TIL bending conduit inside a panel vs outside makes a huge difference

Used to jam my bends tight against the panel box until a master sparky on a job in Austin told me to leave a 6-inch straight stub before the first bend. Anyone else find this makes pulling wire way less frustrating?

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2 Comments

the_simon4mo ago

Yeah that 6 inch rule is legit. I used to jam my first bend right at the connector too and pulling wire was a nightmare, especially with THHN in a long run. Once I started leaving a straight stub before the first bend it made a huge difference. The wires don't get pinched at the box and you can actually get a grip on them without fighting the bend. Plus it makes the inside of the panel look way cleaner and organized. Took me a few rough jobs to figure that one out, but now I won't do it any other way.

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gavine414mo ago

I saw a master electrician give a talk once and he said the same thing. Said he used to fight with wires jamming into connectors until he read a code article that basically forced him to stub it out first. Once he did, he said it cut his wire pulling time in HALF on long runs. The straight section lets the wire feed through the connector without scraping the insulation off too. I tried it on my last service upgrade and it made a night and day difference. The panel came out clean because I could actually route the bends where I wanted them instead of fighting the box. It's one of those little things that separates a hack job from a REAL professional install.

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