An older mechanical splice used on overhead electrical and telegraph conductors. The linesman inserts the two wire ends into a figure-eight shaped copper or aluminum sleeve, then grips both ends with heavy pliers and twists the entire assembly several times. The twisting action cold-welds the metals together, creating a connection with high tensile strength and low electrical resistance.
Heard on the job
You'll still find the occasional McIntire joint on the old rural copper lines, but we replace them with compression sleeves during upgrades.
Also heard as
- twisted sleeve joint
- McIntire splice