Kanthal wire and resistence

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jfoster1

Senior Member
ECF Veteran
Jul 7, 2012
195
57
Mississippi
I have noticed the ones building their own coils are using 32 awg Kanthala wire. When they wrap thier coil they are getting like 1.8 ohm resistence. If they wanted a 2.8 or 3.0 ohm resistance would they wrap more coils or go to a 34 awg wire. I can't find any of this wire. I have looked on e-bay. Anyone know where you can purchase some wire and know how to adjust the ohm rating?
Thanks
 

ComfyChair

Full Member
Apr 17, 2012
39
15
Huntsville, Al
Seems it would be easier to simply step up to 34 or 36. The higher the number, the smaller the diameter of the wire and the more resistance it should have. Since the ohm's are measured per the foot, like KA1 32 should be something like 13.8 ohms per foot, to get 32 up to 3 ohms or so might take between 2 and 3 inches of wire to achieve it (ymmv). Increasing the number of coils simply increases the length of the wire overall and, hence, the ohms from end to end. Biggest problem is you only have so much physical space to work with in yer rebuildable...and we don't want the coils to touch. Also, you don't have to stick to KA1 32...plenty of other choices like Nic80 or Nic60 and it's often easier to find those than the cherished KA1 32 due to it's popularity. Got my last roll of nic80 off amazon and when I checked a couple days ago, the vendor still had some but in an odd half-size. Also, it can get kinda crazy looking for the stuff too...take KA1 for example...it's also known as: Kanthal A1, Kanthal, Alloy 875, Resistohm 145, Aluchrom O, Alchrome 875, MWS-875, Stablohm 875. So, plenty of google terms to keep you busy lol.
 

water4choc

Super Member
ECF Veteran
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Jan 17, 2012
356
424
Northern Nevada
I have also been looking for the Kanthal A1 32 gage wire. I've checked e-bay and they are sold out. I did find one place that sells it, but they sell in huge spools. Too much for me, but if anyone else wants this much, this is the info I got:

32Ga KA1
-$88.25/lb + $0.80/lb surcharge* +$15.00 respool fee + shipping
-Available 7/30
-This material is about 6,500ft/lb

All orders are subject to our $50.00 minimum (before surcharges and fees). Also, if you order less than 2lbs, there is a $15.00 respool fee as noted above. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you,

Ben Schenkel
Sales & Marketing
Hyndman Industrial Products, Inc
3508 Independence Drive
Ft Wayne, IN 46808
P: 260-483-6042 ext 316
F: 260-483-1722
E: bschenkel@hyndmaninc.com
Resistance Wire.Com | Home Page | Nickel Chome, Nickel Copper, and Iron Chrome Aluminum Alloys from Stock
 
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