Post by thread:[OT] Hot Wire

Hello forum members and friends, I created a machine to cut 4'x8' styrofoam boards, using PC interface, stepper motors control by Allegro chips, XY movement and so on, all controlled by a microcontroller via serial communication. To cut the Styrofoam it uses a Ni-Cr wire, AWG 30 (0.01") that has 6.5 (or 6.75) Ohms/ft, requiring from 1.4 to 1.6 Amperes to generate the correct heat. 4 to 6 inches of this wire can be powered by a common wall wart 6Vdc/1.5A. I found this wire is some places around in US, but there was always a high cost per foot, so I was forced to buy a big reel. Each machine use only few feet of them, it will take a "million" machines to consume the reel, so I decided to offer part of the reel by foot to the forum members. 20 feet (6 meters) is only $12 (USA), $13 (Overseas), packing and shipping included (regular mail envelope). If you are interested email me for further details, (I also have a small quantity of stepper motors I bought in excess). Wagner Lipnharski

Yeah, well, some hobby supply places I consulted they don't even know what was the AWG number (or the resistance per foot) of the wire they have, and they charge S+H. There is a company in California that has all of this wires by foot, sell a minimum of $45 plus $5 S+H (cost almost $1/ft). Some interesting about professionalism; Talking to a dozen of big wire/cable supplier companies around in Florida, Georgia, even New York and Chicago, the sales people do not have the minimum clue or idea what means Nickel-Chrome or Nickel-Chromium wire. To help them to understand, I said that exist several type of materials electric wires are made from, as copper, steel, aluminum, brass, iron, ... and asking to the guy what other material he knows (hopping he knows Ni-Cr by any other name), he answered plain and simple: "Fiber Optics"!!!... I couldn't hold my open laugh on the phone. The guy was serious. He said "what!?!?". Other company sales guy promptly asked all my company information (for his database), and right after asked me to repeat (again) what I was looking for, then he said directly "How many feet?", and then he realized he had no idea what I was talking about (Nickel-Chrome). What happened with people's brain and knowledge? I can expect this reaction from a delivery pizza boy recently promoted to sales in a wire company, but from a guy that works there at least 5 years and makes $18/hour? Another big time company, more than 30 years in the market, selling all kinds of wires and cables, heavy and small, communication cables and so on, the sales people never heard about Nickel-Chrome wire (I heard he asking loud in the room to the other sales people too). I asked the guy how long he is been working in this field, he answered "16 years". I just can't believe that we can call it "professionalism". It is like to sell only "yellow chew gum", and never heard about the other colors... for several years... and they claim they are there to help you when you call, because they are specialists... ok, they could be, but, about what? It is not about electrical wires for sure! I would love to say the names of those companies, but them, it would be a lack of "my professionalism", isn't? Wagner. Andy Kunz wrote: {Quote hidden}> > >20 feet (6 meters) is only $12 (USA), $13 (Overseas), packing and > >shipping included (regular mail envelope). If you are interested email > >me for further details, (I also have a small quantity of stepper motors > >I bought in excess). > > I can buy it for $9/20' from hobby supply places. > > Andy > ================================================================== > Montana Design Tech Support - http://www.montanadesign.com > ==================================================================

>Another big time company, more than 30 years in the market, selling all >kinds of wires and cables, heavy and small, communication cables and so >on, the sales people never heard about Nickel-Chrome wire (I heard he Of course not. NiCr isn't used as "wire" or "cable" - it's a specialty product. That's why it costs more. The same reason the guy in the electric supply store (or your local Radio Shack <G>) doesn't know what an IC socket is. Andy ================================================================== Montana Design Tech Support - http://www.montanadesign.com ==================================================================

