Ohmeter or Test Box foil wire

[Maurice]

Checking continuity for Foil wire after installing new wire.
Any help with correct procedure appreciated
Maurice

[Robert Smith]

Originally Posted by Maurice

Checking continuity for Foil wire after installing new wire.
Any help with correct procedure appreciated
Maurice

Me, I'd complete the assembly of the tip and test by attaching one ohmmeter terminal to the bare blade and the other to the wire. Ohmmeter on x1 setting, if available. Point depressed, meter should say no current / infinite ohms, point happy (not depressed), meter should read minimal resistance - mine says around 1.6 ohms, but it says close to that when I touch the probes together. I replaced the original probes with small alligator clips, which helps for testing weapons.

Any other result, something's wrong.

1) If low resistance with the tip in either state, something's shorted. Dismantle the tip and test using the blade itself and the contact inside the barrel - taking care, of course, not to touch the barrel with the probe. If you have alligator clips instead of probes, clip one to your screwdriver and test using that - make sure it's conductive first. If you get current, then your wiring job is at fault, if not, then it's the tip.

2) If no current, same test applies, but testing from contact to end of wire. First make sure the bare end of your wire is truly bare - it may be you just didn't remove the enamel coating. If no current from contact to wire end, then there's a break in your wire, which is pretty much guaranteed to be inside the barrel, at the point where wire joins to contact.

[erik_blank]

What he said above works, but I usually want to test BEFORE assembling the tip. First, set the ohm meter to the lowest resistance setting on it (usually the 10 ohm range. ). I will use an allegator clip on the wire at the handle end and then a probe into the tip to check conectivity. Once I've checked to make sure the wire is good, I'l also check for shorts by attaching the allegator clip to the blade and then the other probe to the wire. Any leakage here is bad. If this is all good, then assemble the handle and the tip and follow the above recommendations.

[brtech]

Robert, if your meter reads 1.6 ohms with the leads directly shorted, you need to zero your meter, or change the battery. It should read real close to zero. Of course you first check to see that on a DC voltage scale, the meter at rest (pointer to the left), shows zero. There is usually a mechanical zero adjust just below the meter pivot point. Then switch to ohms x1, short the leads firmly, and set the zero adjust knob to zero. If you can't get it set to zero, change the battery.

A good weapon has less than an ohm, fully assembled, with the tip at rest.

I usually assemble and then test, but test before assembly is always a good procedure.

You really do want a multimeter with X1 ohms.

[Maurice]

Hi
Thanks for details
What is the weight and mm test gauge for electric foil
Maurice

[brtech]

500 grams
You don't use a shim test with a foil

[jfarmer]

I've also started testing the wires before gluing to the blade. I was re-wiring a club blade and after gluing & assembling, found that the cup had a cold solder joint.... Checked the other spare in the bag and it had the same problem. They were bought quite some time ago & I don't have a clue from who, but now I check the wire first.

[Robert Smith]

Originally Posted by brtech

Robert, if your meter reads 1.6 ohms with the leads directly shorted, you need to zero your meter, or change the battery.

Yes, but it has a new battery and I don't think there is a thumbwheel with which to re-zero. I've taken the easy way out and recalibrated my brain to read 1.4 as 0.

[Robert Smith]

Originally Posted by jfarmer

I've also started testing the wires before gluing to the blade. I was re-wiring a club blade and after gluing & assembling, found that the cup had a cold solder joint.... Checked the other spare in the bag and it had the same problem. They were bought quite some time ago & I don't have a clue from who, but now I check the wire first.

Yes, me too. I've stopped buying new wires and now I simply rebuild the old ones, so I have confidence in the solder joint without pre-testing. But there's always the possibility of pulling it loose before it's glued down, and, because the gluing step is the least reversible step, I test with a reassembled point before I glue.

I don't rebuild wires because I'm a cheapskate, which I am; I do it because I can do it with locally available parts. Worst case with ready-mades is a couple of weeks turnaround on an order; this way, worst case is having to drop by The Store Formerly Known As Radio Shack for a spool of wire wrap.

[brtech]

Originally Posted by Robert Smith

Yes, but it has a new battery and I don't think there is a thumbwheel with which to re-zero. I've taken the easy way out and recalibrated my brain to read 1.4 as 0.

Digital or analog? If there is no zero set, I'm guessing digital.

Try this: pull out the leads and stick a needle nose pliers or a leatherman tool jaw in there to create a really low ohm connection and wait 30 seconds to see if it zeros. If that reads 1.4, then you have a calibration problem and it's probably easiest to do the math as you are doing now.

I've never seen an analog multimeter that didn't have a zero set, but there is always a first time.

[DHCJr]

Originally Posted by brtech

500 grams
You don't use a shim test with a foil

What about the 1mm shim required in M.11.4?

Just kidding, it is in the rulebook, but the only time it is used is if you piss off the Armorer.