Topband: Source for radial wire?

[Tom Cathey]

> Find an Agway Store or other farm supply store.  They have 1/4 mile spools
of aluminim fench wire at a very inexpensive price.  The #17AWG works great
and its also good because it doesn't rust.
> Greg
>
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Hi Greg,

I'm curious... how do you bond the aluminum radial wires to their central
common point ...tig weld maybe?

Also, how long do you guess the  #17 aluminum wire will last in normal soil
?  Do you detect any oxidization causing a white powder to form from the
minerals in the soil?    I considered the less expensive aluminum wire too,
but was worried about deterioration of bare aluminum in my harsh soil here,
so went with the #14  PVC covered solid copper as a precaution.

Any thoughts?

Tom, K1JJ