[Milsurplus] Wire Thoughts

[Kludge]

-----Original Message-----
From: milsurplus-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:milsurplus-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Don Davis
> Try using small diameter mil surplus coax.  It has a surface texture and 
> size that is similar to WW II wire.  

No, it doesn't.  It's nowhere close.

> Also, there has to be millions of 
> miles of WW II scrapped aircraft harness lying around?  Somewhere.  In 
> AZ?  

Nope, smelted with the airframes.  The great meltdown during the 50s or 60s
pretty much took care of those "millions of miles".  But let's go with the
idea that at least some still exists.  I'm in Hawaii.  Are you going to pay
my way (plus a companion/caretaker) there and back plus expenses because I
sure as heck can't afford it?  No, I didn't think so.

> Maybe an avionics shop at a small airport?

Uh-huh.  Every avionics shop has WW II wire laying about.  They also have
all the pre-Cessna Aircraft Radio Corporation equipment I can load into my
truck.  I was an A&P and we have at least one retired avionics shop manager
on these lists and we can both tell you that if it were that easy, it'd be a
done deal.

> Make wire from shoelaces?  Really?  Really?  The only thing worse (in my 
> mind) than someone looking at your rig and saying it's not 100% 
> authentic, is someone looking at your rig and realizing that you made 
> wire from shoelaces to make it "look" authentic...  

Okay, one more time.  We're talking about wiring from 70+ years ago, some
from the late 1930s, as used in aircraft of the time.  This was fabric over
rubber wire using open (laced) cabling, shielded cabling or black rubber
encased cabling.  In building the wiring harnesses for WW II radios, the use
of more modern wire for open cabling and in some instances for the enclosed
cabling simply doesn't work.  Think of it as a restoration project if that
helps.

> As far as I can tell 
> (from 9 years in B-52s, 32 years in aerospace, many years in comm'l 
> electronics) nobody ever designed a harness to "look" a certain way. 

No one ever designed an *original* harness to look a certain way.  Your
experience is with original harnesses and you're right as far as they're
concerned.  This is not an original harness, it's a replica or as close as I
can get to one so, yes, appearance is important.  It's very important.  

In the meantime, however, several people have pointed me to companies that
specialize in the wire I need so I won't have to do the shoestring thing.
I'm hanging onto the idea, though.  It may come in handy for another
application.

Best regards,
 
Michael, WH7HG ex-K3MXO, ex-KN3MXO, WPE3ARS, BL01xh ex-Mensa A&P PP BGI 
I am me.  I’m the only one who’s qualified.
http://www.nationalmssociety.org/chapters/NTH/index.aspx
http://wh7hg.blogspot.com/
http://kludges-other-blog.blogspot.com
Hiki Nô!