?
 
K8MHZ said:
I don't think the voltage drop would be the real issue. I mean, on a 50 foot run of 12 AWG, how much voltage drop would the last inch done in 14AWG cause?

I think the real issue is the physical compromise of the connection. I don't think the math supports a few thousandths of an inch of 4 strands of stranded wire being taken out of the picture as being a voltage drop issue. Remember, the decreased diameter only exists from the cut to the point where the conductor is screwed or bolted to the connector. What's that, maybe 1/8" or less?
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Barring a recognized compression fitting of some sort, how do you make sure that the trimmed strands carry their "fair" share of the current?
 
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