The one metre wire had to have springs at each end.
The coil of bare copper between wire and terminal dissiapates heat to prevent heat from the wire melting the terminal block
The wire passes through the ceramic tube of a fuse that it glued ( epoxy resin ) into a hole in a washer ( actually a coin drilled to fit the tube ) The ceramic provides a degree of heat insulation but the glue does degrade.
The nut and bolt allows easy tensioning of the wire.
For a foam cutter I would have the upper end as a simple fixing for the wire and keep all the tensioning under the work table. Use a heat proof hole in the table to keep the wire located vertically below the upper fixing. ( unless you want to cut chamfores etc in which case arrange for the upper fixing to be movable. ) It might work to use weights as tension rather than srprings.
The coil of bare copper between wire and terminal dissiapates heat to prevent heat from the wire melting the terminal block
The wire passes through the ceramic tube of a fuse that it glued ( epoxy resin ) into a hole in a washer ( actually a coin drilled to fit the tube ) The ceramic provides a degree of heat insulation but the glue does degrade.
The nut and bolt allows easy tensioning of the wire.
For a foam cutter I would have the upper end as a simple fixing for the wire and keep all the tensioning under the work table. Use a heat proof hole in the table to keep the wire located vertically below the upper fixing. ( unless you want to cut chamfores etc in which case arrange for the upper fixing to be movable. ) It might work to use weights as tension rather than srprings.
