Why not welding cable?

[paradox 10+ year member]

http://ikesound.com/product-product_id/3838

it says it's 25 feet but the picture says it's 250...lol

 

[MustangGT25YRS 10+ year member]

There was a thread that a member started a loooong time ago. It had different brands of 1/0 wire placed next to each other(including some welding cable). Most were of the same size or very close except the cheap car audio brands which were mostly sleeve. The only one I remember being larger was the Kicker wire. Surprisingly the wal-mart brand was decent(can't remember the name) for the money spent.

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Mornin'/

I believe the member's name is QrtrHorse.He had them all lying flat on a Table,and had all the Brand Names of the Cable from Left to Right.

I personally like *TryStar Welding Cable*.I have a one foot sample piece of 2/0

from them,and it's really Flexible...

I have their 1/0 And 4/Gauge Welding cable in my SC2/Saturn.No Issues/:veryhapp:.

Regards/

Raymond

 

[MustangGT25YRS 10+ year member]

The welding cable is actual AWG. The Hyperflex and Kolossus are oversized. Even going with 2/0 welding cable is cheaper than buying Hyperflex.

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X'S~2/:iagree:

 

[timaishu 10+ year member]

Excuse my ignorance. But why is it called "welding" cable? Im assuming it just a name and that its not actually used for welding stuff?

 

[Gruszka530 10+ year member]

im also deciding if i should get welding cable or this http://www.audiosavings.com/product_details.aspx?item_guid=e5668955-50f6-4e1d-add9-ba4ed89b3b0c&category_guid=b4b9f579-9efa-4066-96b4-4cd6d0709731

 

[spencer321 10+ year member]

i've got a 500ft spool of 4g welding cable, its flexible as hell, can tie it in a knot if needed

 

[ConKBot 10+ year member]

Excuse my ignorance. But why is it called "welding" cable? Im assuming it just a name and that its not actually used for welding stuff?

its cable used for the leads for welders... hence welding cable.

 

[Gearstix 10+ year member]

its cable used for the leads for welders... hence welding cable.

Exactly. Most shops will look at you like your dumb if you ask for 0/1 welding wire.

 

[Drxz 10+ year member]

I work for Trystar-Bridgewater Tech in Faribault, MN where the cable is manufactured and it is a very high quality commercial grade cable. I recently, used 1/0 premium cable (non-ul) in my car audio setup that I got from work and I had no issues with the cable not being flexible enough. The stranded copper is to AWG specs, so you're getting 1/0 size, no less, no more. This way when you buy 1/0 lugs or ring terminals you know you have the correct wire size for the terminal end. The PVC jacket used on the wire is incredibly tough (has to be; this cable is used by rental and construction companies), and the cable is double insulated. I know there is talk about how TCW (tinned copper wire) has greater resistance to oxidation degradation, but it is not necessary in a car application, unlike in a marine application. Sure, wicking could occur in the engine compartment, but with properly crimped or better yet soldered terminal ends and heat shrink tubing, the bare copper is not as susceptible to moisture. The conductor is rated for 600v and the insulation would need to be subjected to temps above 220 degrees F to degrade. The extrusion process alone takes temps of 310 degress F to apply the insulator to the bare copper.

Here is a quote I found regarding this issue:

SAE SGT spec cable which has been a spec standard for power and ground cable on automobiles for decades is in fact bare copper with a PVC insulation rated at 105 degrees C. This is much more exposed to the elements than audio equipment would be.Crimping terminals properly creates a vapor tight interface between metals, and soldering correctly also creates a barrier to oxidation at the interface. If you have enough moisture to have wicking of moisture into the wire stranding under the insulation to actually degrade the copper beyond the surface I would think you would have some other issues going on with your electronics as well

Here is a pic of my setup in the engine compartment:

For those looking for a cheap alternative and not needing the cosmetics of translucent colored jacketing then I think welding cable is a feasible solution.

 

[jmanpc 5,000+ posts]

I got some coppercableman wire off eGay. Good stuff.. sizable and flexible. And it said "Caution, High Sexage" //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[MustangGT25YRS 10+ year member]

I work for Trystar-Bridgewater Tech in Faribault, MN where the cable is manufactured and it is a very high quality commercial grade cable. I recently, used 1/0 premium cable (non-ul) in my car audio setup that I got from work and I had no issues with the cable not being flexible enough. The stranded copper is to AWG specs, so you're getting 1/0 size, no less, no more. This way when you buy 1/0 lugs or ring terminals you know you have the correct wire size for the terminal end. The PVC jacket used on the wire is incredibly tough (has to be; this cable is used by rental and construction companies), and the cable is double insulated. I know there is talk about how TCW (tinned copper wire) has greater resistance to oxidation degradation, but it is not necessary in a car application, unlike in a marine application. Sure, wicking could occur in the engine compartment, but with properly crimped or better yet soldered terminal ends and heat shrink tubing, the bare copper is not as susceptible to moisture. The conductor is rated for 600v and the insulation would need to be subjected to temps above 220 degrees F to degrade. The extrusion process alone takes temps of 310 degress F to apply the insulator to the bare copper.
Here is a quote I found regarding this issue:

Here is a pic of my setup in the engine compartment:

For those looking for a cheap alternative and not needing the cosmetics of translucent colored jacketing then I think welding cable is a feasible solution.

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Good Morning/

I have Black & Red *TryStar 1/0 Welding Cable* in my 1998 SC2Saturn.Power/Ground/and "Big-3*.My Kicker ZR/1000 & ZR/600 and my 2.5 Cap use the Red & Black 4 Gauge TryStar Welding Cable also.I like the inner opposite color seperator they use between outer jacket and copper,better than the paper seperator.I'm very/:veryhapp: w/TryStar Welding Cable and wouldn't and will not use anything else since I first bought it/.I spoke to Chris Dahl on the phone,and he's a down to earth guy,who's pleasant and helpful.

Best Regards/

Raymond

PS:I used Flexible sleeving on some of it under the hood and it looks great,IMOPO.

 

[IDSkoT 5,000+ posts]

When I upgrade my Big 3 (Gunna do it in 0/1 or 0/2 AWG sooner or later, ATM I have none. But I have enough 4 AWG to do it. So, I'm going to once I get the ring terminals I ordered in.

I don't care if it looks good. Wire's wire //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif