Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="keep_hope_alive" data-source="post: 8088715" data-attributes="member: 576029">i posted this to get a rise out of most of you.&nbsp; people get defensive when they buy something and someone says it&#039;s not that great.is aluminum wire bad?depends on the application.&nbsp; generic answer is no.here is an example of what I deal with on a daily basis, designing power distribution systems (it is certainly suitable (when properly made) for high power transmission.&nbsp; we use it for high current feeders in parallel sets in power distribution.&nbsp; by &quot;high current&quot; i mean 4,000A at 3-phase 480V (which can deliver 3.3 million watts) using 900MCM wire (900MCM has 6.6 times larger surface area than 1/0).&nbsp; modern aluminum wire has resolved the shortcomings of old thanks to new methods of termination.&nbsp; it&#039;s the termination that makes the wire feasible.&nbsp; they also use a more compact strand arrangement, using hexagon strands which minimize air between the conductors).&nbsp; The new stuff (Southwire makes a nice product).&nbsp; for example, 900MCM AL has the diameter of 750MCM CU.aluminum wire WILL expand and contract with temperature more than copper wire.&nbsp; this means connections will loosen over time and a loose connection will get hot, very hot.&nbsp; people who used it previously had to do thermal scans of their connections every year, and tighten them occasionally.&nbsp; this resulted in flattening the wire which also caused it to heat up.&nbsp; AL wire got a bad rap.&nbsp; a few years back when copper wire went up 300% in cost, AL wire came to the rescue.&nbsp; since then, AL wire has maintained in the industry as a lighter, cheaper alternative to copper.would I personally use it in a car?&nbsp; nope.the reason?&nbsp; i don&#039;t trust car audio wire companies.&nbsp; they are f&#039;n bullshyt with their wire sizes.&nbsp; i don&#039;t trust any of their methods.&nbsp; the best chance you have is with OFC wire because at least then you know the size is relative and current handling is more trustworthy.another reason - size.&nbsp; it&#039;s not like we have a ton of space to run large wire in a car, OFC 1/0 is large enough, getting equivalent CCA is just ridiculous.&nbsp; 3/0 AL = 1/0 OFC.the purpose of the video was not to discuss my own reasons.&nbsp; to each their own.the purpose was to cause banter.//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/naughty.gif.94359f346c0f1259df8038d60b41863e.gif</blockquote>

[QUOTE="keep_hope_alive, post: 8088715, member: 576029"] i posted this to get a rise out of most of you. people get defensive when they buy something and someone says it's not that great. is aluminum wire bad? depends on the application. generic answer is no. here is an example of what I deal with on a daily basis, designing power distribution systems ( it is certainly suitable (when properly made) for high power transmission. we use it for high current feeders in parallel sets in power distribution. by "high current" i mean 4,000A at 3-phase 480V (which can deliver 3.3 million watts) using 900MCM wire (900MCM has 6.6 times larger surface area than 1/0). modern aluminum wire has resolved the shortcomings of old thanks to new methods of termination. it's the termination that makes the wire feasible. they also use a more compact strand arrangement, using hexagon strands which minimize air between the conductors). The new stuff (Southwire makes a nice product). for example, 900MCM AL has the diameter of 750MCM CU. aluminum wire WILL expand and contract with temperature more than copper wire. this means connections will loosen over time and a loose connection will get hot, very hot. people who used it previously had to do thermal scans of their connections every year, and tighten them occasionally. this resulted in flattening the wire which also caused it to heat up. AL wire got a bad rap. a few years back when copper wire went up 300% in cost, AL wire came to the rescue. since then, AL wire has maintained in the industry as a lighter, cheaper alternative to copper. would I personally use it in a car? nope. the reason? i don't trust car audio wire companies. they are f'n bullshyt with their wire sizes. i don't trust any of their methods. the best chance you have is with OFC wire because at least then you know the size is relative and current handling is more trustworthy. another reason - size. it's not like we have a ton of space to run large wire in a car, OFC 1/0 is large enough, getting equivalent CCA is just ridiculous. 3/0 AL = 1/0 OFC. the purpose of the video was not to discuss my own reasons. to each their own. the purpose was to cause banter. [IMG]//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/naughty.gif.94359f346c0f1259df8038d60b41863e.gif[/IMG] [/QUOTE]

Verification