So I had a job today that seemed to call for a bigger knife.Needed to strip back about 15 ft. of the outer plastic jacket and inner aluminum shield from a 100 pair direct burial telco cable. There probably is a tool to strip this stuff - but I don't do this often enough to want to even go looking for it.Cable has a pretty tough 1/8 to maybe 3/16 inch slippery and somewhat tough plastic outer jacket , under that is a aluminum shield and inside all that is a hundred pairs of separately insulated wires - this whole interior bundle is filled with silicone jelly. Idea is that the outer jacket is water proof -and if water does get in it basically floats on the heavier silicone.OK-so this is WAY more than you want to know about telephone wire.
What I ended up doing was basically using the CQC-14 as a pull knife - the chisel grind worked really well at sliding thru the plastic jacket and across the top of the aluminum shield and not cutting into the wire bundle.One of the joys of working with this stuff is that your hands get covered with nice slimy silicone.Emerson stayed in my hands even while they where liberally coated with this crap.Can't control a knife if you can't hang onto it. Excellent size and shape to the handle - scales are interesting - very gripy even while literally slimy. Scales are also comfortable - pretty good trick!
Chisel grind is really different - this is going to take a little getting used to.In 50 years of daily knife use I have very rarely cut myself with my own knife. Have in the last six months cut myself with two knives ( Lightfoot and this Emerson) - both chisel grinds - each time operator error was obviously the major problem - but after decades of conventional v-grind blades - you do have to think about how to use a chisel grind effectively (bloodlessly).My limited experience with these is that they are at least wickedly sharp.
And finally - gotta say - the Wave for my use sucks. YMMV - but I want to open a knife - not have it half open as it comes out of my pocket.Don't need the speed - do need the safety.
What I ended up doing was basically using the CQC-14 as a pull knife - the chisel grind worked really well at sliding thru the plastic jacket and across the top of the aluminum shield and not cutting into the wire bundle.One of the joys of working with this stuff is that your hands get covered with nice slimy silicone.Emerson stayed in my hands even while they where liberally coated with this crap.Can't control a knife if you can't hang onto it. Excellent size and shape to the handle - scales are interesting - very gripy even while literally slimy. Scales are also comfortable - pretty good trick!
Chisel grind is really different - this is going to take a little getting used to.In 50 years of daily knife use I have very rarely cut myself with my own knife. Have in the last six months cut myself with two knives ( Lightfoot and this Emerson) - both chisel grinds - each time operator error was obviously the major problem - but after decades of conventional v-grind blades - you do have to think about how to use a chisel grind effectively (bloodlessly).My limited experience with these is that they are at least wickedly sharp.
And finally - gotta say - the Wave for my use sucks. YMMV - but I want to open a knife - not have it half open as it comes out of my pocket.Don't need the speed - do need the safety.