Lineman's Slang Term

A.R.
Alley-Arm
Alligator
Baker Board
Baloney
Baloney Bender
Banjo
Bear Grease
Becky
Bell
Bell Wrench
Bender
Bible
Bicycle
Boatswain's Chair
Booger Wire
Bookie Tool
Bookie Wheel
Boomer
Booties
Bottles
Broomsticks
Buck
Buck Arm
Bucket Truck
Bug
Bugs
Bull Line
Bull Pen
Bull Wheel
Bulldog
Bulldog Wrench
Bullhorn
Bundle
Bust Anchor
Buster
Butterfly
C.S.P.
C.S.T.
C.T.
Can
Candlestick

Standard Description
Abbreviation for automatic recloser
A side arm brace, used when cross-arm is not balanced on both sides
of pole but extends out on one side only.
A tie stick
A platform board
Cable
A wireman who works with heavy cable
A shovel, straight blade and long handle
ZLN electric contact aid
A cable sling
Suspension or deadend insulator
A wrench for tightening various square head bolts
hammer
The electrician's code book
A chain drill for boring holes
A small wooden seat supported by four ropes secured to a ring or tied
at a common point above the worman's head
A neutral wire
A staple puller
A measuring device
A lineman who leaves on job to get to the next job. A lineman who
always works on the installation of new transmission lines.
Meter clip insulators
Glass insulators
Phase spacers, used to keep phases from coming into contact with
each other at midspan
To lower or attempt to lower the voltage
Two sets of crossarms at 90 degree angles to each other
An aerial lift truck for raising men high enough to work on lines from the
insulated bucket of the truck
Transformer
Solderless, usually bolted connectors
Heavy line for pulling in wires (also see 'Hard Line')
Where the construction crew gathers before and after work
A reel device used to hold tension on a transmission conductor during
stringing operations
A 'come-a-long' wire grip for holding conductor or strand under tension
An alligator wrench
Epoxirod bi-unit
Multiple strings of conductor
Expanding anchor
Expanding and tamping bar used on expanding anchors
Conductor take-up reel
Completely self-protected transformer
Customer subsurface transformer
Current transformer, a device used to transfer current from on value to
another
An overhead transformer
Fiberglass downlead bracket

Candy Grabbers
Cat Head
Cattle Guard
Cheaters
Cherry Picker
Chicken Catcher
Chicken Tracks
Chicken Wing
Chili Bowl
Choker
Christmas Tree
CLF
Climbers
Clum Some
Coffin Hoist
Cold

Channel lock pliers

Capstan hoist
A plastic or metal guy guard
Channel lock pliers
Bucket truck
Armsling
Epoxirod tri-unit (also 'crows foot')
Steel post insulator standoff for distribution construction (also 'turkey
wing')
An oversized pin-type insulator
A nylon sling
Pole mounted auxiliary arm used for lifing conductors
Abbreviation for current limiting fuse
Hooks for climbing poles
A greenhorn lineman, apprentice, helper
A chain hoist of any type
A de-energized line

Come-a-long
Coming Up Easy

Wire grip for holding conductor or strand under tension

Pick up load or increase tension

Corn Cob
Crosby Clip
Crow's Foot
D.A. Bolt

Thimble adapter pin

Wire rope guy wire clip
Epoxirod tri-unit (also 'chicken tracks')
Double-arming bolt.

Dead Man
Diaper
Digger Bar
Dip Pole /Riser Pole
Disc
Diving Board
DOCO
Dog Bone
Door
Drifter
E.H.V.
Eagle-Eye
Eels
Egg Breaker
Elbow
Elephant Ears
EPDM
Equalizers
Eyeball

Wood pole, with U-bracket fitting for setting poles by hand without a
truck. Short wood pole section, buried as an anchor. Any kind of earth
anchor.
Rubber blanket pinned on overhead construction. Seal-A-Conn
covering connector.
Long, round steel bar with 2-in chisel on one end ('idiot stick')
A transition pole for going from overhead to underground distribution
Suspension or deadend insulator
A platform board ( 'baker board' )
Drop-out cutout; open type cutout
Special EHV yoke plates, called this due to their shape. Vibration
damper
The fuse tube on open type cutouts. Actual door on enclosed type
cutouts
A lineman who wants to see the world
Extra high voltage
Leveling crossarms by sight with no measuring instruments
Line hose, temporary cover-up.
A guy strain insulator
Underground cable terminator
The arc chute on certain types of cutouts for extinguishing the arc while
breaking load. A triangular bracket
Rubber material used in underground elbow and other connectors
A pair of connectors or club when used in a fight
Visual determination without the use of instruments

