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Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
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#1
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
Back in the 60's and 70s, test leads were coated with a nice soft
rubber, which was thick, had excellent flex, and felt good in the hands. All test leads these days are a plastic material that is thinner and does not have the flex or soft feel of those old rubber ones. These modern ones are not much diferent than plain coated wire, used to wire homes and electrical gear. Dont they sell the rubber ones anymore, or are they only sold with high end, costly equipment? |
#2
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
On Sunday, March 12, 2017 at 6:41:52 PM UTC-7, wrote:
Back in the 60's and 70s, test leads were coated with a nice soft rubber, which was thick, had excellent flex... A 1972 catalog says Columbia #01319 (red or black) 20 gage, 41 strands #36 AWG wire #01321 (red or black) 20 gage, 41 strands #36 AWG wire #01326 (red or black) 18 gage, 65 strands #36 AWG wire and Dearborn #982041 (red or black), 20 gage, 41 strands of #36 AWG wire, and #981865 (red or black), 18 gage, 65 strands of #36 AWG wire and Belden #8898 (red or black) 18 gage, 65 strands of #36 wire, 10 kV insulation #8899 (red or black or green or yellow) 18 gage, 65 strands of #36 wire, 5 kV insulation #8890 (red or black) 24 gage, 45 strands of #40 wire, 2 kV insulation all fit that description. Belden still makes #8899 (Alliedelec.com has stock); a bit over a dollar a foot, 100foot spools |
#3
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
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#5
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
Yeah but those old leads are all sticky now, at least the ones I have.
I don't know what causes it but I dislike touching them. |
#6
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
On Mon, 13 Mar 2017 11:28:21 -0700 (PDT), Tim R
wrote: Yeah but those old leads are all sticky now, at least the ones I have. I don't know what causes it but I dislike touching them. I never ran into that. But I did have some (in the 70s) that dried up and the insulation was falling off. (Needless to say, I saved the probes, and tossed the wire in the trash). I dont know what would cause them to be sticky, but just a thought... wipe them down with 91% rubbing alcohol? I cant try this, since I dont have any to try that on.... (If you try it, let us know if it worked). I have a pair of the newer plastic ones, that probably date back to around the late 1980s. The wires are still soft, but they developed a tiny spot of bare wire where they enter the molded plugs on the meter end. I fixed them with a small blob of hi temp (red) silicone caulk intended for automotive use. Worked great! |
#7
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
On Mon, 13 Mar 2017 15:34:43 +0800, Rheilly Phoull
wrote: On 13/03/2017 9:40 AM, wrote: Back in the 60's and 70s, test leads were coated with a nice soft rubber, which was thick, had excellent flex, and felt good in the hands. All test leads these days are a plastic material that is thinner and does not have the flex or soft feel of those old rubber ones. These modern ones are not much diferent than plain coated wire, used to wire homes and electrical gear. Dont they sell the rubber ones anymore, or are they only sold with high end, costly equipment? Theres a bit of "silicon" cable on ebay. I use it for test leads or stuff that needs durable cables. It solders much better than the cheap plastic stuff too. I'll have to look for that. Sounds like what I want. If it feels like silicon spark plug wires (but thinner), that is probably ideal. |
#8
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Whatever happened to those soft rubber test leads
On 14/03/2017 3:45 AM, wrote:
On Mon, 13 Mar 2017 15:34:43 +0800, Rheilly Phoull wrote: On 13/03/2017 9:40 AM, wrote: Back in the 60's and 70s, test leads were coated with a nice soft rubber, which was thick, had excellent flex, and felt good in the hands. All test leads these days are a plastic material that is thinner and does not have the flex or soft feel of those old rubber ones. These modern ones are not much diferent than plain coated wire, used to wire homes and electrical gear. Dont they sell the rubber ones anymore, or are they only sold with high end, costly equipment? Theres a bit of "silicon" cable on ebay. I use it for test leads or stuff that needs durable cables. It solders much better than the cheap plastic stuff too. I'll have to look for that. Sounds like what I want. If it feels like silicon spark plug wires (but thinner), that is probably ideal. Start with http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1M-Black-...aE-vUFaDV9nnWg |
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