Wire Material specs

[Twitteliedoe]

Hi Vets,

Does any of you know which material (alloy) is being used for atty wire.
I haven't looked into any specs yet but most likely there are many different alloys, but which alloy would be the best??

To me the most stable one would be a wolfram alloy.

Thanks.

 

[rolygate]

What is currently used for most is nichrome or kanthal.

It has to be cheap and reliable if you are talking about mass production. For short runs with no cost issue you could use whatever you can get hold of that works. The problem is getting small quantities of an unusual material, many places sell nichrome wire or kanthal wire in small quantities.

 

[tmcase]

That would have been my reply also but he threw me with the wolfram alloy. I've never heard of that.

 

[rolygate]

Yeah, also there is the issue of getting something unusual in exactly the right resistance per foot, it's enough fun with kanthal getting it just right for the specific wick and length and voltage and stuff, and you can buy it in any resistance you want, and only 3 feet of it if that's all you need.

It's fun experimenting though. That's where all the progress comes from, so it's not a bad idea at all. Just that if it comes down to a neodymium-rhodium alloy at $100 per foot then I don't know what I'm gonna do