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George,

I have to say that you come up with the most interesting and obscure bits of
information. Now, of course, I shall have to consult some of my chemistry
and metallurgy texts to bone up on the properties of tin. Somewhere in your
posting, there is a good France joke to be had (I understand that they are
all the rage in the USA these days) but this is not the forum for such
nationalistic levity!

Rest assured that I have no intention of invading Russia on my trusty steed
with sextant raised triumphantly in the air shouting "Vive la Republic".

cheers,

Robert
----- Original Message -----
From: "George Huxtable" 
To: 
Sent: Friday, March 26, 2004 4:54 PM
Subject: Re: Electrical Wire


> Perhaps I can squeeze one last drop of juice out of Robert Eno's search
for
> electrical wire that would remain flexible down to -40 degrees, to
> illuminate his sextant. Someone suggested he should make sure the wire was
> fully tinned.
>
> I have no doubt of the virtues of tinned copper wire in a marine
> environment. Untinned copper wire (especially flexible multistrand) gets
> attacked quickly in salt air, goes black, and won't take solder
thereafter.
> Avoid it.
>
> But down at -40 degrees? That reminds me of the story I heard about
> Napoleon's retreat from Moscow. He had issued his troops with campaign
> medals which were made of tin. As I remember it, tin has two allotropes,
> its crystal structure changing from one form to the other at such low
> temperatures. This change causes the metal to crumble. When besieging
> Moscow, Napoleon's troops found their prized medals falling apart, which
> added sufficiently to their general demotivation caused by cold and hunger
> that they decided to turn round and go home. The behaviour of tin at low
> temperature had a significant effect on the course of European history.
>
> I wouldn't wish Robert Eno to suffer in the same way that Napoleon did.
>
> George.
>
>
> ================================================================
> contact George Huxtable by email at george@huxtable.u-net.com, by phone at
> 01865 820222 (from outside UK, +44 1865 820222), or by mail at 1 Sandy
> Lane, Southmoor, Abingdon, Oxon OX13 5HX, UK.
> ================================================================
>
>

   

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