Sad to say, the best answer I've found is not to deal with people unless absoultely necessary. In this case I would suggest http://www.mcmaster.com, find wire, select resistance wire, & check the second .pdf page. guages, resistance, and no know-nothings to deal with. Gary Crowell Micron Technology Wagner Lipnharski wrote: {Quote hidden}> > Yeah, well, some hobby supply places I consulted they don't even know > what was the AWG number (or the resistance per foot) of the wire they > have, and they charge S+H. There is a company in California that has all > of this wires by foot, sell a minimum of $45 plus $5 S+H (cost almost > $1/ft). > > Some interesting about professionalism; Talking to a dozen of big > wire/cable supplier companies around in Florida, Georgia, even New York > and Chicago, the sales people do not have the minimum clue or idea what > means Nickel-Chrome or Nickel-Chromium wire. To help them to understand, > I said that exist several type of materials electric wires are made > from, as copper, steel, aluminum, brass, iron, ... and asking to the guy > what other material he knows (hopping he knows Ni-Cr by any other name), > he answered plain and simple: "Fiber Optics"!!!... I couldn't hold my > open laugh on the phone. The guy was serious. He said "what!?!?". > > Other company sales guy promptly asked all my company information (for > his database), and right after asked me to repeat (again) what I was > looking for, then he said directly "How many feet?", and then he > realized he had no idea what I was talking about (Nickel-Chrome). What > happened with people's brain and knowledge? I can expect this reaction > from a delivery pizza boy recently promoted to sales in a wire company, > but from a guy that works there at least 5 years and makes $18/hour? > > Another big time company, more than 30 years in the market, selling all > kinds of wires and cables, heavy and small, communication cables and so > on, the sales people never heard about Nickel-Chrome wire (I heard he > asking loud in the room to the other sales people too). I asked the guy > how long he is been working in this field, he answered "16 years". I > just can't believe that we can call it "professionalism". It is like to > sell only "yellow chew gum", and never heard about the other colors... > for several years... and they claim they are there to help you when you > call, because they are specialists... ok, they could be, but, about > what? It is not about electrical wires for sure! > > I would love to say the names of those companies, but them, it would be > a lack of "my professionalism", isn't? > > Wagner. > > Andy Kunz wrote: > > > > >20 feet (6 meters) is only $12 (USA), $13 (Overseas), packing and > > >shipping included (regular mail envelope). If you are interested email > > >me for further details, (I also have a small quantity of stepper motors > > >I bought in excess). > > > > I can buy it for $9/20' from hobby supply places. > > > > Andy > > ================================================================== > > Montana Design Tech Support - http://www.montanadesign.com > > ==================================================================

In the US, it's usually called nichrome wire. If you're talking to the people who make communications cables and such, it's not surprising that they don't know what you're talking about. They're all worried about insulation displacement, twists per inch, shielding, plenum rating, UL approval, and so on. You need to backtrack to the people who make WIRE out of METAL, not cables out of wire. Probably you need to find someone who specializes in somthing other than copper. I've seen multi-thousand foot spools of "resistance wire" (which is NOT nichrome, generally) for sale more often at metal surplus dealers than electronics dealers, for instance. $12/20feet is NOT a good price - if you paid anywhere close to that much in bulk (ie by the pound, for 8oz or more of wire), then you really got ripped off... BillW

Now I got lost, which is the speciality of the company who sells Ni-Cr wire? I only found it in companies who sell wires, cables and heating elements, not in drugstores, pharmacies or bakeries. By the way, if I would sell fish, it would be good to know also about whales, even if I don't have them for sale... right? General information and knowledge never did hurt nobody, it is good for business and make people look a little bit different from monkeys. It is so easy to change the car engine's oil, but 99.9% of the owners don't have a minimum clue about how to change the oil filter, or at least where is it. I call this laziness and lack of interest. A lot of this people complain about lack of luck in life (read money here), while in true they never were prepared for the real opportunities. Wagner Andy Kunz wrote: {Quote hidden}> > >Another big time company, more than 30 years in the market, selling all > >kinds of wires and cables, heavy and small, communication cables and so > >on, the sales people never heard about Nickel-Chrome wire (I heard he > > Of course not. NiCr isn't used as "wire" or "cable" - it's a specialty > product. That's why it costs more. > > The same reason the guy in the electric supply store (or your local Radio > Shack <G>) doesn't know what an IC socket is. > > Andy > > ================================================================== > Montana Design Tech Support - http://www.montanadesign.com > ==================================================================

At 15:54 05/17/99 -0400, Wagner Lipnharski wrote: >Now I got lost, which is the speciality of the company who sells Ni-Cr >wire? I only found it in companies who sell wires, cables and heating >elements, not in drugstores, pharmacies or bakeries. i don't know to whom you talked, but you got me curious, and so i did a quick search in yahoo and came up with a number of companies who at least have this nichrome wire in their web sites -- a good indication that their sales people at least have heard of it :) or is it to these companies that you talked to? >By the way, if I would sell fish, it would be good to know also about >whales, even if I don't have them for sale... right? yes, maybe about whales, but how about some rare fish you and i have never heard of? they maybe haven't either... :) ge

Gerhard Fiedler wrote: > i don't know to whom you talked, but you got me curious, and so i did a > quick search in yahoo and came up with a number of companies who at least > have this nichrome wire in their web sites -- a good indication that their > sales people at least have heard of it :) or is it to these companies that > you talked to? Yes, for the Internet sake, those were the only ones I found. I tried several other from industrial supplier catalogs, yellow pages and other sources... Internet saved the day :) Ni-Cr wire is a little bit more industrial base than for example magnetic wire, it was very easy to find 10 years ago, very few people still rebuilding transformers and motors at home. So repeating what someone said weeks ago; "If you can't find at Digikey..." :) -------------------------------------------------------- Wagner Lipnharski - UST Research Inc. - Orlando, Florida Forum and microcontroller web site: http://www.ustr.net Microcontrollers Survey: http://www.ustr.net/tellme.htm