[TowerTalk] telephone company non-sticky semi-solid stuff

[Jim Lux]

I would guess some form of silicone gel. As you probably know, silicones 
are available in a bewildering variety of forms, viscosities, stickynesses, 
etc.  When wires were pulled out, did any adhere to the wire?

The other possibility is something like petroleum jelly (aka "grease")


You might want to look at the 3M web site (http://www.3m.com/)...

There are interesting things like Scotchcast 2112 Re-enterable Electrical 
Insulating Resin.  This is a two part resin that cures soft, and can be 
peeled back.

At 04:30 PM 5/22/2003 -0400, Eric Scace  K3NA wrote:
>    I moved recently to Boston.  When working with the telephone company 
> engineers to install my phone service, I noticed that my
>network interface unit contained an unusual, non-sticky, clear, semi-solid 
>material ("UNSCSSM").  The striped, bare ends of the
>copper wires were inserted into this material, which surrounded the screw 
>clamps used to connect the wiring together.
>
>    This UNSCSSM flowed around the screw and wires, preventing water and 
> oxygen from reaching the exposed wire.  Wires that had been
>immersed in the UNSCSSM were readily pulled out, and were still bright and 
>shiny.
>
>    Offhand, it seems that a piece of heat shrink tubing containing this 
> stuff could be shrunk around a coax connector, forming an
>air- and water-tight seal.  If the connector needed to be undone, the heat 
>shrink can be clipped off and the UNSCSSM peels away with
>no residue.  It seems ideal for those tricky places like coax connections 
>to SO-239 sockets on external boxes, where it's very
>difficult to wrap tape around the socket in such a way as to be watertight.
>
>    Does anyone know more about this material?
>
>-- Eric K3NA
>
>
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