Letter Re: AC Wiring Safety Warning

Hello Sir:
I suspect this may have gone unnoticed by most, but as a former electrician (12 years in the trade) this passage caught my attention:
 
"I saved some money by making my own connections and crimps. The 00 wire was too thick for my wire strippers, had to use a separating disk with my Dremel tool."
 
Let me cauthion readers that stripping wire this way is a bad idea. Likewise, taking a box cutter (razor knife) and scoring the insulation in a ring around the cable is also bad. Stripping wire this way tends to cut slightly into the copper making a weak point with increased resistance. Under heavy load, heat is induced which can cause failure or fire. The "scoring" of the wire cannot be seen, as it is usually hidden by the border of the insulation. Try it, then strip the wire again a couple inches back and you will usually see the copper has been damaged at your original cut.
 
The proper way to strip insulation is to use the proper sized wire strippers, or in the case of larger wiring you can use an electricians knife (or similar) to shave the end much like you would shave the bark off a stick or sharpen a pencil.
 
Thanks for keeping us all informed, and for all the hard work and research you put into your blog and interviews. – Mark V.