Bill Runge
NEC BNS (West) Inc.
Problem
Fingertips are sore and tender from terminating cable all day.
Solution
Use a ballpoint pen casing or an 8-inch section of plenum-cable jacketing that has been cut at a 45° angle. The open end of a pen casing or cable jacket is placed between pairs and rotated to get the twist out.
Procedure
Remove about 6 inches or more of plenum-cable jacketing, depending on the application.
Remove the Kevlar.
Cut the end of a pen casing or plenum-cable jacket at a 45° angle to form a point.
Use the point of the pen casing or plenum-cable jacket to separate pairs.
Rotate in the direction of the twist to undo.
To remain compliant with tia/eia-568a, only a half-inch of each pair can be untwisted.
The pen casing or the jacket of a plenum cable can be cut at a 45° angle. The resultant edge is used to separate the pairs; when rotated, the twist comes out.
Bill Runge is a project leader at NEC BNS (West) Inc. (Iowa City, IA). This tip was submitted for the Cabling Installer Tips` Contest at Cabling Installation Expo `98, last October in Atlanta.