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I have some very old wire that I'm attempting to strip, but it looks like it has some sort of rubber coating for insulation. Its a real pain in the butt to deal with, so what do you do with this type of wire? Scrap it as it is, burn it off?

If I find it is not worth the work then I just take it as insulated.

The scrap yards near me get real cranky if you try to sell burned wire. If you think it will fly near you, then go for it. I usually just sell it insulated if it takes too long to strip.

Thats probably what I'll end up doing, but I havn't tried another scrappers advise yet. After burning and while its hot, dip it cold water then hit it hard against a hard surface. I guess I will guenia pig this idea and let y'all know if it works.

Another possibility to get the tarnish off of burned wire is to stuff it all in a big bucket, pour half a gallon of white vinegar in it, fill it with water, then mix in a handful of salt. Let it sit for a while, possibly mix it with a stick or something. You're basically trying to pull the oxidized copper on the outside into solution. I've also heard of people using acetone or drain cleaner. I don't care to burn wire, so i've never had to try any of these.

Have you tried stripping about six inches of wire and then PULLING the insulation and the wire apart? If that doesn't work, I'd sell it as insulated.

If your wire is 12ga. or thicker, you should not have to do anything to it if you burn it right. The biggest mistake people make when burning wire is they try to burn too much at a time. Burn it in small lots, over a fire. Don't just throw it on the ground, pour gas on it, an try to burn it that way, it won't burn clean. If you burn it long enough, say over a wood campfire, there will be nothing left on the wire when you hit it on the ground after burning. I still burn wire here from time to time, but nothing like back in the old days when we scrapped HVAC equipment.

I burned it in my woodstove in the shop and it turned out alright. Good enough for now since the women won't let me have a little white vinegar to try to clean it up. Foey on the coffee maker.