Stainless steel locking wire

[William_H]

I have need occasionally for SS locking wire. I have lots of 1x19 rigging wire and have tried to use a strand for locking turnscrews etc. It is just too springy. Is it feasable to heat treat the rigging wire to make i soft. If so how. On a similar question I need a new spring for paul o a small winch. A rigging wire strand would be right size but almost impossible to shape. Is it possible to anneal the wire bend it to shape then recover the springiness. Advice appreciated form our experts ol'will

 

[john_morris_uk]

Monel wire is the stuff I use for wiring things against shaking loose.

 

[Arcady]

Monel wire is the stuff I use for wiring things against shaking loose.

Absolutely - same here.

 

[geem]

I use stainless steel welding wire.

 

[Poignard]

For the pawl spring I would use stainless steel spring wire.

 

[vyv_cox]

I have need occasionally for SS locking wire. I have lots of 1x19 rigging wire and have tried to use a strand for locking turnscrews etc. It is just too springy. Is it feasable to heat treat the rigging wire to make i soft. If so how. On a similar question I need a new spring for paul o a small winch. A rigging wire strand would be right size but almost impossible to shape. Is it possible to anneal the wire bend it to shape then recover the springiness. Advice appreciated form our experts ol'will

Yes indeed you can anneal it. Rigging wire is hard drawn to increase its strength. Heating to red heat, over the magic temperature of 723 C, will recrystallise it and return it to its original hardness and strength. It does not matter if you quench or not as austenitic stainless steel cannot be hardened by heat treatment.

Unfortunately you cannot recover the strength you have lost except by work hardening. This might be difficult to achieve. I suspect that pawl springs may not be austenitic 300 series but martensitic 400 series that can be heat treated.

 

[dankilb]

…And you might spend more on gas to achieve that than on the monel wire (as fun/interesting as it would be to try!)

 

[rotrax]

I am using the left over SS locking wire left over from my motorbike racing days. I also have the aircraft type twisting pliers. I have two sizes of wire and by twisting two strands of the thinner one together I can make a third.

I must get a set of Poignard's spring winding pliers - I get by with what I have in the workshop but those look the dogs dangly bits.............................

 

[DownWest]

I use Mig welding wire or Tig 'rods' When I run out of wire with the Mig, there is always 3mt of waste in the torch feed.
I needed a spring for the rubbish bin and found that Tig wire was springy enough to do the job (all the above 316L) That might work for the winch? If you bend it round a very small diameter, it might be enough.
Like Poignard's pliers!

 

[William_H]

Thanks all and Viv for answers. ol'will