Tool for grasping and piercing insulated electrical cable for determining whether conductor of cable is energized

Claim 1

A tool for grasping and piercing insulated electrical power cable to determine whether or not a conductor of the cable is energized, comprising: a clamp body having a fixed lower clamp leg and a fixed upper clamp leg spaced and separated from said lower clamp leg by a distance sufficient for the reception of a cable between said legs, a platform mounted for vertical movement between said upper and lower clamp legs, said lower clamp leg having a flat upper surface for supporting a cable during piercing and said platform having a flat lower face in parallel, spaced opposed relationship to said flat upper surface of the lower clamp leg, said platform being mounted on screw means extending through said upper clamp leg for moving the platform, at least two pointed pins carried by the platform, said pins being spaced apart in a direction transverse to the conductor by a distance smaller than the diameter of the conductor of a cable to be pierced, and a pair of arms mounted on and extending downward from opposite sides of the platform for movement therewith to trap a cable between the platform and the flat upper surface of the lower clamp leg.