I was stripping 12 gauge wire with my linesman's pliers for years until a guy in my union class asked why I didn't just use the strippers on my multi-tool.

3 comments

3 Comments

My first year on the job I probably ruined a whole roll of that wire doing the same thing. I felt so dumb when the foreman finally pointed out the stripper notch on my own tool. I totally get what @tyler_baker means about that look you get, it's a mix of pity and disbelief. You just get locked into one method and your brain stops looking for other options. It's a relief to finally learn the right way but also embarrassing it took so long.

tyler_baker2mo ago

I did the exact same thing for my first two years as an apprentice. I must have wasted hours trying to get a clean strip with my Kleins. The guy who showed me the strippers on my own multi-tool just shook his head and walked away.

margaret_lane2mo ago

Oh man, that's the perfect example of something I see all the time. People get so used to doing things the hard way, they don't even look for the easier tool right in front of them. It happens with software, with kitchen gadgets, everything. We just get stuck in our routines and miss the simple fix.