Breaking Strains

[Louis the fly]

Bit late in life to be getting into bondage John.

[j.sabourn]

Be a devil Rob take a chance. Just stand well clear. Cheers JS

[alf corbyn]

when i was 14 i worked in a cable firm (enfield cables) we used to use wire thinner than a human hair, up to, (in my case) 036. the most common was o28 and 029 this was copper wire, we also used tinned copper and galvernised. don't ask me what the sizes meant but i could tell just by feel, although we also used micrometers. this wire was mainly used for underground cable in africa and had various poisons blended into them. just wondered what your cables were made of, galvenised steel i would think. a very interesting subject.

[gray_marian]

#10 John, I feel a cappy moment looming.........., if he has not left for his lunch date already

[Ivan Cloherty]

just wondered what your cables were made of, galvenised steel i would think. a very interesting subject.

All the wires I've referred to Alf have been galvanised steel, the most common format at sea in those days.

[robpage]

The size now Alf is the metric cross sectional area so a 2.5 mm cable is 2.5mm area
Prior to modern cables, whose size (e.g. 2.5mm˛) refers to the cross sectional area (csa) of the main conductors, cables were described by the number of strands/diameter of each strand in inches.

So 7/.036 was a cable whose main conductors had 7 strands, each of which was 0.036” in diameter.

The table below shows what the sizes are when expressed as mm˛, and what the modern replacement cable would be. If in doubt, go up in size rather than down.


Cable size Strand dia in mm Strand csa in mm˛ Total cable csa Nearest equivalent
1/.044 1.118 0.981 0.981 1
3/.029 0.737 0.426 1.278 1.5
3/.036 0.914 0.657 1.970 1.5/2.5
7/.029 0.737 0.426 2.983 2.5
7/.036 0.914 0.657 4.597 4/6
7/.044 1.118 0.981 6.867 6/10
7/.052 1.321 1.370 9.591 10
7/.064 1.626 2.075 14.528 16

[Louis the Amigo]

Hi Shipmates, Hi J seabourn, all proper sailors do wear bell -bottoms /stove pipe hats and vest with bright buttons on, when we go ashore to meet the ladys and all seaman can dance the horn-pipe. after a few rums and sing a few sea shantys... Ropes three types hawser -laid shroud= laid cable- laid wire rope 21d2 600 b.s, need more rum to sing sea chanty[ blow the man down] classic topsail halyard chanty ,{ away rio} a capstan chanty now all join in with the drunken sailor you all known this one ... a stamp and go chanty 'way hay and up she rises'... have a great christmas to all my shipmates