c/cable-installers

Just realized my go-to coax crimper was the problem all along

I was in a crawlspace in Akron last month and a connector kept failing the meter, but switching to a different brand fixed it instantly. Anyone have a crimper they swear by for tight spaces?

Overheard a guy at the supply house say 'a clean truck is a slow truck' and honestly, I get it now.

He was talking about how if your van is spotless, you're not actually out there working. My rig is a mess of coax ends, zip ties, and dust bunnies from crawl spaces. But it means I'm getting jobs done. Still, my boss in Tampa is pushing for 'professional image' checks. How do you balance looking presentable with actually having the tools you need right at hand?

Update: I found a way to fish a line through a tight wall cavity in an old house

I was working on a job in a 1920s house in Tacoma last month, trying to run a new line from the basement to the second floor. The wall was packed with old insulation and had a fire block I couldn't get past. I tried my usual fish tape and glow rods for about an hour with no luck. Then I remembered a trick from a guy I met at a training session: I tied a small nut to some strong braided fishing line and dropped it down from the top. The weight pulled the line straight down past the block, and I was able to hook it with a magnet from the bottom hole. Has anyone else tried something like this in a really old building?

Just realized I've been overthinking attic runs after a talk with an old timer

I was helping a guy who's been doing this since the 90s on a job in Springfield last week... we were in a tight attic with blown-in insulation, and I was about to start moving it all to lay a clean line. He just looked at me and said, 'Kid, you're making a dust cloud for nothing. Just push a fish stick through the fluff, find the joist, and zip-tie the cable to the side of it. The insulation will cover it, and the homeowner never goes up here anyway.' It hit different because I've always been taught to keep everything neat and visible... but his way saved us an hour and the cable was still secure and out of the way. Made me rethink all the 'right way' stuff they drill into you that just adds time without real benefit for the customer. How many other little time-wasters are we doing just because it's how we learned?

Rant: My old boss swore by zip ties for everything, but I switched to Velcro straps last month.

I was on a rewire job in a cramped apartment attic, and wrestling with zip ties to bundle a new drop just shredded my forearms. Grabbed a roll of hook-and-loop straps from my truck instead, and the whole run was done in half the time with no cuts. Do you guys have a go-to for clean, fast cable bundling in tight spots?

Rant: My crew chief said to always use the big drill for wall plates, and I'm glad I didn't listen

He told me last month, 'You need the power, just use the half-inch for every plate screw, it's faster.' I tried it on a drywall job in Springfield and it cracked three plates before I even got the screw tight. Switched back to my little 12-volt driver with a clutch set low, and finished the rest without a single issue. Has anyone else found that less power is better for finish work?

Shoutout to the guy who left a full spool of RG6 on a roof in July

I got a call to fix a signal issue at a house in Tempe, and found the previous installer's leftover cable baking in the sun for what looked like weeks. The jacket was so brittle it cracked when I touched it, and I had to rerun the whole line from the pole. What's the weirdest thing you've found left behind from another tech?

That one week in '08 when every drop was a crawl space nightmare

I remember a week in late 2008, right before the digital switch, where every single job was a retrofit in a house with a nasty crawl space. I did five houses in a row where I spent at least two hours on my back in the dirt, running RG6 through joists. The worst was a place in Gresham where the homeowner had 'cleared a path' that was still only about 18 inches high. What made it stand out was the sheer consistency of the bad luck, and how we were all just racing to get folks set for the new signal. Anyone else have a stretch of jobs that were all the same special kind of awful?

Question about that new fiber optic splicing tool kit

I dropped about $400 on the 'EZ-Splice Pro' kit last month hoping it would speed up my apartment complex jobs. The crimper broke on the third connector, and now I'm back to my old manual method with a wasted half-day. Has anyone found a reliable brand for this kind of work that won't fall apart?

That time I learned my coax stripping method was backwards

I was helping a new guy on a job in Charlotte, and he asked why I stripped the cable from the jacket towards the connector. He said his trainer taught him to go from the connector back. I argued my way was faster, but then we timed it. Doing it his way took 7 seconds average, mine was 11. The braid just lays flatter when you start at the connector. I'd been doing it the slow, messy way for five years. Has anyone else had a basic technique they learned totally backwards from the start?

Finally gave up on my old crimper and the new one is a game changer

For years I used this basic crimper I got from a supply house in Phoenix, and it worked okay for RG6. But last month I had a big job with a lot of RG11 runs and that old tool just mangled the connectors. I bought a Paladin PA1412 on a recommendation, and man, the difference is night and day. The ratcheting action makes sure you get a full crimp every single time, and the built-in cutter is way sharper. I did a 12-unit apartment install last week and didn't have a single bad connector or callback. Has anyone else switched to a ratcheting crimper and found it saved them a ton of headache on bigger gauge cable?

Why does nobody talk about the old phone lines in those 1920s houses?

