Hi guys, just an update on this.
On the advice of others:
I asked to try out my colleagues cutters and asked them to try mine.
I also looked in to getting some Strippers, but they were £20 a dance so I borrowed some installation pliers and they weren't quite as much fun, but they did the job.
So I tried some colleagues cutters:
- Knipex X-cut
- Another pair of knipex diagonal cutters the same as mine.
- CK sidecutters
- CK combicutters
- Knipex Installation snips
Outcome of conversation and comparison:
When I asked, they asked me what was up and I told them straight. 2 immediately lit up and agreed with me and pulled out their Knipex cutters they'd replaced due to the same issue. One being a fully qualified approved electrician and another being an experienced improver who is nearly ready for his AM2.
It turns out we all found the same issue with the Knipex diagonal cutters and knipex x cut that didn't exist in the other cutters.
The X-cut and second pair of knipex diagonal cutters were owned by electricians who had stopped using them because they weren't doing the job properly and have them as spares.
They described their problem as the same, it was squeezing the insulation not scoring it and it meant they had to press harder than they wanted to, it slowed them down, compressed the conductor and they didn't like that.
I tried the C.K. cutters, they were way sharper and it was effortless to score the insulation and strip it.
Another spark has a pair of C.K. cutters that are normal cutters, but have 2 notches for 1.5 and 2.5mm, an anvil for bending and have pattress screw cutters built in behind the pivot point.
The C.K. cutters of both types did the job in my hands twice as fast, more reliably and without having to put as much effort in, in spite of their age. They also cut with far less force as well so when I'm grabbing a few cores to cut them down roughly, I can get through the entire lot with ease.
Now we were all talking and whipped our cutters out in front of each other and were comparing size, angle, sharpness, how we hold them, hahaha!
Anyway, the Knipex cutters we were frustrated with, even my newer pair, simply weren't cut at as sharp an angle as the installation pliers (which have shears) or the C.K. cutters/combicutters which have a sharper cut and also a more open face for clearing discarded sheaths from and we could all feel the force and estimated it as requiring double the effort to cut anything significant and a lot longer to strip anything.
I now own a new pair of C.K.'s the boss gifted me (he weighed in and disliked the snips I had as well and offered to sort me out) as his own personal recommendation which are absolutely fantastic. They've got 1.5mm and 2.5mm strippers in and cut whatever I want like butter. The only thing I miss is the handles on the Knipex, which are marginally chunkier, but were a less comfortable shape.
Thanks for giving me the tips ladies and gents, in part, I'm sure I'd have got faster with the knipex anyway but they were slowing my work and that isn't on. Ultimately, they were a significant part of the problem and I'll continue to train and learn but with the new C.K.'s in hand as a significant improvement and I'll save my knipex as spare. I asked a couple of the older ones to look at my technique and show me theirs and they said it was fine and told me my cutters were garbage...which suprised me.
Merry christmas guys and girls, any follow up questions on my findings, let me know and again, thank you all for the tips.