Hookup wire

[JohnRoberts]

> plenum CAT5 ....  solid core conductor

As you say, some paths need fatter stuff, and JR is trying to burn his wire up.

Actually trying to burn food without burning the wire... I used some normal wire first and the white (PVC?) insulation turned brown after a few weeks. Long term I was also apprehensive about the durability of simple solder connections that can degrade from heat over time. (Using power resistors as heating elements, the core and leads of the resistor get hotter than the outer housing.)

BTW I also figured out that a commercial off the shelf slow-cooker was easily superior to my DIY attempt (and cheaper), but as usual I learned stuff from trying.

JR

 

[PRR]

> Not even close

I've got a very fine Ford, but it is a tractor.

I've got a fine car, but it doesn't say Ford.

> Teflon is what makes non-stick pans

You pay to use the "Teflon" brand-name.

Pan-buyers want to see "Teflon".

Wire-buyers may be a bit more sophisticated, know that the stuff on the pans is PTFE, won't burn badly on the stove.

There are several forms of TFE/FEP insulation. Some must be applied over silver/nickel plate.

In the US, the Teflon brand is used to push wire; some of it not legally "Teflon".

Allied Wire pays to use "Teflon(R)" on their wire:
http://www.awcwire.com/mfg/belden/category/belden-teflon-hook-up-wire
Alpha Wire offers PTFE; however DigiKey buys Google Ad-Word "Teflon" to suck you in. 

If you are building manned airplanes/spaceships, there will be specific grades or tests for insulation. PTFE is common, but it comes in several forms, and your inspectors will be fussy. Soften at 600 or 660? Out-gas enough to sicken you in a sealed cabin? Withstand jet-fuel or nitrobenzene washes?

Just frying-up radios and such, you got your PVC which melts like hard candle wax, and your "Teflon" (PTFE class) stuff which is much harder to melt. And Hoffman's Cloth push-pack, which looks and tastes just-like classic Fender wire, genuine mojo.

I have heard of Irradiated PVC but don't know how it compares. My thought is: PVC, PE, and TFE, you put bulk plastic beads in a hot die, pull and spool and ship. With Irradiated PVC you have to move the spooler back and put in this added machine covered with radiation warnings, diddle another dial so the stuff doesn't come out gummy or brittle. The stuff is made, but I can see why many wire-plants would prefer to avoid the process.

Which means for DIY and small-run building, you probably can't meet full-price minimum-orders, you should shop-around for surplus in back-alleys. Apex Jr is a well-known US wire dealer. eBay opens up the vast Asian odd-lot market (and uncertain quality).

It IS interesting that I can buy underground house wire (three #2 conductors that I can drive over) for about the same price/foot as far smaller #20 hookup in "Teflon".

> not the same.

Actually, most thermoplastics are closely related; but one different atom can make a significant change in user properties. Kinda like antibiotics: when we were younger there were about two basic antibiotics, but one-atom changes made real difference in action or toxicity (and patent income).

 

[ruffrecords]

Thanks for the clarification PRR.  Clearly Teflon and PTFE are used to mean the same thing whether they do or not. What puzzles me is Brian used the phrase 'Teflon coated' which implies the main body of the insulation might be something else.

Cheers

Ian

 

[Gold]

What puzzles me is Brian used the phrase 'Teflon coated' which implies the main body of the insulation might be something else.

I think "coated" is the same as "jacketed". All the PTFE coated  wire I've gotten from Apex Jr. has been the same material all the way through the jacket. All of it has had silver plated wire as well. I'm not sure if the two are connected. I use 67/37/2 silver solder so it's a breeze to solder.

 

[PRR]

> the phrase 'Teflon coated'

Ah. Yes, in US house-wire "THHN Wire" was originally a Nylon jacket over a lesser insulation. Tough and slippery, pulls into conduit better, is rated higher (temp and Amps) though not for most residential devices. I don't think the Nylon jacket is written into the test-spec, but this (or something like it) seems to be the common way to meet the performance tests.

{typical} THHN-14-1 Stranded Building Wire Specifications:
AWG Size 14
Nom. O.D. (in) 0.102
Nom. Insul. Thick. (in) 0.015
Jacket Thick 0.004
Insul. Material Polyvinylchloride (PVC)
Jacket Material Nylon

Mildly annoying on the stripper-- the clear-coat comes off, have to go back and get the PVC off.

All the "Teflon" I have seen is the same white stuff all the way through. I don't think it would make sense to do hookup wire as body and jacket. (But it might make sense for some exotic application, where no single stuff would resist all challenges.)

 

[ruffrecords]

Thanks again PRR; that makes complete sense now. I remember asking about sources of prfe hook up wire in the UK some time ago and I was contacted by someone who sells it thru' eBay. I'll see if I can find the post and find out exactly what material is used in his wire.

Cheers

Ian