Thanks Steve, 

I was just looking at lead wire yesterday at either Mouser or Digikey.  It was likely Mouser as I don't think Digikey (and maybe not even Mouser) sells wire by the foot; either way, they had the requisite ratings (1KV dc) for the meter and the colors I need:  red, black, green, and blue.  I have plenty of hookup wire, but as you say, it's not ideal for the application as it's not as flexible and will eventually fail from metal fatigue.  I don't have the set in front of me, but I should be able to repurpose the probes themselves as I *believe* they were either bakelite or something similar, like a phenolic material.

That said, if anyone on the list is following this thread and happens to have lead wire in the colors/ratings above in 6' sections, I would be willing to pay for it if they're willing to sell.

Either way, thanks for the tip!

On Wed, Nov 29, 2023 at 4:34 PM sbjohnston--- via Milsurplus <milsurplus@mailman.qth.net> wrote:

In my restoring and collecting of Simpson 260s, I often face the same challenge.   

Sometimes I get lucky and find new Simpson test lead sets for sale with the right connectors.  I try not to pay more than $20 for a pair of new ones, but that requires diligent searching. 

Other times I have to make new test leads from scratch with wire, probes, and connectors.

When I need to make a set, I've learned to look for wire that specifically calls itself "test lead" wire.  I find it has the rubbery, limp character we want in test leads.  Regular hook up wire is frustrating as it coils and twists, and it breaks too soon from the flexing.

The last batch I bought was from Cal-Test Electronics.


Set the length filter to the smaller rolls to see realistic prices for our purposes.

I bought it through Newark, DigiKey, or Mouser I think. 


So far I've used this wire to make some deluxe alligator clip leads (with real Mueller clips) as well as several Fluke and Simpson meter test lead sets.  The wire feels luxuriously limp and is clearly of high quality.


Steve WD8DAS  
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