atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums Wiring - Telecom Carriers - Trunks & Services Cabling Telephones Systems Wiring Commscope Changes to Systimax CAT3 Cable.

Yep it's standard CAT-3. Hard to believe a company would sell substandard CAT-5, as Cat-3. If I bought some, thinking it was CAT-3, I would be pissed off and most likely take it back!

Did notice the last box of General CAT-3 I got was priced 10 bucks higher than the last one, while the CAT-5 I get stayed the same price.

I think the lower price for CAT5 is based on demand/sales volume. Having said that, I would be shocked if any reputable label sold 25 pair CAT5 cable for less than 25 pair CAT3 cable.

If the price is reasonably close, based on the small amount of cabling I do, I have no worries about going with CAT3 if that is the appropriate cable. I just wish Commscope shipped cable that was correct from the ground up. Now I'll have to untwist the pairs to punch them down on 66 blocks...but...termination on the keystone jack side is more like CAT5 and CAT6.

I will miss CAT-3 When it's gone.

Anxiter still carries 25 pair Cat 3 cable. CM-02524BAG-3 is the generic (meaning you get who ever they buy it from) and CM-02524BKT-3 is the Berk-Tek Cat 3 number. It's anyone's guess as to when these are no longer available and all one will be able to get is Cat 5 or 6 only. They also list a General Cable Cat 3 Four Pair CMP-00424BICC-3U-01. But, of course, this may be Cat 5 or 6 that did not make the sweep.

We only use Cat 6 for everything as trying to keep several Category cables stocked on all our trucks was becoming a nightmare. I don't like the Cat 6 cable for telephone work as it is more difficult to terminate than Cat 3, but, one can get used to it.

Rcaman

Generally speaking, isn't CAT6 cable still more expensive than CAT3?

While 66 blocks can accommodate 23 AWG conductors, untwisting the stuff can be a chore.

In the substandard CAT5 cable masquerading as CAT3, the Bl/Wh and Gr/Wh pairs have looser twists than the Or/Wh and Br/Wh pairs.

I just checked prices from ADI, Cat 6 is about 100 bucks more than Cat 3.

I thought that might still be the situation. I suppose there are worse things that could happen than getting bad C5 cable labeled as C3. It just seems wrong.

Dex, those different twist ratios are completely normal. Now I'm not saying they are or aren't looser than they should be, but in any cable the twist ratio is supposed to be slightly different from pair to pair. If they were the same and happened to be lined up right, there would be too much cross talk, it would partially negate it being twisted at all. I remember looking at a piece of Cat 5E and noticing that phenomenon and looking it up because I thought I got a junk roll.

True...that the differences are to deal with crosstalk. But Systimax CAT had almost no twists within the groups. Even high pair count cable had very little twisting.

I'm not familiar with OSP cable...except for drops. Are overhead cable pairs twisted? I've heard it referred to as CAT0.

Yes OSP is twisted pair.