copper wire as column packing?

[cotton mouth Samson]

I was wondering if anyone has tried it or would have any ideas on how to go about it I'm an electrician and as a result ihave access to limitless amounts of free copper wire of all sizes if anyone has any good or creative ideas on how to go about it I will try it and post the results

[Digital_Plasma]

Coiling the wire intro small springs could properly work great. And if the wire is free? Well then take what you can! Free copper is a rare thing these days. In my opinion, I would avoid cutting the wires into smaller straight pieces. It might pack the coulmn too hard. Just a thought.
Theres a small tutorial here on winding coils. http://metalsmithing.wonderhowto.com/ho ... h-0118499/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Cheers

DP

[cotton mouth Samson]

What do you all think Iof my attempt to make rashing rings for my boka

[Odin]

Allmost looks like SPP! What size wire, what size over all (high, long), and what size diameter boka are you running? Asking, so I can give you feedback.

Regards, Odin.

[Bushman]

Group all the wires together and clamp one end, put the other end in a drill motor and wind, take out and mash together to make a mesh. You can do this with multiple pieces of wire then work them all together. Put in a bucket of acetone for a while to rough it up. I found mine to be more dense and better than the wire mesh you buy for packing.

[ChairLawyer]

Sweet!

[Danespirit]

Nice.. Like SSP.. It should work for you.

[wv_cooker]

Super job! In the studies that I have read on SPP the next best thing that was tested was springs. Before the Russians perfected their SPP they also used stainless steel springs as packing. You should be very happy with your results and the price was right.

[cotton mouth Samson]

Thanks everyone for the quick response and in regards to odin's questions I started with 500 mcm wire because the individual conductors aren't perfectly round like normal wire I started with a 24 inch piece and wrapped it around a 1/4 inch shank in my drill it ended up about 3 inches long then I cut them down to 1/2 inch long and my boka is a 3"with a 50 inch column I know it's not the ideal length but it's What I had so im looking for a good packing
And on another note odin im a big fan of your work and read alot of your posts I consider it an honor that I could spark your intrest and await any feedback that you can give
Thanks everyone for the input

[cotton mouth Samson]

After about 8 hours worth of work I have 20 pounds of homemade spp ready for my column I found another thread about cleaning so I soaked them in citric acid and vinigar for 2 days and here is the result

[Digital_Plasma]

After about 8 hours worth of work I have 20 pounds of homemade spp ready for my column I found another thread about cleaning so I soaked them in citric acid and vinigar for 2 days and here is the result

Any update on the coils? I have approx. 5 kg of 1 mm wire at home and might put it to some good use if it's worth it.