How to Strip & Terminate an RG-6 TV Cable
There always is a certain satisfaction that I get from completing projects on my own. I was remodeling a room and wanted to move the cable outlet from one wall to another but I did not have a long enough RG-6 cable. I went to the local electronics store to get a longer one but only found really short or really long ones. The idea of coupling wires together or having a loop of it in my crawlspace was not appealing to me. I decided that the best thing to do was to make one of their long cables shorter. I bought the cable and some connectors and began to make the length I needed. Learn to do this you'll never have to worry about having too long or too short of an RG-6 cable.
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Things You'll Need
- RG-6 coax cable
- Wire strippers
- RG-6 connectors (sometimes called F Connectors)
- Razor or knife
- Pliers
- Wire cutters
- Packaging tape (not necessary but recommended)
Instructions
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1
Measure and cut a length of RG-6 Cable that you will need. I recommend adding about one foot onto whatever length you think you'll need.
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2
Carefully take your wire strippers and remove the black shielding or jacket from the edge of the cable. If it is your first time, do not be afraid to strip over 2 inches, but usually 1 inch will suffice.
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3
To make clean-up easier tape around the exposed silver about halfway to three quarters from the black outer shielding. This also gives you a reference point for cutting in the following Steps.
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4
Use your razor or knife to carefully cut the silver colored insulator away from the conductor in the middle of the cable. After this is completed, you should be able to see the conductor (usually a copper wire), insulation (silver material) and outer jacket (usually black) in almost a stepped appearance.
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5
Remove the lower portion or ferrule of your RG-6 connector from the rest of the connector and put it over the black shielding.
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Place the remaining piece of the connector onto the RG-6 cable and push the connector onto the cable until the insulation is even with the end of the connector. The conductor will extend well beyond the end--this is normal.
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Push the lower connector piece (ferrule) back into its original position on the connector.
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8
Use pliers to compress or crimp connector together.
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9
Take your wire cutters and cut the conductor to be even with end of RG-6 connector.
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10
Measure and cut how much cable is required.
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Tips & Warnings
Try to use a brown or black colored tape as a clear colored tape will be harder to see.
The silver insulators and conductors can be very sharp.
