c/cable-installers

Back in the day I bought a $200 'universal' crimper that mangled every connector

It was supposed to handle everything from RG6 to RG11, but I ended up having to redo a whole apartment building's drops. Anyone still have a solid brand recommendation for a real crimper that won't fail?

Question about the actual tensile strength of that old RG-6 we all find in attics

I was reading an old spec sheet from a supply house and found out the copper-clad steel center conductor in some of that vintage stuff from the 90s can handle over 150 pounds of pull force before it snaps, which explains why it never seems to break when you're yanking it through a tight space.

Why does nobody talk about the old lady in apartment 4B who offered me a full glass of lemonade while I was sweating through a drop ceiling?

She said 'you look like you could use a cold drink, young man' and it honestly made my whole week in this job, so what's the nicest thing a customer has done for you on a tough install?

Showerthought: That 'perfect' wall fish in Phoenix last week was a total fluke

Everyone on the crew keeps saying you need a flex bit and a steady hand, but three years ago in my old job, we had a rule against fishing through finished walls after a bad fire in a Scottsdale condo. Last month, my current boss pushed for a tricky drop, and we ended up putting a 4-inch hole in drywall that took two hours to patch. Has anyone else's company set hard rules against this kind of thing?

Had to choose between a snake and a fish in a crawl space

Got a call for a new drop in an old house in Portland. Crawl space access was a tiny hole. Saw a rat snake skin, maybe five feet long, right by the entry. Also saw a dead goldfish, dried out, on a piece of wood. No idea how it got there. Had to pick which creepy thing to work next to. Chose the fish. Figured it wouldn't move. Wrong. My knee hit the wood and the fish flipped into my boot. Spent the next ten minutes trying to shake it out while the homeowner's dog barked at the vent. Got the line run, but my sock was crunchy. Anyone ever find something truly bizarre that just made you stop and laugh?

I finally broke down and bought a $400 thermal camera for my truck

It seemed like a crazy amount for a tool I wasn't sure I'd use much. But last month, I found a hot spot in a wall that saved me from drilling right into a live wire the homeowner didn't even know was there. That one find paid for the camera and kept me from a real bad day. Anyone else find a 'luxury' tool that turned out to be a total lifesaver?

Unpopular opinion: I was wrong about always using a 6-inch bit in attics

A retired installer in Spokane told me last week, 'A 12-inch bit is slower, but you only drill once.' It made me realize I've been creating more work for myself. Anyone have a favorite long bit brand that doesn't bind up?

Walked through my old neighborhood in Akron and saw something that hit different

I was driving past the house I grew up in, the one where I first learned to run coax from my dad. The old telephone pole out back still has the same rusted J-hook we put up in '98, but now there's a thick bundle of fiber optic lines right next to it. It's wild to think that single RG-6 drop used to be the only wire on that pole. Makes you wonder what we'll be clipping up there in another 25 years, right? Anyone else get that weird feeling seeing the old work still hanging around next to the new stuff?

Saw a crew in Denver zip-tying coax to the main power line coming into a house

They were trying to get a clean run to the other side of the garage, but the homeowner's electrician had to cut it all out the next day. I'm pretty sure that's a code violation in every county, not to mention a huge safety risk. What's the worst shortcut you've seen another team take on a job?

Why does nobody talk about the difference a good fish tape makes in old houses?

I was working on a job in a 1950s place in Springfield last Tuesday, trying to run a line down a plaster wall. My old tape kept getting stuck on the lath every single time. After the third try, I borrowed a buddy's Klein flexible fish tape. It went right through in one shot, no snags at all. Has anyone else found a specific tool that just cuts your time in half on those tricky old builds?

Just hit 500 houses in my first year and the number shocked me

I started with a small company in Boise last spring and kept a simple tally on my phone. When I checked it yesterday, I was at 502 installs. It matters because I was worried about speed, but this shows I found a good rhythm without cutting corners. Anyone else track their first year numbers and have a target they aim for?

Just dropped $300 on a Klein cable toner and it saved my whole day yesterday.

My Klein crimper finally gave out on a job in Tacoma last Tuesday

Honestly, the handle just snapped clean off when I was putting a connector on a coax line for a new apartment install. I had to run back to the van and use my backup pair of pliers to finish the job, which took an extra 20 minutes. Anyone have a recommendation for a crimper that can take a real beating?

