sundance-communications.com/forum Forums Wiring - Telecom Carriers - Trunks & Services Cabling Telephones Systems Wiring Wire Lacing

Old Schoolers- Don't laugh. A couple weeks ago, I terminated two 100-pair cables to a 90-port TIE DSX patch panel in the CO, whereby my supervisor recommended using small tie wraps when dressing the rear panel wiring. Since my supervisor was 'impressed' with the results, he tasked me with 're-terminating' the three other adjacent TIE DSX patch panels to create a uniform wiring appearance across all the patch panels. I've received his approval to redress my work by lacing the wiring, unfortunately lacing is a craft that I want to learn correctly. Sorry, but I just don't like tiewraps on DSX panel wiring. Can anyone provide any advice or rescources for those whom want to correctly learn this craft?

Yes

Purchase a bottle of CORN HUSKERS LOTION, if you
plan on doing it for a extended period of time. :banana:

Or get some lacing gloves. I searched the internet and while there are plenty of places on cable lacing techniques, I found no good ones on lacing cables to a rack.
This site has the cord and tools, although I never used anything other than my hands. This site shows how to start the lacing process on a cable rack. Best thing I can tell you is you hide your start and stop on the back side of the rack, now here's the part I can't remember, I believe it was 6 wraps. So on the front you'd have 6 wraps top and bottom of rack on the front cable side horizontal, on the back 6 vertical wraps on the back side of the rack each side of the cable. Maybe someone else can find a good picture for you. And if you're going to do a lot of it, really do get some lacing gloves , or you'll wish you did.

The last picture shows the back side of laced cable on a rack. That's the best I could find.

Put cable lacing in google and a lot of stuff comes up, don't know if any of it will help you or not.

Good Luck

Thanks for the responses. Bill, I think I'm starting to get a grasp thanks to your links. I've seen alot of nice, clean 'end-result' lacing over in the Patch & Test area, but no one I work around can share any 'how-to' experience . Thank you for providing the links!

Thx TJ~ I'll check around!

Lacing is skill that comes with practice and it's an art form. I was taught by old school shipyard technicians over 35 years ago and I have been through many rolls. Good eyes, good hand-eye coordination, good light! Thank god for tie-wraps!

I've still got a copy of "Cabling Methods - Central Office, Securing Switchboard Cable" from my days at GTE (GTEP 250-050-204). It's a pretty good "how-to" with pictures. It lists all the main stitches. Getting good is just a question of practice.

BTW, we still lace cable here in NYC (whenever we do work in COs or the "Internet Hotels".)

If you'd like a copy, let me know and I'll send one out (I don't think I'm violating any copyright laws). It's 14 pages.

Sam

Rack stitching is a beginning stitch and an ending stitch ......

Get a lacing needle and a stitching loop.

Don't get in a hurry.

Keep the lacing flat.

Keep tension on the stitch.

If you don't find stitching gloves (haven't seen them in years) use tape on your joints so you don't cut yourself.

Good luck and if you learn it real well you can impress a lot of boy scouts........

Seems like Jensen Tools or Specialized or Tecra Tools had lacing gloves. We lace everything in the CO, but don't do large volumes or days back-to-back so I've skipped gloves. The guys who were doing the initial install wore gloves, but they were tying for days on end. The wax tends to gum up your snips, but WD-40 and a cloth will clean it right off. One of the install guys was using a pair of dikes to cut the waxed string with but I've never tried it.

The documents JustBill posted are good pictures. They are actually better quality than in SBC's Install Manual TP-76300. There isn't a lot of quality information out there on lacing. It would be nice if some old-timers would put a video together.

Thank you all for the valuable input and guidance. Silversam, I'm very interested in the document you mentioned. :thumb:

Ya Mike, I think you should grab that up, probably some very helpful information in there. I went online to see if I could put some of the old Bell specs and no luck there.

Lacing was still on the agenda for apprentice training with British Telecom in the early 1980s, though I have no idea if it is still taught today.

I understand thru what I've learned so far that the important points are 'starts with a knot..ends with a knot, proper tension, spacing, keeping the lacing straight and flat, and not to get in a hurry. I have a very high respect for this craft, and hope that is never becomes a skill that will only be learned thru researching history books. As time permits me, I'll patiently try my hands at this. I also recently found a link I'd like to share back with everyone. Here are what appear to be some of NASA\'s standards. I was also somewhat impressed with the lacing found throughout this photo. (Click on the photo to get a closer view.)

Mike

Have you seen This , and this Wikipedia also has some links, The quest link on the wikipedia site shows some of the knots (Section 5.18)

also check out page 4-24 and the following pages of This

wow...it looks tough. The sound systems at UT that are about 15 years old are all laced in...makes it look nice but it's not easy to troubleshoot stuff.

