Control cable buyers in Tennessee
For maintenance and stores groups holding control cable, this page covers why part reels dominate and how conductor count and shielding are read.
Send us your reel list
Six details are enough for a first review: what the cable is, the metal, the size, the footage or reel count, the condition and where it sits. Photographs can follow by text or email. There is no fee and no obligation, and nothing moves until written terms are agreed.
Control cable carries the signals between a motor control center and the equipment it operates: start and stop circuits, status contacts, interlock loops, pilot devices. It is 600 V multi-conductor cable in 16 to 10 AWG, with numbered conductors so a wire can be identified at both ends of a run.
Almost every control cable lot is a part reel. A plant orders 500 ft for a project, pulls the runs it needs, and the remainder goes on a shelf where it stays until the next project or the next clear-out. A storehouse may hold a dozen such reels, each with a different conductor count.
Lot basics
- Voltage
- 600 V
- Sizes
- 16 to 10 AWG
- Conductors
- Multi-conductor, numbered
- Options
- Shielded and unshielded
Why most control cable lots are part reels
Control work is measured in runs, not in reels. A machine has a few dozen feet between its starter and its junction box, and a plant project may need twenty runs of different lengths. The cable is bought in a single length that covers the longest run, and the rest of the reel is left over by design.
That leftover is still useful, which is why it is kept rather than discarded. The problem is that nobody records the remaining footage. A shelf of unlabeled part reels looks like a liability to a stores supervisor and like a set of unknowns to a buyer, which is why even a rough measurement changes what a lot is worth.
Conductor count, shield and jacket print
Conductor count is the first thing we read, because it decides what the cable can be used for. A 7-conductor cable suits a motor circuit with a couple of spare cores; a 19-conductor cable is for a bundle of signals. Counts between 3 and 37 are common, with 14, 16 and 18 AWG the usual sizes.
Shielding is the second. A foil shield with a drain wire protects a signal from electrical noise, and a braided shield does the same with better mechanical strength. Cable with an overall shield is worth more than unshielded cable of the same count when it is sound, because shielded runs are harder to substitute from the stock a plant already holds.
The jacket print carries the rest: voltage rating, temperature, whether the cable is tray rated, and any sunlight or direct-burial marking. Numbered conductors are printed or stamped along their length, and that numbering is what makes a multi-conductor cable usable in a panel, since an electrician can identify a core at both ends of a run.
- Conductor counts from 3 up to 37
- 16, 14 and 18 AWG most common
- Foil or braided overall shields
- Numbered conductors printed along the length
MCCs, pushbuttons and plant interlocks
In a plant, control cable runs in tray from a motor control center to a field junction box, then in conduit to the device. It carries 120 V control circuits in most older installations and lower voltages in newer ones, and it often shares a tray with power cable, which is why shielded versions are specified in noise-sensitive areas.
Water and wastewater plants, mills and food processing lines use it heavily, since every pump and valve has a control circuit. When a line is upgraded the old cable is often abandoned in place rather than pulled, so the surplus that reaches us is usually unused stock from the stores rather than cable cut out of a tray.
Questions sellers ask
How do you identify conductor count on a part reel?
The jacket print usually states the count and the gauge, and the tag repeats it. Where both are gone, we cut back a few inches and count the conductors directly, checking the color code and the numbering. The outer diameter of the cable also gives a good indication once the count is known to be in a common range.
What does the end of a shielded control cable look like?
Under the jacket there is a metallic layer, either foil wrapped around the bundle or a braid woven over it, plus a bare drain wire in contact with the foil. Cutting back the jacket exposes that layer immediately. Unshielded cable shows only the insulated conductors and fillers, so the difference is easy to see in a photograph.
Do you buy control cable with a damaged jacket?
Yes, with the damaged section cut out and the remainder measured. Control cable is often pulled through tray and around corners, so scuffs are normal. A jacket that is cut through to the shield is more serious, since moisture can travel along the foil, and we treat those sections as unsaleable.
Is 600 V control cable ever used for power?
It is rated 600 V, so the insulation is capable, but the conductor sizes are small and the ampacity is limited. It is used for control and signal circuits, and occasionally for small loads. When we review a lot we price it as control cable rather than as power cable, because that is the market that will use it.
Send us your reel list
Six details are enough for a first review: what the cable is, the metal, the size, the footage or reel count, the condition and where it sits. Photographs can follow by text or email. There is no fee and no obligation, and nothing moves until written terms are agreed.
A shelf of control cable to clear?
Send the conductor counts, the gauges, whether the cable is shielded and the approximate footage on each reel.
Tennessee only · statewide pickup planning