simschr Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 Hi,The other day I was helping out doing some rigging I usually leave the excess cable on the lights hanging down as it is so high no one can reach it. But at this venues they insisted I wound the excess cable round the internally wired bars. I was under the impression this made the bars hot? Maybe I am wrong but I thought I would clarify it. ThanksChris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSA Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 It is not good practice at all to wind the excess around the bar due to inductance effects etc. Instead coil the cable and tape/cable tie it to the bar - or run it along the bar and back if only a shortish length. It might be rather interesting actually to work out the induced voltage for a given number of turns on a 1k lantern...but not for now! David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lightnix Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 ...Instead coil the cable and tape/cable tie it to the bar - or run it along the bar and back if only a shortish length.I would never leave a coil of cable on a bar, not just for reasons of induction (which still apply AFAIK), but also because it looks messy as hell. I always lose excess cable along the bar / truss, working out from the sockets towards the lanterns. This prevents a huge cluster of cables building up around spiders and allows lanterns to be moved more easily, as they still have the slack close by. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich newby Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 I must take a pic and show it to you guys sometime. At our studio we have a technician, who looks after the place. He probably wound 20m of extension cable around the bar. I'm not sure if it still works, because I don't use that lantern, Ever. I found the best way is so run it along the bottom of the bar, taped at places, and if needed you can double it back on itself. I quite often just put one band of tape half way along the cable, which means you have 2 shorter loops of cable on each side of the ring of tape, which I found never to be a problem. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSA Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 I totally agree, but sometimes it may be hidden by a border or you may be rigging on a square truss (not in this case though) where a coil could happily sit on the top (restrained of course). It is often much quicker to use the coil technique if it is acceptable from a neatness point of view. Also there is sometimes no choice in using a coil, if you only have a 20m cable to do a 3m run, for example. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich newby Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 yer I know, but he could have made a coil, as you said and taped that. Sorry I may not have been clear in my first post. He WOUND 20m of cable around the bar, not coiled and then taped it. I think a coil is probably the best looking way of doing it, as long as it is up out the way, and still not hanging down. Sorry for confusionRich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSA Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 Sorry I was posting with reference to lightnix's post, and didn't expect there to be another post in between! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Some Bloke Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 [snip]... there is sometimes no choice in using a coil, if you only have a 20m cable to do a 3m run, for example. [snip] There is always a choice: use a shorter cable! If you haven't got a shorter cable you could hire/buy/make one. You could even cut the cable you do have down to a shorter size. Rich Newby seems to suggest that the cable he is mentioning has been there for some time. This would mean that the cable isn't needed for anything else, so there should be no problem in cutting it down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomo Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 <snip>This would mean that the cable isn't needed for anything else, so there should be no problem in cutting it down.And would give you some more cable to use elsewhere as well, assuming you have the plugs & sockets. Although technically it should be PAT tested after being made/cut down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robloxley Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 <snip>Although technically it should be PAT tested after being made/cut down.Not sure about technically; I'd say it absolutely needs PAT testing after being re-made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich newby Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 Rich Newby seems to suggest that the cable he is mentioning has been there for some time. This would mean that the cable isn't needed for anything else, so there should be no problem in cutting it down. Yep, as far as I know it has been there since the lantern was hung, which was about 4 years ago. It would make perfect sense for them to shorten it, after all they are always saying:We are the least payed department it school, therefor the supplies and equipment is limited.I suppose that it would mean getting up the ladders and taking down the cable, unconnecting the ends, cutting it down, refitting the ends, then get 2 new connectors and connect them to the cable. And there you go, 2 cables, they make it seam like it will take a lifetime, when its a 30min job. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raar Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 There is always a choice: use a shorter cable! If you haven't got a shorter cable you could hire/buy/make one. You could even cut the cable you do have down to a shorter size. Rich Newby seems to suggest that the cable he is mentioning has been there for some time. This would mean that the cable isn't needed for anything else, so there should be no problem in cutting it down. Yeah great the hire company will really like cutting their cable to size. And asking them to drive 200 km to bring that one short cable you're missing for that one day, I think it will be the longer cable coiled/taped along the bar or something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the kid Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 I've been told to coil it then twist like a 8 then tape on in the middle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simschr Posted January 8, 2006 Author Share Posted January 8, 2006 Thanks for your suggestions I will bear these in mind I just thought it was a bit strange. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robloxley Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 The other day I was helping out doing some rigging I usually leave the excess cable on the lights hanging down as it is so high no one can reach it. But at this venues they insisted I wound the excess cable round the internally wired bars.Going back to the OP: do you mean winding excess extension cables round the bar (which most of the replies seem to have assumed) or winding the lantern's own cable round the bar? If it is the latter - and I suspect it is - then it seems a very strange insistence as you need slack to focus & move the lantern if needed, also if the lantern flex is heatproof & not excessively long & not dangling in the way (all of which I assume it's not) - then what is their argument?? Yes, loop the lantern's cable over the IWB if it's dangling excessively, but don't wind it round & round the IWB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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