Wires and cable are cut to length at the rough-wiring stage; splitting, stripping, and ripping are done when wiring devices. Each step requires a different tool. Cutting wires or cable to length simply requires lineman’s pliers or diagonal cutters.
How to Strip Electrical Wire
You can easily strip the insulation off of small solid-core wires from sizes #18 to #10 using wire strippers or the graduated wire stripper jaws on a multipurpose tool. To strip larger wires, from #8 to #2/0, use a pocket knife to take off the insulation as if you were sharpening a pencil, cutting away from your body. The length of wire you’ll need to strip varies depending on the job.
As important as using the right tools are utilizing the right techniques. For example, it’s important to take care to not nick the wire when you’re stripping off its insulation. A nicked wire will break easily when bent to form a loop for a connection to a screw terminal. If you do nick a wire, snip it where the nick is and begin again.
1. Insert the wire into the proper slot for the size wire you are stripping (or adjust the screw on the stripper for the size of the wire). With the wire at a slight angle, press the handles of the stripper together.
2. Gently rock the stripper blades back and forth; when the insulation has been cut through, pull it off in one fluid, fast motion.
How to Cut & Rip Electrical Cable
To rip (open up) flat cable, such as two-wire NM (with or without a ground), use a cable ripper or a utility knife to score it lengthwise. To rip round cable, only use a utility knife so you can carefully follow the contours of the wires, reducing the possibility of cutting into the insulation of the sheathed wires or nicking any bare wires.
When ripping either kind of cable with a utility knife, always work on a flat horizontal or vertical surface and cut away from your body, never toward it.
1. Slide a cable ripper onto a flat cable. Press the handles together and pull to score the sheath.
 | 2. Bend the cable until the scoring cracks and then peel away the outer sheath and all separation materials to expose the wires.
 | 3. With diagonal-cutting pliers, cut off the peeled sheath and other separation materials, leaving just the wires.
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