An old timer told me to ditch the impact driver for CAT6 terminations

I used to be all about using my impact driver to push down those keystone jacks. Figured it was faster and saved my hands. Then a guy I met on a job in Toledo last month watched me for like 2 minutes and said "you're gonna break half those wires before the year is up." He showed me how he just uses a cheap punch down tool with a spring-loaded handle. I tried it on the next 10 jacks and he was right. No more crushed conductors and no more random failures on my certifier tests. The impact driver was saving me 5 seconds a jack but costing me a call back every few weeks. Has anyone else had their mind changed on a basic tool like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

karenf4019d ago

My buddy Mike swore by his Klein impact driver for terminations until he crushed 3 pairs in one jack at a church install. Pastor was not happy watching him redo it with a $8 punch tool.

daniel_rivera19d ago

That Klein driver is more for drywall, not precise terminations.