Found a way to pull cable through a tight attic space without tearing up drywall

Had a job in a 1950s house in Tacoma where the attic access was tiny and the run was blocked by a cross brace. Instead of cutting a new hole, I taped a small magnet to the end of my fish tape and used a strong magnet on the outside of the wall to guide it around the brace. It took about 20 minutes of careful moving, but the fish tape popped out right at the outlet box. Anyone have a different trick for these old cramped attics?

Had to pick between a fish tape and a glow rod for a tight attic run in Phoenix

Honestly, I went with the fish tape because I thought the metal would cut through the insulation better. Big mistake, it kept snagging on every nail plate and took me over an hour for a 20 foot run. Next time I'm grabbing the glow rod, no question. Anyone else get stuck like that in an old house?

Heard a new guy call a 66 block 'the old phone thing' and it made me think

I was finishing a job in a Portland basement and the apprentice with me pointed at the dusty block and asked what it was. Told him we used to punch down hundreds of lines on those for office systems. Now it's all Cat6 and fiber runs to a little ONT on the wall. Makes you miss the solid click of a good punchdown tool. What's the oldest piece of gear you still run into on a regular job?

A talk with an old timer about attic runs changed my whole approach

I was on a job in Salem last month, pulling a new drop for a customer. The attic was a real mess, full of blown-in insulation. I was about to start cutting a hole in the ceiling joist to get my line through, like I always do. The homeowner's dad, a retired phone man from the 80s, was watching. He just said, 'You know, we used to fish a piece of coat hanger with a hook bent on the end along the top plate. Never had to cut a thing.' I tried it right then with a piece of stiff wire from my truck. It took a minute to get the bend right, but I fished that line across three bays without making a single hole. It hit different because it was so simple. I'd been adding repair work for myself for years. Now I keep a pre-bent fishing rod in my bag just for that. What other old-school tricks are out there that we might have forgotten?

Talked to a senior tech about using a fish tape for everything

I was helping this guy in Denver who's been installing for 25 years. He saw me struggling with a drop and said, 'Kid, a fish tape is for fishing, not for prying.' He showed me how he uses a set of fiberglass push rods he got 8 years ago for tight wall spaces. It was way faster and didn't kink the line. What other old-school tools are people still using that actually work better?

Been using my toner probe to find a break for like 20 minutes, turns out I had it set to 'ring' the whole time.

Just realized I've run 500 miles of RG6 in crawlspaces this year, which is way more than I ever thought I'd do.

Everyone says to avoid crawlspace runs at all costs, but honestly, once you get a good headlamp and a knee pad system down, it's often the fastest and cleanest path, so has anyone else found a niche part of the job they actually don't mind?

Warning: I keep seeing guys skip the cable comb on new fiber runs.

It matters because a messy bundle can cause micro bends and signal loss later. Anyone else run into this on a big apartment job?

Can we talk about those cheap crimp tools from the big box stores?

I bought one of those $15 crimpers from the orange store about six months ago, thinking it was a good deal. It felt okay in the hand, but the first time I tried to crimp a connector on a piece of RG6, it just crushed the center pin. I figured it was a fluke, but after three more tries, I had ruined four connectors and about ten minutes of my time on a simple job. The metal in the tool was just too soft, and the dies weren't lined up right. I ended up having to go back to my truck for my good tool, and I lost that $15 plus the cost of the connectors. It's a small amount, but it adds up when you're in a hurry and a tool fails. Has anyone found a decent budget crimper that actually holds up, or is it just one of those things you have to spend real money on?

Showerthought: I used to think fishing wires through finished walls was always a huge pain.

Last month in a 1920s house in Portland, I tried using a flexible drill bit extension for the first time. It got through the old plaster and lathe without making a huge mess. What's your go-to tool for tricky old construction?

Pro tip: Counted the coax runs I did last month and it hit 87.

That's just residential jobs in my zone, no commercial work. Never thought I'd hit that number in a slow season. Anyone else see their run count jump recently?

I finally figured out why that attic run in the old Victorian took me all day

Honestly, I thought it was a simple drop from the second floor to the living room. The wall was open on both ends, so I figured maybe an hour tops. The problem was the house had been remodeled in the 80s and they put in a weird fire block right in the middle of the stud bay, but only for about a foot of space. My fish tape kept hitting it and I couldn't see it with my inspection cam from either hole. I must have spent three hours just trying different angles before I finally cut a small access hole in the closet on the other side of the wall and saw the block. After that it was just a few minutes to drill through it and finish the run. Total time was like four and a half hours for one cable. Anyone else run into hidden blocks in old houses that just eat your whole morning?