inside-outside-leftside-right???? / 66 block punching

[Babybearjs]

well.....while repunching some connections on my 66 block I noticed some fraying of some wires. I looked at how I was punching and where I was starting..... inside-outside....... Hmmmmm I remember reading about the layout of the 66 blocks...marked by colums A to D (4 Position) or A to F (6 position). while punching my lines over the months... I noticed I instinctively want to punch from the inside first and work my way toward the edge.... WRONG WRONG!!!!! I'm discovering that I need to start at A and then B. not B first.... has anyone else made this mistake? discovering smashed connections and broken wires....   live and learn.... and slow down......

[AE_Collector]

Well sometimes you have to punch down in different order though as you say, it is best to work from the outside inwards. The cutting blade on the 66 tool is quite close to the pin so you can always use what we called a sputter probe (little plastic thing like a pencil) to dress the existing wires away from the terminal before punching.

I have also seen blocks where the full pair is dressed into the same slot and then punnched down on the over and under pins. This puts the cutter on the tool in the space that has no wires dressed through it but I know  this isn't the intended or the approved method. It would somewhat reduce the problems you are experiencing and if it were data circuits rather than phone lines it might be better since the pair remains twisted right up to the termination.

Terry

[Babybearjs]

in my instance, what I was noticing was smashed and damaged wires.... when the second wired get punched down, the first wire can also get effected... either smashing the conductor or breaking it all together...