How Do I Remove a Piece of Broken AV Cable?

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Removing a broken piece of RCA cable requires a steady hand.

You can remove a piece of broken audio video (AV) cable with a little heat, a steady hand and patience. Pins can break due to mishandling of the equipment, a stressed and failed jack, or aggressive RCA removal techniques. Most methods for removing an RCA center pin will result in damage to the jack. However, one key method almost never fails.

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Step 1

Grasp the center pin with a small pair of needle-nose pliers. This method will successfully remove the pin 90 percent of the time.

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Step 2

Hold a needle with a set of needle-nose pliers, tip facing out. Perform this process in lieu of basic extraction with needle-nose pliers.

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Step 3

Heat the end of the needle with the lighter or matches until it glows red hot.

Step 4

Slowly insert the heated needle into the plastic core of the RCA center pin still located in the jack. Wait a few seconds for the needle to cool.

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Step 5

Slowly remove the needle and broken center pin straight out. If the plastic core slips out of the brass ferrule, insert the needle into the ferrule, angle it, and pull it out. Grab the tip with the needle-nose pliers if necessary.

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