[SEL] OT! Electrical troubleshoting

[curt at rustyiron.com]

Jay,
The TDR came up on the Willys Tech list and I'm chasing one of these.
That's some pretty neat technology. Basically RADAR for wires.
Thanks,
Curt

> Maybe someone else has suggested this by now - I haven't read all the
> responses.  Have you tried using a TDR to locate the problem?  That's
> short for
> Time Domain Reflectometer.  You connect it to one end and the  readout
> indicates distance along the wire to places where the cables
> "characteristic
> impedance" changes.  It will find open circuits, short  circuits, low
> resistance connections and even places where the conductors are  nicked or
> squeezed.
>  Its an expensive piece of equipment but probably can  be rented someplace
> that rents such stuff.  It works best on coax cable but  I've used it
> successfully on many types of wires.
> Jay