When building your DIY electronics projects, selection of materials is of critical importance. You need wires that give adequate performance, use space efficiently, and can be quickly and easily identified for modifications. Buying wire and cable for your electronics projects through retail outlets may not always allow you to get the exact specifications you need. For example, you may need a wire that has ink jet printing to clearly identify your wires during the build, or you may prefer your wires died. For these personalized electro-mechanical assemblies, you really have to go with a value added manufacturer. Here are some of the possible options available.
Striping or Dying
One way a manufacturer can add value to your wire product is by dying or striping the wires. This helps to differentiate wires for various circuits, and also helps you control inventories of stocked wire materials. To dye a wire, it is passed through a foam circle that contains a formulated dye. After the wire passes through this foam dye, it goes into an oven to be cured and dried. Occasionally the wire will be passed through a striper rather than a solid foam tube so that the wire is striped. Another customization option beyond a single solid color. This makes even the most intricuit circuit board easy to work on.
Printing
For even more intricate projects or to further personalize your circuits, you can order wire that has custom designs printed on it with an ink jet printer. For example, automotive companies often use dots on their circuit wires to create characters and short words on the wire. This helps technicians identify between left turn signal wires and right turn signal wires. For more intricate projects, this is the perfect solution to quickly identifying wires or circuits, and greatly speeds troubleshooting.
Twisting and Braiding
Twisting and braiding wires requires a meticulously clean environment. Otherwise small particles of dust and debris can be trapped in the braid and cause interference in the wire’s connection, essentially ruining the assembly. While some people have been able to create a solid wire connection using a simple hand drill to twist the wires, it is often difficult to do properly. Having your wires twisted and braided by a manufacturer before you purchase them will save you a ton of tedious work and effort and make your installation process a breeze.
Cutting and Stripping
Another way to save yourself tons of time is to have your wire stripped and cut by a professional manufacturer with top of the line stripping and cutting tools. The best providers will have the top of the line presses, dies, and cutters to ensure a product that is precisely measured and cut to your specifications. This is much easier than attempting to cut and strip wires by hand. Usually when using a hand tool it is difficult to keep the various wire strands together, causing an uneven cut.
To get a full list of specifications or options for your next wire project, go to our products page, or click here now to speak with a representative.