Recently we had AT&T fiber installed to the house for our Internet access. The technician running it from the alley left behind in our (clean) garbage can the remaining coils of the fiber optic cable. This is fairly stiff black dual strand about 1/8” thick by 1/4” wide which the technician said had a minimum bend radius of 5 inches. The coils are tied with a zip tie and I picked an average diameter of 17 inches and counted 50 loops which I calculated out to 222.53 feet thus the 220 feet in the title. I live down by White Rock lake and have no easy way to get to MakerSpace so it will have to be picked up.
It is probably Single Mode Fiber 1 strand, with strength members in it. It also probably has footage printed on it if you wanted a more accurate measurement.
I certainly wouldn’t be interested in all of it but would be in some of it. Busy today and Saturday, could swing by Sunday and pick up as much as my car can load and haul it to space for you.
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“as much as my car can load” As implied by the 17" diameter used to estimate length, this coil would easily sit on a car seat and can be carried hooked on a finger. Thanks for the transport offer, ring or message me at 334-6645 (in 2*4 area code since people mention scanning the website.)
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Is it still available at the makespace? Is it a single strand- I.e. just a thick strand of glass or multiple strands. If its a single strand, I am interested in a little bit of it, if the buyer will part with some. Just a few feet. I have an interesting project idea for it.
As you will find in the message above yours, it was picked up by @apparently_weird https://talk.dallasmakerspace.org/u/apparently_weird 20 days ago and taken to DallasMakerSpace and put on the shelves. The cable was two separately insulated “wires” and I think it was a single strand inside each one. It looked a bit like lamp cord and was easily separated. Ask him what shelf it ended up on for member use.
Mike
Yes I saw that, I just wasn’t sure if it was for personal use or free use. How thick would you say one of the “wires” are. I am interested in lasing through them, although that’s a project for down the road.
You need to understand that I didn’t work with the stuff, I fished the coils out of my garbage container where the AT&T tech and drop them. I glanced at it and I know how fiber optics can work. My judgment is that each of the two sides of this cable consisted of a black outer fairly stiff weather coating and an inner white fiber protection material that also serves to receive the fasteners that center and align the actual fiber which is very thin. I have a vague impression of a thin ribbon-like tension thing that takes the strain of the pull from the alley to the house.
Ask the guy I mentioned as to what he knows or who you can connect with in DMS that he thinks knows more.
Mike