On Tue, 26 Nov 2013 09:53:24 +1100, John G wrote:

I don't believe anyone has said the neutral is not insulated.

I thought it was said here, but, maybe I misinterpreted the quote?

On Sat, 23 Nov 2013 16:09:26 -0500, someone wrote:
From Professor Cardell's web page at
http://www.science.smith.edu/~jcarde...ecPwr_HSW.html

"There are two wires running out of the transformer and three wires
running to the house.
The two from the transformer are insulated, and the third one is bare.
The bare wire is the ground wire.
The two insulated wires each carry 120 volts, but they are 180 degrees
out of phase so the difference between them is 240 volts."