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by Peter Brett - April 2006
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For An Electrician Near You
The Combi-cutters from C.K started from the ideas generated by a team of professional electricians. C.K researched all the complications of the ways in which these electricians used their wire cutters and pliers. I have done some in-depth market research on a variety of tools and spoken to hundreds of tradespeople and I am always amazed at the number of ways that tools are being used. Some of these ways the manufacturers never envisaged, some are downright dangerous and some are very clever. What you learn is that it is always valuable revisiting old designs in the light of new materials, changing practices and new legislation. And what you learn can be valuable in terms of launching innovative products into the market.
The key thing that C.K learnt was that electricians often use their sidecutters for wire stripping. I confess that I have done this for a long time. This is not because I am particularly skilled, but just because I was too mean to go out and buy a proper pair of wire strippers, and many of the wirestrippers I have used don’t work that well. Also, at the top of a ladder where it seems I do most of my wirestripping, the fewer things you have in your pockets or balanced on the top step, the better. Therefore it is entirely logical to my mind that electricians would choose sidecutters to strip the ends of wires. The key thing is to remember to cut into the insulation just deep enough to sever the insulation and not the copper wire. I was trying to teach this skill to a few students recently, and the result was quite a few metres of wasted electrical wire!
Having got the knowledge C.K engineers set about designing a range of new sidecutters. They are designated the Combicutter1, Combicutter2 and Combicutter3. Being part of C.K’s VDE range the handles are coloured a bright red and yellow and of course they meet all the current standards for 1000 volt electrical tools. I was sent a sample of each, and I will tell you now that I am not going to be returning them or passing them on to a deserving electrician.
They have become a part of my toolkit and there’s the
end of it. The Combicutter1 is essentially a pair of 160mm traditional sidecutters, but the valuable addition here is the patress screw shear feature. All the user has to do is line up the holes in the open cutters, put the patress screw through to the desired length and clamp the cutters shut. This works like a guillotine and shears the screw straight off so that the thread is unaffected and can simply be screwed into the patress box. I sacrificed many 40mm steel nails testing this feature as I didn’t have an endless supply of patress screws to hand and the result was always a good clean shear cut. The jaws on the combicutter1 were the usual efficient cutters we expect from a C.K product and worked well on even the large oven-rated cable I tried cutting.
The Combicutter2 has the same sidecutting action and patress screw cutter, but has the addition of two wire stripping notches in the cutters. These will cope with 1.5mm and 2.5mm cable and allows the use to safely cut into the insulation without cutting into the copper wire. I had great fun demonstrating it to my students (without telling them about the notches at first) and getting the kudos associated with making a skill look
easy. Nevertheless, when they tried the notches, they too were able to make wirestripping look easy. I have already been asked to order some for their use to add to my workshop stock, and no, I am not going to give them my samples.
Coming at last to the Combicutter3. This is the Daddy! Not only does this pair have the patress screw cutter and the wirestripping notches, but also an anvil for bending and doubling over (usually) the earth wire in preparation for its safe placement. I must admit that these were the pair of cutters that the electricians I showed them to most wanted to escape with. I had several offers of “field testing” that I refused because I knew I wasn’t going to get them back.
The abiding impression of this new range of C.K Combicutters is of quality. They really do work, and it is clear that they are a cut above the similar cheaper products on the market. I think many electricians will regard them as a “must have” and will seek them out. I am told that early indications of the potential market are very favourable, and retailers should definitely think about stocking the range. You might have to have a pair or two around to demonstrate how they work, and I am sure this will improve sales, but may I also suggest that you keep a close eye on them. Either the staff or the customers
will want to make off with them.
Independent Review by Peter Brett
Airstream Communications