Tinsel Wire
Copper Alloy Tinsel Wire
Alloy foil raises the mechanical ceiling over pure copper at the same construction.
View specifications
Tinsel Wire
Silver-Plated Alloy Tinsel Wire
Silver-copper alloy foil with silver plating: strength and surface both at the top of the range.
Overview
What Silver-Plated Alloy Tinsel Wire Is For
The top of the tinsel range, and the one specified when nothing in the conductor is allowed to be the weak link. Silver-copper alloy foil carries the mechanical load, a silver plating layer handles the surface, and the soft textile fiber core underneath keeps the whole thing flexible enough to swing for the life of the product. It is the version that goes into stranded constructions for high-end audio, aerospace cable and medical cable, where service life is long, the environment is not gentle, and replacing a failed conductor in the field is not an option.
Value
Why Engineers Choose This Construction
Key benefits
- Silver-copper alloy foil with silver plating: strength and surface both at the top of the range.
- Specified for long service life in demanding environments.
- Supplied in stranded constructions for high-swing applications.
- Plating thickness customizable from 0.3 um to 2 um.
Problems it solves
- A solid conductor of the same gauge fatigues at the flex point; foil over a fiber core does not.
- Resistance and outer diameter can be met together instead of traded against each other.
- Oxidation resistance and weldability stay workable at very fine gauges.
Fit
Where It Is Used
Application scenarios
- High-end audio and in-ear monitor cable
- Aerospace cable
- Military special equipment cable
- Long-life medical cable
Who it is for
- Aerospace and defence cable suppliers
- High-end audio brands
- Medical device manufacturers with long product life cycles
Engineering
Construction And Materials
Technical features
- Foil-over-fiber construction: silver-plated silver-copper alloy foil on the surface, a soft textile fiber core inside.
- Single-layer or multi-layer copper foil structure.
- Can be twisted into strands or mixed with copper wires to raise bending strength.
- Low specific gravity, high bending strength and high tensile strength for the size.
- Both the alloy and the plating are silver-bearing, so mechanical strength and surface conductivity are addressed by the same specification.
Materials
- Metal foil: silver-plated silver-copper alloy foil
- Fiber core: nylon, polyester, aramid, liquid crystal fiber, heat-resistant cotton yarn and glass fiber
Specifications
Silver-Plated Alloy Tinsel Wire Technical Data
Values that depend on your application are set against your targets rather than fixed here.
| Construction | Metal foil wound over soft textile fiber core |
|---|---|
| Surface Material | silver-plated silver-copper alloy foil |
| Single Wire Outer Diameter | 0.04 mm - 0.40 mm |
| Foil Structure | Single-layer or multi-layer |
| Fiber Core Options | nylon, polyester, aramid, liquid crystal fiber, heat-resistant cotton yarn and glass fiber |
| Stranding | Single, twisted into tinsel strands, or mixed with copper wires |
| Foil Alloy | Silver-copper |
| Plating | Silver, 0.3 um - 2 um customizable |
| Conductor Resistance | Customized to your target |
| Minimum Order For Samples | None |
Production
How It Is Made And Checked
Manufacturing process
- Select the metal foil material and the fiber core for the electrical and thermal requirement.
- Draw and roll the copper to extremely fine foil.
- Apply plating where specified, at a coating thickness between 0.3 um and 2 um.
- Wind the foil around the soft textile fiber core, single layer or multi-layer.
- Twist into tinsel wire strands, or mix with copper wires, where extra bending strength is needed.
- Test resistance, tensile strength and elongation, then pack with a loading report.
Quality control
- DC resistance measured on a resistance tester to confirm the conductor lands on the agreed value.
- Tensile testing for tensile strength, yield strength, elongation and elongation after fracture.
- Elongation rate measured during stretching to evaluate mechanical properties and mechanical strength.
- Salt spray testing where the finished cable will face a corrosive environment.
- A comprehensive loading report issued with every shipment.
Customization
What You Can Change
Customization options
- Conductor resistance set to your target value.
- Outer diameter held to your ceiling.
- Tensile strength and breaking load specified to the application.
- High swing performance tuned to the flex life the cable has to reach.
- Solderability matched to your termination process.
Certifications
No third-party certification is published for this product line. Test data from our own resistance, tensile, elongation and salt spray equipment is supplied with samples and with every shipment loading report.
Related
Other Conductors To Compare
Reference
Background Reading
technical guide
What Tinsel Wire Is, And Why It Outlasts Solid Wire Where Cables Bend
The construction, the materials and the reason a foil-over-fiber conductor beats a solid wire of the same size on flex life.
Read the guide
material guide
Choosing The Fiber Core: Aramid, Liquid Crystal Polymer And The Alternatives
What each fiber core actually gives a tinsel wire, and which service conditions should point you at which one.
Read the guide
Questions
Silver-Plated Alloy Tinsel Wire: Frequently Asked Questions
What does this give me over silver-plated tinsel wire?
The base foil is a silver-copper alloy rather than pure copper, which lifts the mechanical properties of the conductor. The silver plating on top handles the surface. You are paying for strength in the material as well as behaviour at the surface.
Is it available as a stranded conductor?
Yes. It is supplied in stranded form, which is how high-swing applications typically use it, and it can also be mixed with copper wires to raise bending strength further.
Which fiber core suits this specification?
Usually one of the high performance cores: aramid for a melting point above 500 degrees Celsius with good abrasion resistance, or liquid crystal polymer for wear, bending and fatigue resistance with low moisture absorption.
Quote Silver-Plated Alloy Tinsel Wire
Tell us the resistance, outer diameter and flex life you need. Samples on conventional and customized products carry no minimum order quantity.