Milwaukee M12 2472
Milwaukee publishes a 600 MCM copper / 750 MCM aluminum capacity for the M12 2472 cable cutter. Its dedicated replacement blade is 48-44-0410.
Home Cable Cutter Guide
Professional electrical cable cutting
Cable Cutter Guide for Electricians
Choose a cable cutter by what you are cutting—not by jaw size or tool force alone. This guide separates soft copper/aluminum cable, ACSR and guy wire, armored branch cable and large underground cable so capacity claims stay attached to the correct material.
Cable-cutting selection chain
Material → cable construction → size/capacity → access → tool/jaw → blade → manufacturer limits. A capacity for soft copper/aluminum does not automatically apply to ACSR, guy wire, steel armor or another cable construction.
Last technical review: August 26, 2026.
Start with the cable material—not the cutter brand
The phrase cable cutter covers everything from small hand cutters to multi-thousand-dollar hydraulic utility tools. For professional electrical work, the first decision is what is actually inside the cable. Soft copper and aluminum conductors, steel-reinforced ACSR, guy wire, armored branch cable and medium-voltage underground cable can require completely different blade geometry and force.
This page deliberately focuses on professional electrical cable cutting. General-purpose hand cutters and communications snips are outside the main selection path unless they are directly relevant to the cable type being discussed.
Which cable-cutter family matches the material?
| Material / application | Typical cutter family | Current documented examples | Do not assume |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soft copper / aluminum power cable | Powered scissor/open-jaw cutter, ratchet cutter or hydraulic cutter | Milwaukee M12 2472; Milwaukee M18 2672; Greenlee ESC50LX; Greenlee 750/756 | That the same blades can cut ACSR or steel. |
| ACSR / guy wire / hard metal | Hard-metal or ACSR-rated cutter/jaw | Milwaukee 49-16-2773 ACSR jaw; Greenlee ESG45LX | That a Cu/Al blade is suitable because the outside diameter fits. |
| MC / AC / BX / Greenfield armor | Armored-cable rotary cutter | Milwaukee 48-22-6111; Klein 53725 | That the tool is intended to sever large copper/aluminum conductors. |
| Large underground copper / medium voltage | Purpose-built hydraulic underground cutter | Milwaukee 2776-21, published for up to 1500 MCM copper 15 kV cable | That the rating extends to every cable construction or voltage class. |
Current capacity examples show why model numbers matter
Milwaukee M18 2672
The 2672-21 with 49-16-2772 cutting jaw is published for 750 MCM copper / 1000 MCM aluminum. Replacement blades are 48-44-0411.
Greenlee ESC50LX
Greenlee publishes up to 2-inch standard and fine-stranded copper/aluminum cable for the ESC50LX family.
Greenlee 750
The 11-ton Greenlee 750 is published for 1000 kcmil copper or aluminum cable with a 1-15/16-inch jaw opening.
Do not convert kcmil ratings into a universal diameter rule
Conductor area and finished cable diameter answer different questions. Insulation thickness, conductor stranding, jacket construction and voltage class all affect the outside diameter. When a manufacturer publishes a kcmil limit, use that limit for the named conductor type. When it publishes a diameter limit, keep the material and cable-construction wording attached to that diameter.
Compare professional electrical cable cutters
Use the material/capacity table first, then compare current listings by exact model and cutting application. Marketplace wording such as “heavy duty” is not a substitute for the manufacturer's Cu/Al, ACSR, armored-cable or underground-cable rating.
Blade and jaw compatibility can create a second use for an existing tool
Some professional power platforms accept interchangeable cutting jaws. Milwaukee's current 49-16-2772 Cu/Al jaw and 49-16-2773 ACSR jaw are documented for applicable M18 FORCE LOGIC 6T crimpers as well as dedicated cutter configurations. Greenlee likewise documents CJ-CUAL and CJ-ACSR1 interchangeable cutting jaws for its EK425/EK628 6-ton battery tools. That is a genuine compatibility opportunity—but it is model- and jaw-specific, not a universal “crimper becomes cutter” rule.
If you already own a compatible high-force platform, checking the documented jaw path can be more economical than buying a second power unit.
Choose the next guide by the job
For Milwaukee model and blade relationships, use the Milwaukee Cable Cutter guide. For Greenlee soft-metal, hard-metal, ratchet and hydraulic systems, use Greenlee Cable Cutters. For remote and powered hydraulic architecture, see Hydraulic Cable Cutters. If the task is removing MC/AC/BX armor rather than cutting a large conductor, go to the Armored Cable Cutter guide.
Find the documented replacement blade or jaw
Use the Cable Cutter Blade & Jaw Finder to match selected Milwaukee cutters/jaws and Greenlee 6-ton cutting-jaw paths to documented replacement parts.
Battery and cordless cable cutters
If eliminating the hose/pump is the main workflow goal, use the Battery Cable Cutter Guide. It separates soft-metal, ACSR/hard-metal and utility-cable cordless systems rather than treating “battery cutter” as one capacity class.
For replacement parts, the Blade & Jaw Finder and Milwaukee Replacement Blade Guide provide the model-level path.
Technical sources used for this guide
- Milwaukee Electrical Installation Cable Cutters — current cutter families and published Cu/Al, ACSR and underground-cable capacities.
- Milwaukee M12 600 MCM Cable Cutter 2472-21XC — 600 MCM Cu / 750 MCM Al capacity.
- Milwaukee M18 FORCE LOGIC Cable Cutter 2672-21 — 750 MCM Cu / 1000 MCM Al system.
- Greenlee ESC50LX Inline Cable Cutter — soft-metal cutter family and interchangeable-jaw overview.
- Greenlee 750 Hydraulic Cable Cutter — 1000 kcmil Cu/Al capacity and replacement-part data.
- Greenlee ESG45LX Hard Metal Cutter — ACSR/guy-wire/hard-metal capacities.
- Milwaukee 48-22-6111 Armored Cable Cutter — MC/AC/BX/MCAP/Greenfield application.
Cable Cutter Guide for Electricians FAQs
What type of cable cutter do electricians use?
It depends on the cable. Large copper and aluminum conductors use soft-metal cable cutters; ACSR and guy wire require cutters rated for hard metal; MC, AC and BX armor use dedicated armored-cable cutters; and large underground cable may require a purpose-built hydraulic cutter.
Can a copper and aluminum cable cutter cut ACSR?
Not unless the manufacturer explicitly rates that tool or jaw for ACSR. ACSR contains a steel-reinforced core, so a soft-metal Cu/Al capacity should not be extended to ACSR by inference.
Is MCM the same as cable diameter?
No. MCM, also written kcmil, is a conductor-area measure. A tool with a 2-inch jaw opening and a tool rated to a particular kcmil capacity are not directly comparable without the cable construction and manufacturer capacity table.
What is the difference between a cable cutter and an armored cable cutter?
A large-conductor cable cutter severs the conductor assembly. An armored-cable cutter is designed to slit or cut the metallic armor on products such as MC, AC and BX while controlling cut depth so the insulated conductors are not nicked.
Do replacement cable-cutter blades have to match the exact tool?
Yes unless the manufacturer explicitly documents broader fit. For example, Milwaukee specifies 48-44-0410 for its M12 2472 cutter and 48-44-0411 for its M18 750 MCM Cu/Al jaw system.