The AO11 Wedge Blade has a small foot at the bottom of the blade to assist in lifting the insulation away from the conductor as you strip the cable. The AO11 Wedge Blade is the correct choice for almost all applications. We normally recommend using the Straight Blade (AO12) only if the Wedge Blade is unable to strip your specific cable. This is typically only true when stripping extremely soft EPR insulated cables. Virtually all XLP and most EPR cables can be stripped using the AO11 Wedge Blade.