Finger-Line
Fish
Flip-Cutout

1/4" line
A glass strain insulator
An open link cutout

Floater
Flower Pot
Four and a Quarter
Fuzz Box
Gate
Gin / Pole Buddy
Goadthead

A lineman who would quit in the middle of a job. A Conductor that has
become untied from an insulator. A conductor, insulator and pin that
has separated from the crossarm and is 'floating' rather than tied down
Universal bushing well, padmount transformer
Porcelain dead end insulator.
Noisy tester
An open type cutout's fusetube.
Temporary lifting device ( also 'pole buddy' )
An angle-iron punch.

Goat Horns
Goat Skin
Gopher
Goulash
Grasshopper / Wire Bender Cutout
Ground Hog / Grunt
Gut
Gut Wrench
Guy Jack
Half-Power
Hand
Hard Head
Hard Line
Headache
High Pot
Hog Liver
Hood
Hooks
Hookstick
Hose
Hot
Hot Arm
Hot Link
House Bracket
House Knob
Instant Foundation
J Hook
Jack
Jack Straps
Jacobs Ladder
Jiffy Deadend
Jiggler
Johnny-Ball
Joy Jelly
Jugs
Jumper

Guy hooks, iron.

Tarp for covering unfinished work for the night.
A 'go for this, go for that' helper
Insulating compound
An open link cutout.
A lineman's helper ( also 'grunt' )
5kV rubber line hose
Cant hook
A chain hoist
A lineman working off a jag
A tie stick
A lag screw
Steel bull line for pulling in wires ( also 'bull line' )
Vocal warning of danger. Anything falling from above from a pole.
To apply high potential to electrical machine or equipment, normally
done during insulation testing
Flat porcelain guy strain insulator
Insulator cover
Climbers, used for climbing poles
Insulated disconnect stick. (also 'hotstick')
Rubber or plastic cover up equipment (conductor cover0
A live or energized line.
Extension arm
Ball and socket link or other type of extension links
A secondary rack
A wire holder
Streetlight foundation
Drive or screw hook
A cutout
Small (2 inch) blocks for pulling up small wire secondary
Portable rope ladder
Non-compression deadend for copper
A glow light, secondary voltage tester
Guy strain insulator
Silicone compound for elbow terminators.
Horizontal post insulators
A slack electrical connection between two points

Jumper Holding Stick

Kettle
Knife Switch
Knuckle Buster
Lady Slippers
Lead Head
Leg Irons
Leroy
Lid
Limberneck
Line Gut
Line Profile
Liners
Lobster Claw
Luff Blocks
Mac
Mack Clamps
Meat hook
Mickey Mouse Key Puller

P.C.B.
P.T.O.
Pad
Pen and Pencil Set
Persuader
Phase
Pickle Fork
Pickles
Pig
Pig Livers
Pig Tail
Pig-tail
Pineapple
Pistol / Pistol Grip
Pizza Plate
Pogo Stick
Pole Buddy
Pole Crab
Pole Stub

Wire holding stick

An overhead transformer
Hook stick disconnect
An adjustable wrench
Name applied to present day climbers by old-timers
Nail. Pin with threaded lead top for porcelain insulators
Climbers' hooks
Generator
Hard hat.
A groundman
Conductor cover
Scaled side view drawing of actual line for engineer's review
Cloth glove liners or for hard hats in the winter
An adjustable insulator fork
Small set of rope blocks
Mechanical load pick up jumper
Insulated jumper clamps
Hand line hook
Cotter key puller
A yoke used on the end of a structure for supporting hot line tension
tools
Underground line crew
A hot line tool rack
An inside electrician
Street light bulbs
Canvas tool pouch
Seal-A-Conn for covering connectors
Oil circuit breaker
A pad mounted transformer
Power circuit breaker; opens the current under fault or overload
condition. Polychorinated biphenyl chemical.
Power take off
A pad mounted trasformer
Digging bar and spoon
A hammer
One (single) conductor
Two or three prong tie stick
Wire connectors
Cover ups
Special yokes used on EHV lines or dead ends
The leader or cable on fuslinks
Spiral disconnect or spiral link stick
A spool insulator
Elbow terminator
A fork suspension attachment
Telescoping tools
A transformer gin
Wire tong saddle
Pole reinforcer

