All these expensive plug wires....

XxDarkSidexX said:
this is EZ! Yes thicker is better for conductivity. The thick gauge wire, the move current of voltage it can carry.
Click to expand...

I think usually the added thickness is due to more protective coats/thicker coats of silicone rather than actually thicker gauge wire. i dont think it effects voltage but rather keeps the heat from destroying the wire. but overall it would make the plug wires last alot longer... but than again i'm not entirely positive. I have always been happy with MSD wire and i have used Magnecor with now problems [other than a boot coming off]. The ONLY wires i had MAJOR issues was HOLLEY "high dollar" wires were the actual glue holding pieces together started melting and my wires literally fell apart. HTH
 
Royal-T-Ltd said:
I think usually the added thickness is due to more protective coats/thicker coats of silicone rather than actually thicker gauge wire. i dont think it effects voltage but rather keeps the heat from destroying the wire. but overall it would make the plug wires last alot longer...
Click to expand...

I agree with the durability comments, but apparently a thicker wire does have the "capacity" to deliver more voltage (according to Magnecor). But we know that resistance will limit that "capacity."

This is an interesting issue...so I did some research...first, on Magnecor wires.

The 10mm wire has more silicone than the 8.5mm. It has a 2.5mm conductor. Each wire can deliver 80K volts with 2,200 Ohms/ft. resistance. The 8.5mm wire has a 2.5mm conductor and can deliver 60K volts with 2,200 Ohms/ft. resistance.

Our stock ignition system delivers somewhere between 120K and 180K volts. I do not have the factory specs, but based on what some of our esteemed mechanics have said here, that is probably the range.

So, even the 8.5mm Magnecor wire has more than adequate "capacity" to deliver whatever voltage our ignition system can generate. However, I know that at 2,200 Ohms resistance, Magnecors will not deliver as much of the spark as a wire with less resistance.

Then the question is how much energy is needed at the plug to optimize fuel burn? Another is, what is the maximum resistance that will still allow the wires to carry that amount of energy? I have no idea...maybe 2,200 Ohms is just fine! So I made a decision in my blissful ignorance of hard electrical data.

When I decided on the Bosch 8.5mm at 500 Ohms/ft. resistance, I just assumed that less resistance is desirable...and that seems to be popular thought. Plus, I needed new wires because of corrosion at the terminals.

You should know there are some other low resistance numbers out there: Pertronix claims just over 500 Ohms; Accel 300+ Racing wires claim 150 Ohms; MSD Super Conductor is 40-50 Ohms. Of course, other issues include whether those wires are made for our cars and at what price.

Regarding thickness, there is no question - assuming silicone jackets of comparable quality - that a thicker wire will dissipate somewhat more heat and probably last longer than a thinner wire.

HTH

Steve
 
D.C. Resistance has little to do with high tension wire design.

Low ohms is basically a marketing exercise.

Look how well that voltage jumps an air gap or through the human body that is grounded on the other end. :eek: ;) Both fairly high resistances.

I don't think the stock system hits 120K volts either.

Since there is a wide variety of product that seems to work just fine for our cars I would trust most of them and use the best built and looking product that fits your budget. :smile:
 
salvageV6 said:
D.C. Resistance has little to do with high tension wire design.

Low ohms is basically a marketing exercise.

Look how well that voltage jumps an air gap or through the human body that is grounded on the other end. :eek: ;) Both fairly high resistances.

I don't think the stock system hits 120K volts either.

Since there is a wide variety of product that seems to work just fine for our cars I would trust most of them and use the best built and looking product that fits your budget. :smile:
Click to expand...


Totally agree. Resistance is a useless measure of a modern spark plug wire's abilities, since they no longer use solid conductor wires anyway. Solid conductor wires would wreek havoc in modern day electronically controlled cars.
 
TurboDave said:
Totally agree. Resistance is a useless measure of a modern spark plug wire's abilities.
Click to expand...

Finally, my last and most pleasurable illusion has been dashed against the rocks of reality.

I'm glad I learned two things...Magnecor talks the straight talk, and that I should not post after midnight when I have not thoroughly researched the issue.

Thanks salvageV6, xrunner123, and Turbo Dave. You guys are right on and I trust that you will keep shattering my illusions.

Now I hope the gray wires I got will split so I can go out and buy something in a nice blue or red.

Steve
 
Ok well maybe we need to do a Spark PLug wire poll!!!!!

What is the best wire to get say with in a budget of $100.00??????????????

Would it be between the Magnecore 10 mm or say the Taylor 409's 10.4 mm or the MSD 8.5 mm Super Conductor..