Don, Thanks for those great links! I notice that the 2 main stitches are the 'Chicago' and the 'Kansas City'. I never realized just how much this skill is actually documented. The old 'lacing' (I'm being vewwy vewwy nice in calling it that) that I will be removing/redressing is comprised of several separately tied off loops of lace that are all disconnected from each other. It looks very sloppy and rushed, with tons of wasted lace extending about 3 inches past each knot. Kyle, the WD-40 works great. Thanks for the tip!

I remember building many CO's and MSC's and tye wraps were taboo. Cabling lacing is really nice when it's done right and the best part no chance of scars!

Silversam, a BIG THANKYOU for providing me with GTE's methods and standards. :thumb: I agree LaneComm, even though installing tie wraps also saves time, I have a strong appreciation for correctly secured lacing. I'm creating a binder with all the different information and diagrams.

Mike:

Do you have a set of sewing needles yet?
Yes, needles.

We used homemade and store bought as well.
Some round made from piano wire and steel piece off a switch banks.
The commercial needles were flat stainless steel.
You would stack the cables flat and across then
after the base you would stack them on top and make layers.

If the bends were not proper angles, or you could kick the cable runs and they would move. Guess what? They were cut out and you had to redo the whole mess.

I would sew cables for days and days at a time.
The hardest sewing was power cables 750 (cm) i think
You had a rubber hammer to beat your bends into proper form.

I would build a map of the cabling before any cables were sewed so they would be all uniform
and would break out in sequence.
No cables could cross over another cable
All uniform and neat.

Your talking about hundreds and hundreds of cables which would go into new central office.
From the iron work to complete office installed
and many many hours of testing.

No Divers!!!

Scott.

The folks from Tyco did a NICE job with lacing their power cables when they replaced our aging battery backup plant. TJ, I'm doing much, much lighter work; just redressing and lacing the rear wiring on our DSX patch panels. That sounds like a heck of a project!

I have not done lacing in about 8-9 yrs, and have a job coming up, and I am sure that I have forgotten a few things so if "silversam" would send me that 14pg GTEP 250-050-204, and if 5Etek-mike would send a copy of his binder to me I would greatly appreciate it ! I have been a tech since 1977 when I started as a Splicer with GTE, but I do a variety of things like I&R, pbx, and towers. Ifyou could send to my personel e-mail it would be great ! [email protected]
THANKS
Mark

Here's a couple of links for tools and gloves and a pdf on Quest standards and practices, This is good stuff for a CO guy, note page 108....

https://www.qwest.com/techpub/77350/77350.pdf

https://www.tecratools.com/pages/tecalert/cable_lacing.html

https://www.justtoolkits.com/80170.html

I love that NASA page, w00t!

I have heard of lacing/stitching before, but never seen it in practice. Guess that's gonna be some TV time spent messing up my fingers

Good topic!

Mark -

It's on the way. Check your email.

Sam

Impressive stuff, but - per the last photo - methinks that running high frequency signals parallel to fluorescent lighting is bound to cause some trouble.

If you've ever been in a CO fluorescent is the only lighting they use. One of our CO guy can probably address this as I seem to remember back in the old days they did have a special ballast in them, but could be wrong.

True about fluorescent lights in CO, but thiscloseparallel to cat5e? Assuming the wires will carry signals in the multiMHz range, isn't a few feet between them the norm? Or position them to cross at 90 degrees?

Hey Sam, would you mind sending me that too?

Jeff -

It's on the way.

Sam

Thanks Sam!!

SPH -

EIA/TIA recommends 12" (I think) spacing and crossing at 90 degrees.

Bill - Nothing but fluorescent lighting. I have been in every NY Tel CO in NYC and a few out in the 'burbs and it's always fluorescent.

At GTE we had special Sylvania fixtures that we would order. They came with the right clips and we hung them from and under the ladder rack. They also came with reflectors - left, right or both. This way you lit the back or front of the racks and not the top of the ladder rack.

But ALWAYS fluorescent. Incandescent makes no sense maintenance - wise and would be too hot besides.

Sam

Sam,can you send me one too, mahalo

On the way.

Sam

Sam, would you please send me a copy also?

Thanks in advance.

Brian

Before this turns into a "can you send that to me too" thread.

If that is infact your post please do it in a private message (PM). All to often a thread becomes over run with this kind of post.

Please consider the other readers here. Whould you like to read an entire thread of "can you send me that too"? I think not.

Thank you for understanding and helping make this board such a great place.