How to clean enameled wires from insulation

This article describes an easy way to clean enameled wires from insulation.

When mechanically removing the enamel insulation from the ends of wires with a small cross-section, usually a part of the insulation remains uncleaned, which leads to poor-quality rations. In addition, there are often wire breaks. It is recommended to clean the wires from the enamel insulation by burning in an inert gas atmosphere.

The insulating incinerator (Fig. 1) consists of a thin-walled ceramic tube 1 wrapped in a heating coil 2 made of high-resistance wire. The tube with the spiral is fixed on the handle 3, in which a button 4 for turning on the spiral is installed. The coil is powered by low voltage alternating current (the best voltage is 6.3 V, since in this case a power transformer of each receiver can be used for power supply).

Rice. 1. Device for burning the insulation of enameled wires: 1 — ceramic tube, 2 — nichrome spiral, 3 — handle, 4 — button for turning on the spiral.

To clean the insulation of enameled wires, the end of the wire is inserted into the heated ceramic tube to the required length. The enamel insulation burns, and the products of its combustion fill the tube cavity, protecting the wire from oxidation. When the wire removed from the pipe has cooled, the remains of the burnt insulation are removed by wiping the end of the wire with fine sandpaper.