Wires (newbie question)

A few newbie questions.

Can someone explain how wires are categorized?

I understand that there is bare brights. But how to determine the difference between #1 and #2?

Is stripping them down to bare brights worth the money? given part of the weight is from the insulation itself?

Thanks for the help.

This is just me personally, but I don't strip anything smaller that about 14 ga. Isn't worth it. If I have a big load of misc. wire, then it goes up to 12 ga.

For me, if I have the time, I strip all my wire. If it can physically be stripped, its very easy for me to sit in front of my tv with a large cup of very strong coffee(stripping wire can be boring). I put a 2x4 on my lap and with my box cutter I strip my wire. Some of what I may be stripping may be of low value/weight, but at the end of the day it all adds up.

guer, how long is your 2x4 ? Do you wrap the wire around your hand and strip away from you or do you have another method? Do tell. Did you read my post on the art of stripping braided wire? If not, please do and give us your input. Thanks....this is a tired joke...but, I was wondering...how does your family feel about you being a stripper ?

yes, fortunately I put the money in my pocket because if I were to put it in a G-string I'd be very poor. As far as how long the 2x4 is it's about 3 feet but I actually lay it across my knees lengthwise and strip the wire away from me across the width of the bored. What I find to be most important is that my knife blade is always sharp. When I first started doing this I didn't realize the necessity of having the 2x4 and after the knife slipped and almost cut my leg off(just kidding) I became less dumb. Also recently someone gave me the electric cable that connects a tractor to the trailer on an 18 wheeler. Because the coil is so strong, I put one end in a vice and went pack about a foot at a time cutting a slit into the cable. Took me about 15 minutes and it was done. I hadn't read your thread on stripping braided wire but I will now. One of the things I love about this hobby/job is the idea of "thinking outside the box" and creatively coming up with new ways to break stuff.

Another note: depending on the thickness of the insulation I've also found that sometimes its better to cut a slit into the insulation versus cutting "sideways". I feel that when the insulation is on the thicker side trying to cut sideways ends up needing more force than if I cut a slit into it. Hope this makes sense. On a side note, just sold my load today and being the fact that this is something I only do in my spare time I'm pretty excited about the fact that I made $100. Its going into my "house down-payment fund". Because of scrapping I became completely debt free as of last September and now I'm saving up for either house or condo. Man I love free money.