Pork Chop

A 'come-a-long' wire grip for holding conductor or strand under tension

Milking Stool
Moles
Music Stand
Narrow Back / Wire Twister
Nitros
Nose Bag
Nutty Putty
O.C.B.
Old Man

Pot
Potato Hook

Potential transformer. Pole-top transformer

Fixed prong tie stick

Sav-a-Climb
Saw Dust Machine
Saw Dust Pump
Service Drop
Sharp Shooter
Sheaves
Shoe-fly
Short Hook-up
Shot Gun Stick
Single Jack

A point where separate or overhead electrical conductors come

together and continue as cable. The termination device used on end of
an underground cable.
A tool bag
Tie stick
Insulated jumber clamp
An extremely short distance
Insulating line hose
Pole top pin
A trouble chaser
A crossarm type pin, fits like a saddle
Univeral fitting for laying lines over crossarms and through trees with a
stick
A brace and bit or drill
A brace and bit, hand drill
The conductor between pole and terminal on a building
A shovel with long narrow blade for digging holes in ground like clay
Any type of rope block
A temporary line built to bypass a construction area
Cord and clips for electric drill
A Grip-All stick
A heavy hammer

Sinker
Sister Eye

Pin pushed down through crossarm and insulator rests on crossarm

Eeybolt or ancor rod eye for guy strand or insulator

Skywire
Slave Market
Sleeve
Slip Stick
Slug
Spool Bolt
Spoon
Squeeze On
Squeeze Wrench

A ground wire on top of pole and towers to protect lines from lightning
An employment agency's office
A splice
A Grip-All stick
A solid blade on open type cutouts
An upset bolt used to support spool insulators
A shovel, cup-shaped with long handle
A compression fitting (connectors)
is a hand compression or cutting wrench.
a "squirrel cage" is a steel bracket mounted on a pole to support line
conductors.
To survey and mark location for each new line pole
Wire from cutout to transformer. A boom extension
A chain or strap hoist for pulling wire
A disconnect stick
Rope used to tie off line or to control load being lifted
Link stick.
A hot line clamp
Three shovels; a spoon, a spade, and a shovel; all three are of different
design for different uses
A machine bolt
Underground fault locator

Pothead
Pouch
Rake
Red Head Jumper
Red One
Reptile / Snake
Ridge Pin
Rough Neck
Saddle Pin

Squirrel Cage
Staking
Stinger
Strong Arm
Switch Stick
Tag Line
Tag-out
Tap Clamp
Three-phase Set
Thru-bolt
Thumper

Traveling Ladder
Tub
Tupperware
Two Pound
U.R.D.
U-bangi
Walking Crab
Waterfall

is 1)an insulator retainer for trolley poles; 2)a fork suspension tool
attachment.
Two or three transformers at same location connected to the same
circuit
A movable grounding device
A fabricated aluminum two-wheel trolley with an attached chain
Wooden ladder with fiber rollers generally used when work or
inspection has to be done on transmission hardware or conductor
Pole type transformer ( also 'kettle')
is a plastic protective cover.
A lineman's hammer
Underground residential distribution
is 15 kV rubber line hose
A lever lift
is a triple drum puller.

Weatherhead
Westerns
Widow
Wiggle
Wiggle Wire
Wildcat Connection
Wildcate Leg
Window Pole

The top of the conduit that contains the customer service conductors,
constructed so it will resist the action of rain, sun, etcl.
Hooks, standard climbers for old-type Wester Union.
Cable grip
A glow light, secondary voltage tester
Any king of formed wire used for securing conductors to insulators.
Three-phase four wire delta
Center tap connection on three-phase four wire delta
A disconnect stick

Toliet Seat
Trasformer Bank
Traveling Chain
Traveling Chair

MPS Website-section page

See Brace - Alley Arm

Insulators -

Tools and Accessories - Tools Spacers

Tools and Accessories - Tools Come-A-Long

Fiberglass - Brackets
Anchors - Expanding

Fiberglass - Brackets - Downlead

Fiberglass - Brackets - Downlead

Hardware F-Z - Pole Steps

Tools and Accessories - Tools Come-A-Long

Hardware F-Z - Pins - Thimble
Adapter Lead Threads
Fiberglass - Brackets

Insulators -

Hardware F-Z - Insulators - Guy

Strain

Hardware A-E - Attachments-Guy

Hooks

Hardware F-Z - Screws - Lag

Hardware F-Z - Pole Steps

Hardware F-Z - Racks-Secondary