I was crawling under a house in the historic district last week, trying to run a new coax line, and my drill bit hit a solid metal pipe that turned out to be a lead-sheathed phone line from like a hundred years ago. I had to stop everything, call the homeowner, and explain we needed to map the whole crawlspace before I could safely drill another hole. Has anyone else run into this kind of old wiring and found a good way to work around it without damaging anything?

Just realized the value of a simple zip tie after a job in a cramped attic

An older installer in Boise saw me struggling with a bundle and said, 'A tight loop is a happy loop, but a loose one is a future callback.' What's your go-to trick for keeping bundles neat in a tight space?

Warning: I was crimping coax connectors wrong for years and didn't know it

I was working on a tough drop in Portland last week, and my signal levels were all over the place. The homeowner, an old broadcast engineer, watched me for a minute and said, 'You're not compressing the connector enough before you crimp, are you?' He was right. I was just pushing the tool until it clicked once. He showed me to compress it fully, wait a second, then give it a second, firmer squeeze. My next three terminations tested perfect. How many of you do that double-squeeze, or is there a better trick?

Lost a whole morning's pay chasing a ghost signal because I didn't double-check the customer's own splitter first.

I wasted three hours and about $150 in lost calls before I found their ancient, corroded two-way hidden behind the TV stand, something I could have spotted in 30 seconds if I'd made it my first move.

Appreciation post: That old trick with the coaxial barrel connector in tight spaces

Back when I was working a lot of old apartment jobs in Chicago, I kept getting stuck trying to replace connectors in these cramped utility closets... my crimper just wouldn't fit. An old-timer on the crew showed me how to pre-crimp the connector onto a 6-inch scrap of cable on the bench, then just screw it onto the wall plate line. Saved me so much time and skinned knuckles on those 90s-era builds. Anyone have a different go-to for those impossible spots?

The difference in attic runs after switching to a glow rod

I used to dread pulling cable through old insulation, especially in those tight 1950s houses. About a year ago, I bought a basic 6-foot glow rod for maybe 25 bucks, and it changed the game. Before, a tricky attic run could take me 45 minutes of fishing and cussing. Now, with the rod, I can usually punch through and get my pull string across in under 10. It's not just faster, it keeps the insulation from getting torn up so the homeowner doesn't complain. Anyone have a favorite brand or length for these things?

A flooded crawl space in Tacoma changed how I check for water lines

I was running a new drop to a house near the Puget Sound last month. The crawl space looked dry, so I didn't bother with the moisture meter. About 20 feet in, my boot went through the dirt floor into a foot of standing water I couldn't see. It shorted my drill and soaked my tool bag. I had to go back to the truck for my waders and a sump pump to finish the job. Now I scan the whole area with the meter before I even grab my drill. What's your go-to method for checking a wet crawl space you can't fully see?

I went with a 4-inch hole saw over a 2-inch for a tricky exterior wall pass yesterday.

The bigger cut gave me room to get my hand in and guide the cable, which saved me from having to come back with a fish tape. What's your go-to for tight spots in old plaster walls?

Got told my cable runs were too tight in a crawl space

A homeowner in Tacoma pointed out I was pulling coax so tight it hummed against a floor joist. He said it sounded like a bee hive when the heat kicked on. I started leaving a full 6 inch service loop at every turn after that. Anyone else get a piece of feedback that made you change a small habit?

I finally looked up how much RG-6 we used to pull for a single house

Was cleaning out my old truck and found a work order from 2008. It was for a 4-room install, and the cable count was 12 separate runs. Now that same job would be maybe 2 lines and a mesh router. Anyone else miss the physical work of a big cable pull?

Question about always using a fish tape for wall runs

Three years ago on a job in Tacoma, I watched a guy run a new line through a finished wall in under ten minutes without a fish tape. He used a shop vac and a plastic bag tied to a string. Everyone says you need the tape, but I've done it his way maybe twenty times since and it's faster in tight spaces. Last month I had a run between two outlets that were only three feet apart, and the tape kept getting stuck on insulation. The vac method got it first try. Am I the only one who thinks we rely on the tape too much for simple pulls?

Three years ago in Denver, I swore by the old crimp connectors. Last month, a single bad one cost me a full day's pay on a re-call.

Rant: I bought a $200 signal booster for a job and it was a total waste

Had a job out in the hills where the main line signal was just weak. Everyone online and a couple guys at the supply house swore by this specific brand of amplifier. Spent two full hours installing it, running new power, the whole deal. The signal gain was maybe 2 dB, not even close to fixing the real issue. Ended up having to run a whole new drop from a different tap anyway, so that booster is now a very expensive paperweight in my van. Has anyone found a real use for those things, or are they just a fancy band-aid?

Why does nobody talk about cheap coax strippers ruining center conductors?

I bought a $15 stripper from a truck stop last month, thinking it was a good deal. It nicked the center conductor on three drops in a row, causing signal issues that took me half a day to re-run. What's a decent stripper that won't wreck the job?