Marine-grade cabling anyone?

[Hartley18]

Whilst getting quotes for some marine-grade instrumentation cable yesterday, it struck me how cheap some of this stuff is compared to buying your standard two-core flex from West Marine/Whitworths/etc. For example:

Whitworths sell this ordinary crappy 2-core 4mm2 probably-not-even-tinned stuff for A$2.60/m:



Triangle cables sell something like this in 2-core 4mm2 for A$4.20/m:



CONSTRUCTION
Conductor: Finely stranded tinned annealed copper to IEC 60228 Class 5&6 & AS/NZS 1125.
Insulation: LSFLEX®R-30, Cross-linked, Polyolefinic, Thermoset, Flame Retardant, Low Smoke, Zero Halogen (HF-90 to IEC 60092-351) Resists oil, skydrol, petrol, acid, sea water, ozone and UV.
Sheath: LSFLEX®S-50, Polyolefinic, Flame Retardant, Low Smoke, Zero Halogen (SHF-1 to IEC 60092-359) Resists oil, skydrol, petrol, acid, sea water, ozone and UV.
Operating Temp: -40°C to +90°C
Voltage Rating: 250 Volts
Standards Approvals: LR, DNV, ABS, BV, GL, USCG, Transport Canada Marine Safety

Okay - it's a bit more expensive, not much for the sort of lengths you're talking about in a small boat - but this stuff is designed for heavy use in the marine environment.

If you're thinking of re-doing your mast wiring or any other difficult bits that you really never want to do again for the life of the boat, it might be worth a little consideration.

[Gary1]

I had to find a conversion program to turn that into a number that works for my poor old Yank brain. That 4mm translates (roughly) to 6 Gauge AWG, which is pretty heavy duty stuff.

$4.20 Aussie dollars translates to $4.09 US bucks, so that makes it about $1.25 a foot. That's not that bad for 6 gauge wire. The killer would be shipping, though. Getting things from Down Under is an expensive proposition!

[sailingdog]

Not too bad. I was getting 10AWG triplex wire for about $1.20 per foot for the good marine grade stuff. Needed it for the AC re-wiring on the boat.

[Hartley18]

Originally Posted by Gary1

I had to find a conversion program to turn that into a number that works for my poor old Yank brain. That 4mm translates (roughly) to 6 Gauge AWG, which is pretty heavy duty stuff.

$4.20 Aussie dollars translates to $4.09 US bucks, so that makes it about $1.25 a foot. That's not that bad for 6 gauge wire. The killer would be shipping, though. Getting things from Down Under is an expensive proposition!

Gary, apologies if I muddled you. Not sure where you got your figures, but my book says 4mm2 ~ 12 gauge. The prices were included for comparison only - I wasn't suggesting you buy the stuff here!! Triangle cables are just one manufacturer (based in Europe actually) but I'm sure you have cable suppliers nearby.

If you want smaller, I've been quoted $2/metre for 2-core 1mm2 (sorry, 16 gauge!) everything-resistant AC-rated cable...

My point was that, why buy crap from West Marine when for a few extra $$$ you can buy the same stuff used on ships the world over?

It's the copper that's expensive, not the important parts (sheathing and insulation) - hey, if you want something for the mast and are worried out snags or shorts??

For 50% extra you can buy armoured cable!

[sailingdog]

If the wire you're getting is $1.20 / ft. and is the equivalent of 12 AWG wire, it is a bit more expensive than what I am getting.

Originally Posted by Hartley18

Gary, apologies if I muddled you. Not sure where you got your figures, but my book says 4mm2 ~ 12 gauge. The prices were included for comparison only - I wasn't suggesting you buy the stuff here!! Triangle cables are just one manufacturer (based in Europe actually) but I'm sure you have cable suppliers nearby.

If you want smaller, I've been quoted $2/metre for 2-core 1mm2 (sorry, 16 gauge!) everything-resistant AC-rated cable...

My point was that, why buy crap from West Marine when for a few extra $$$ you can buy the same stuff used on ships the world over?

It's the copper that's expensive, not the important parts (sheathing and insulation) - hey, if you want something for the mast and are worried out snags or shorts??

For 50% extra you can buy armoured cable!

[Hartley18]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

If the wire you're getting is $1.20 / ft. and is the equivalent of 12 AWG wire, it is a bit more expensive than what I am getting.

Is it the same spec?? I know some of the best marine cabling comes out of Europe - but I don't imagine for a second that Australia is the cheapest place in the world to buy marine cables..

..And to think I re-did the masthead light with Whitworths "made-in-China" rubbish only last month.

[sailingdog]

Hartley-

It meets UL 1426 specifications for Marine Boat cable. It is rated for 600 Volts... 105˚C dry and 75˚C wet, etc.

[TRICABINC]

Triangle Cables is now operating in the States. And they pay freight charges. 877-387-4222