I know opinions will vary... I have personally had Magnecore 10 mm and Taylor 8.5 Super Conductor. I liked the plug boots onthe Magnecores better. Nothing like that good click in the boot knowing that its fitting onthe plug well. Rather on the MSD's I find myself pulling the boot off an putting it back on till I feel it clicks well.. But I also have to turn on an off the lights every night 15 times before I go to bed.
 
Taylor 409 wires for me!!!

Iv'e had taylor wires ever since iv'e had the car and they are great! the boots don't pull off and mine came with 409mm wire clamps instead of zip ties. scot w.
 
Magnecor 10s for me.

The thicker insulation means you can carry more voltage through the wire before blowout. In any case, the spark plug gap will have the biggest effect on how much voltage the entire ignition system will be asked to carry. The smaller the gap, the less voltage that the wire will carry. Gaps should be setup that will not force the ignition system to carry over 40 kv. Wires will last longer that way also. My gaps set at .023".
 
Marketing. You want the THINNEST possible wire insulation that will insulate to beyond the highest possible voltage to be encountered. The THICKER the insulation, the better INSULATOR it is at PREVENTING the heat in the core of the wire from escaping and COOLING the magcore. The highest possible voltage to be encountered is a function of the system primary voltage, coil ratio, dwell time, coil design (magnetic properties of the laminations etc) and assuming there are no electircal false paths and it is getting to the plugs--- then the plug design and plug gap in the particular combustion environment it is encoutering during that pariticular cycle. Obviously, higher boost and non optimal mixtures will require high voltage to span the gap. Higher RPM gives you less dwell time to develop energy storage in the coil. When the module shuts of power to the primary, what's there is there and once the gap is bridged through both plugs (waste spark) the path from coil tower to coil tower is complete. That might be at 10KV or at 40KV. The orginal wires are good to at least that core to ground and 2x that wire to wire. If the wires are melting because they are laying on the header, then that's a wire dressing issue.
 
scot w. said:
Taylor 409 wires for me!!!

Iv'e had taylor wires ever since iv'e had the car and they are great! the boots don't pull off and mine came with 409mm wire clamps instead of zip ties. scot w.
Click to expand...

I run Taylor wires on a couple of cars.so shielded from RFI that an inductive timing light won't flash definitely good gears

Sent from my LT26w using Tapatalk
 
Hasnt turbo bob or someone figured this out already instead of us all sitting here guessing...Ive had Msd wires in my car for years and years and never had an issue but i havent pushed any envelopes to speak of.....
 
Wow. Blast from the past. That's ok, I do it too. At any rate, what has me stumped, is where everyone talks about their current replacement rate of said part in hand fulls of years. Like "I've had msd wires for FIVE YEARS before they failed." Wow. How can you guys not think that's just total garbage? The oem shit lasted TWENTY years. If your 900 dollar wires lasted a quarter of that time, you should NOT be happy lol. I find MOST of my oem parts that came on both of my Buicks, were WAYYYYYYYYY superior to ANY aftermarket trash from ANY place around. This is why I'm turning wrenches less and less, because it's a total waste of time and money. You can't win. It's not designed for you to win. The replacement parts last a fraction of the oem stuff, and it sucks because it's a horrible never ending cycle very much like a drug addiction. Once you replace that part, you're screwed. You've just started a 6 month to a year cycle of constant replacement from now on. Once that car requires a replacement, it's got it's hooks in your and you're screwed. Now multiply that by say just 10 parts, and you'll NEVER get yourself out from underneath that thing. And if you're married and own a home, you're done. One or more of those things are going to suffer lol.
My brother is completely rebuilding a Jeep Cherokee to crawl all over rocks. He's ALWAYS under that thing completely rebuilding and fabbing stuff up daily. He says the same exact thing-the oem stuff always lasts longer. Replacement parts have a limited lifetime, and it sucks, but there's no way around it. They got us over a barrel and there's nothing we can do about it. I replaced EVERY front end part on my Regal GS. All that shit was wore out within a year. I sold it. Not repeating that shit again. I work and go to school (and got married 2 years ago)-no time for that malarkey. Sorry, had to rant.
 
WOW! 5 years old thread? 5 years ago I posted that I liked the Taylor wires but since then I have gone with our custom made wires from a good friend of mine and we have yet to hear anything bad but this has only been 5 years, we will see how long we go without an issue...

BTW: We will be in BG this year and we will have "Plenty" of different wires to choose from, brand and price wise!
 
Russ' wires fit like a glove but there is more to it than that. the boots and his assembly make them so you can pull them on and off without damaging them or pulling off the crimped end. Labeled and factory looking. That is why we carry them. They are simply the best. We just hope he continues making them for us so we can offer suck a premium set for those that appreciate that level of product.

Thanks Russ!
 
That is true though. They are built like tanks. No worries on pulling them apart or wearing the ink off of the coating. (I'm really fanatical about a clean & complete engine bay)
 
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