Plug wire anatomy...

[JDolan2109@aol.com]

Cough, cough, hackk, cough, wheez...
"spark plug wires are *how* much?..."

  Now that I've BTDT, I'm getting devious. After all, this is rural Vermont,
not Oman or Switzerland. I'm sure that this has been dealt with before, but
my blessed little computer and that mega-junk server AOL, can't seem to bring
up anything too much as far as FAQ's and tech hints at the Quattro site. So
maybe you guys will have the patience to help me?
  Since I'm short of funds, but not ingenuity, I'd like to fabricate a set of
wires myself. I've salvaged quite a collection of cap and plug ends, and will
reuse the best of the lot. The stumbling block is the crimped metal connector
that is afixed to the wire itself and then screws into the cap or plug
terminal. Is that piece available anywhere? If not, I'm tempted to remove
one, hammer it out flat, and use it as a template to fashion a stamp that
would produce just what I'm after. I'm sure I can come up with a slight
improvement or simplification to avoid any patent infringements. The price of
new wires is totally ludicrous and absurd! 
  One thing I did notice- all the wire sets I took apart had the same spark
plug end, part #401 160 (5K ohm). One set, from a VW Synchro, has pretty blue
ends at the cap end, so I'll most likely use them (ends only w/new wires),
just to 'brighten up' the engine bay a bit. The most interesting thing about
that wire set, though, is again the crimped piece. It is present at the Dist.
end, but absent at the plug end. The wire just screws onto the interior stud
of the plug terminal. (which explains a lot about proper removal of wires on
these! i.e.: don't remove wire from plug by pulling on wire). Experimenting,
I tried to replace that wire with one that had the crimped piece in place,
but the plug terminal would not accept it. Etternal wire diameter is
identical. What I seem to have are two plug terminal ends that are different
internally, but have the same part number. So, are there variations that use
the same part number? Maybe the fact that one set is from a VW and the other
from an Audi is the answer? The wire used in the odd VW set was manufactured
by Belden. Is that an OEM supplier?
  What I wound up doing was taking apart the wires that had no crimped piece
at the plug end. I then trimmed 1/8" to remove corrosion/oxidation. A very
small amount of di-electric grease (available from Chrysler, maybe others)
was then put on the sides of the wire (only that part that actually enters
the plug terminal) for lubrication and sealing, and the wire was
re-assembled. And that's how it will stay until I find those little crimped
pieces... 
  Or is this all just a 'flare up' of cabin fever? If its absolutely
necessary that a new wire set be installed, there's a 'light show' that
starts here at dark and only costs 25 cents....
cheapo Jim in Vt.  '89 80q
jdolan2109@aol.com