I laughed at the old timers for using fish tape instead of glow rods... until my fiber run got stuck at 60 feet

Back in 2015 when I first started installing cable, I thought fish tape was ancient tech. I only used glow rods for everything. Then I had this massive attic job near Springfield where the insulation was so thick my glow rods kept bending and snapping. The homeowner's dad was an old installer and handed me his steel fish tape. Pulled that 60 foot run in like 10 minutes flat. Now I carry both in my truck but I definitely respect the old school tools more. Has anyone else had a moment where the traditional way just worked better?

3 comments

3 Comments

park.miles1mo ago

Nah, I still think fish tape is a pain in the ass. Glow rods bend too easy but at least they don't get stuck on every tiny screw head in the wall like steel tape does.

shane_hayes1mo ago

Glow rods bend too easy" is my complaint too, man. I started using a glow rod with a magnetic tip on the end and it helps a ton because you can guide it past screws without catching. That little change saved me from wanting to throw my tools across the room on the last job.

angelarivera1mo ago

Glow rods bend too easy" is exactly what made me switch back too. I was running cable under a house in 2018, using glow rods like always, and one just snapped off inside the crawlspace. Had to crawl back out, get the fish tape from my truck, and do the whole thing over again. Now I keep both in the van but the steel tape lives on the front seat.