Chinese PTFE wire

[rcbuck]

Has anyone purchased PTFE insulated wire as described in this AliExpress store?
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806355863655.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.78d338dahEEf0K&mp=1&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa

It says tin plated copper but coming from China, their definition of copper and tin is probably not to be trusted. I know the Dupont cables you buy are simply aluminum wire with some type of "copper looking" finish on them that is impossible to solder.

I could purchase the PTFE wire from a reputable U.S. supplier. Their cost for 24 gauge stranded PTFE is only $10 for 25 feet. I wanted to obtain about 7 different colors for small experimental projects. The problem is, 5 feet will probably last me a lifetime, so 25 feet is way more than I would ever use.

Is there any reputable supplier that sells PTFE stranded in 5 foot (or 3 ft) lengths? Has anyone had good luck with the AliExpress or eviBay PTFE sellers? If so, which store did you use.

Edit: Corrected Link

[edpalmer42]

We can't see your shopping cart.  Post a link to the item.

[TimFox]

I have never seen PTFE-insulated tin-plated stranded copper wire.
The ones I have used are either unplated copper or silver-plated.
I was told that the temperature required to apply the Teflon will melt the tin, taking away the point of stranded wire by removing its flexibility.

[Konkedout]

I have never seen PTFE-insulated tin-plated stranded copper wire.
The ones I have used are either unplated copper or silver-plated.
I was told that the temperature required to apply the Teflon will melt the tin, taking away the point of stranded wire by removing its flexibility.

I agree.  I have seen silver plated only.  Maybe he is getting nickel plating.  Nickel is not cheap but is probably cheaper than silver.

[mzzj]

I have never seen PTFE-insulated tin-plated stranded copper wire.
The ones I have used are either unplated copper or silver-plated.
I was told that the temperature required to apply the Teflon will melt the tin, taking away the point of stranded wire by removing its flexibility.

Advertisement says FEP PTFE.
While related the FEP(Fluorinated ethylene propylene) is a bit different animal compared to PTFE and it melts at lower temperature. Possibly still too much for tinned copper.
DuPont trademark for FEP is "FEP Teflon" so it is easy to see where all this confusion is coming from.

Sorry, no direct experience with chinese "tinned" "PTFE" wire. Insulation is probably FEP instead of PTFE but that is fine on most purposes. Could be silver, nickel or tin plated as the chinese translations are often less than accurate.

Cheapest chinese wire(like those "arduino dupont wires") is often junk but I have been happy with more exotic versions like fine-stranded silicone and Kynar/PVDF wire-wrap wire. 

Tungsten carbide tooling like endmills is often sold as "tungsten steel" 

[selcuk]

I bought various colors from this item. I didn't have any issues. They seem high quality but I don't have a tool to identify a fake PTFE or silver plating.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005322446294.html

[rcbuck]

Thanks for the replies. I don't really care what the wire is "tinned" with as long as I can solder it. I was concerned it might be aluminum.

Based on selcuk's comment, I will purchase it, as it isn't that much money to lose. If it can't be soldered, I will just toss it in the trash.

[Ismsanmar]

I bought various colors from this item. I didn't have any issues. They seem high quality but I don't have a tool to identify a fake PTFE or silver plating.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005322446294.html

To check if it is genuine silver plating, which is usually 100% authentic, simply leave a few strands of silver out in the open, removing the FEP insulation, for a couple of months. If it goes black, it's silver.

[Geoff-AU]

Is there any reputable supplier

Sure.  Digkey/Mouser.

[coppice]

I bought various colors from this item. I didn't have any issues. They seem high quality but I don't have a tool to identify a fake PTFE or silver plating.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005322446294.html

To check if it is genuine silver plating, which is usually 100% authentic, simply leave a few strands of silver out in the open, removing the FEP insulation, for a couple of months. If it goes black, it's silver.

That depends on how humid your climate it. To speed it up just put it in the bathroom where you shower for a week or two. Warm damp air makes silver blacken quite quickly.

[TimFox]

Is there any reputable supplier

Sure.  Digkey/Mouser.

Surplus Sales of Nebraska has various PTFE wires with 25-foot minimum order.
https://www.surplussales.com/Wire-Cable/Wire4.html

[tooki]

Thanks for the replies. I don't really care what the wire is "tinned" with as long as I can solder it. I was concerned it might be aluminum.

So far, all the AliExpress wire I’ve bought has been the copper it promised to be.

I don’t think many wire vendors are trying to pass off CCA (copper clad aluminum) or steel as copper, because the users of  unfinished wire and cable are too likely to notice: we are cutting, stripping, and terminating that wire, after all.

It’s a very different situation for finished wire and cable products, like fully terminated cables (USB, audio, etc) or jumper leads, where testing for the conductor material is necessarily destructive testing.

[Alex Eisenhut]

Talk with
https://www.wiremasters.com/
They used to sell short bits of mil-spec wires.

[ebastler]

Has anybody come across PTFE wire (single-strand, AWG28 or AWG30) on AliExpress which is actually sold on a spool? There are many offers which show spools in the pictures, but they all say -- either in the headline or hidden deeper in the small print or in a picture legend -- "no scroll", "no reel" or something along those lines.

If you have found a seller who ships 50m length on reels, thanks for pointing me in the right direction!

[ahrlad]

Has anybody come across PTFE wire (single-strand, AWG28 or AWG30) on AliExpress which is actually sold on a spool? There are many offers which show spools in the pictures, but they all say -- either in the headline or hidden deeper in the small print or in a picture legend -- "no scroll", "no reel" or something along those lines.

If you have found a seller who ships 50m length on reels, thanks for pointing me in the right direction!

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004906382694.html

From the description: "If the order is more than 50 meters, it will be shipped with a wire reel."

Leave a message in your order to make sure. Serious aliexpress vendors are responsive in my experience

[ebastler]

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004906382694.html

From the description: "If the order is more than 50 meters, it will be shipped with a wire reel."

Leave a message in your order to make sure. Serious aliexpress vendors are responsive in my experience

Thanks! I had found that offer too. The annyoing thing is that you can't even choose to buy 50m (let alone more) -- the options are 5, 10 and 20m. So the "no reel below 50m" essentially means "no reel, ha-ha!". 

Is it possible on AliExpress to ask a question about an article before placing an order?

At times I get really annoyed with the shenanigans on that platform. Sticker pricing which only refers to a minor accessory while the article description and picture show a complete gadget; pictures which show something not on sale (like wire on a reel) with disclaimers well-hidden in the text or in a picture to indicate that this is not what you will get... I wonder whether AliExpress will introduce a "certified seller" or "certified offer" program at some point which forbids such practices. If they want to be taken seriously as a platform, they should.

[Ismsanmar]

Normally, when they ask for a quantity that is not given as an option, what you have to do is buy several units of the same option until you exceed that quantity. In this case, you would have to buy 5 of the 10-meter option, or 10 of the 5-meter option, and it would come in a single continuous 50-meter strand. Although it is always advisable, as Ahrlad has told you, to contact the seller to specify the conditions.