PTFE covered wire

[Fenris]

I've found plenty of Teflon coated wire on E-bay in the past for a good price.

 

[JimT]

Isn't plain old CAT5 cable made from twisted pairs that are PTFE coated ?

I have heard that the CAT5 Plenum grade has PTFE insulation. The standard CAT5 is probably PVC.

Jim

 

[BrianDonegan]

Plenum-rated CAT5 uses FEP insulation. It is a formable type of Teflon, but not PTFE. It melts at 260C.

 

[DualTriode]

The Highlights I see here are:

Yes buy silver plated Teflon wire from Apexjr.com, Steve Has good prices.

Yes plenum rated conductors do have Teflon insulation; the conductors typically are not silver plated. (best new material price option)

Yes the Ideal brand of automatic wire strippers work well.

DT

 

[BrianDonegan]

Yes plenum rated conductors do have Teflon insulation; the conductors typically are not silver plated. (best new material price option)

They have Teflon FEP, which lacks the main benefit of PTFE (high temp melting point). It will behave much the same as PVC and melt when you try to solder it.

EDIT: the melting point is higher than that of PVC, but still in iron-melting range.

PVC: 160C
FEP: 260C
PTFE: 327C

 

[DualTriode]

Hello,

Your mileage may vary.

Not to bring up the solder discussion I have not had an issue with the plenum rated Teflon insulation melting while using 60/40 solder. 183-190C melting temp
See the attached Kester solder Alloy Temperature Chart.

http://www.kester.com/kester-content/uploads/2013/06/Alloy-Temperature-Chart-15Feb11.pdf

DT

 

[famousmockingbird]

I use ETFE (Ethylene TetraFluoroEthylene) $30 for 100 foot reel 18 gauge stranded.

The ETFE insulation has better mechanical toughness than PTFE (Teflon) with the same extreme heat resistance.

 

[multi]

Teflon FEP: I use this wire and never noticed any melting when soldering.
I pay about $A70.00 for 200 meters.
Phil