Because if the ends are allowed to tangle, they will get all twisted up and snarled something fierce. They must be kept separate from each other because they are each turning and you'll spend more time unsnarling them than actually twisting wires!
Electrically speaking, does a cable assembly like this actually need to be twisted, or is it primarily for elegance? I see what appears to be a drain wire - presumably to a shield - on each thermocouple wire. Are you connecting the shield on the amplifier/mux side?
The twist is for flexibility: If all the wires are straight parallel and taped tight, when you try to curve it, the wires on the outside of the bend have to stretch or the wires on the inside have to buckle/compress, which makes them break pretty quickly. By twisting it, each wire is on all sides as it spirals around, so while they get compressed in one area they are stretched a couple inches down the line, so it makes it much more flexible and long-life.
Also, there is no drain wire and no shields. The thermocouple wires are just fiberglass clad (except the blue string in the wave is some plastic LOL) The other wires is a 6-conductor telephone cable (for running the fans at each end) and a spare single twisted pair from a cat 5 cable in case I decide I need an extra pair for something.
@@fromjesse Ah ha - flexibility! Thank you! I could totally see myself saving time on something like this by not twisting and then regretting it later. Appreciate the chance to learn from your experiences!
@@fromjesse Thanks! My bad - it looked like a drain wire in the picture. I've never used a shield on a thermocouple, but I've never made a great big long one either. Would imagine that being so low-Z and fed into a (presumably) low BW diff amp, it might not need one... up to a point. I'm not sure where that point is...
That's one heck of a long thermocouple loom.
Nifty
Hey Jessie. Your audio is very quiet. Always interested in seeing your handy work. See ya in the real funny pages. Ha Lefty says hi
Just saw this! Hi! It's always good to see you around!
Why not short lengths of just one tube joined as in the vid?
Because if the ends are allowed to tangle, they will get all twisted up and snarled something fierce. They must be kept separate from each other because they are each turning and you'll spend more time unsnarling them than actually twisting wires!
Electrically speaking, does a cable assembly like this actually need to be twisted, or is it primarily for elegance? I see what appears to be a drain wire - presumably to a shield - on each thermocouple wire. Are you connecting the shield on the amplifier/mux side?
The twist is for flexibility: If all the wires are straight parallel and taped tight, when you try to curve it, the wires on the outside of the bend have to stretch or the wires on the inside have to buckle/compress, which makes them break pretty quickly.
By twisting it, each wire is on all sides as it spirals around, so while they get compressed in one area they are stretched a couple inches down the line, so it makes it much more flexible and long-life.
Also, there is no drain wire and no shields. The thermocouple wires are just fiberglass clad (except the blue string in the wave is some plastic LOL)
The other wires is a 6-conductor telephone cable (for running the fans at each end) and a spare single twisted pair from a cat 5 cable in case I decide I need an extra pair for something.
@@fromjesse Ah ha - flexibility! Thank you! I could totally see myself saving time on something like this by not twisting and then regretting it later. Appreciate the chance to learn from your experiences!
@@fromjesse Thanks! My bad - it looked like a drain wire in the picture. I've never used a shield on a thermocouple, but I've never made a great big long one either. Would imagine that being so low-Z and fed into a (presumably) low BW diff amp, it might not need one... up to a point. I'm not sure where that point is...