hi guys, i'm a new member and also a new tech as i've only been in the industry for a few months. im located in british columbia and am being trained to do bix terminations next week. i was wondering if any of u had any tips or how-to's for this type of termintion. i like to be well prepared. thanks guys!

to the board.

Pay attention to your teacher.

Take note of the different blocks & mounts & what they're used for.

Use a large enough mount for expansion later if needed, without going overboard.

ASK Questions!

Strive for neatness and clarity.

When you're in the field on your own make sure you label every strip properly, clearly, not just for you, but every other tech that comes in.

We're always here to help you as well...

:rofl:

All kidding aside, here, South of the Border, BIX are few and far between. 110 or 66 (especially 66) are the most common down here.

That being said, soon a few of your fellow Canucks will get done with their MooseHead and will pop in to give you the best case use of the BIX. These guys are old time pros....but watch out for that MooreTel.... ....sometime I'll tell you about him ....... :rofl:

My biggest gripe is that when people are using any modular cable termination system, they treat it as if what they are installing is all that will ever be needed. They don't allow for an appropriate amount of expansion space, resulting in slip-shot installations with inconsistent block layouts and increased tracing time. Not to mention overall neatness and professionalism. I think it is mighty arrogant and short-sighted to assume that the two blocks needed for today's installation today are all that will ever be needed. This applies to any cable termination medium, not just BIX.

My best advice is to make sure to allow for expansion from the top-down and from left to right as much as you can. I know that wall space is a luxury these days, but if you plan your equipment layout so that the blocks can easily be expanded down and/or to the right. Best wishes in your training.

with bix my suggestion, BUY A REAL BIX TOOL not just a blade for your 110 tool, anyways those blades cost more than the real tool!

I know that wall space is a luxury these days.

Thats one of the reason we use BIX

Good luck with your training Rod. Well said Ed, it's amazing how even the telcos don't plan for expansion these days. Get in, use only what you need, get out. Done.

Hey Dave, just curious as you talk about different blocks, are you one of the old school guys that use 1A for everything or do you use 1A4 when you have to terminate 4 pairs? I'm still kind of in the middle. I have to say I always follow the 1A markings first.

Chris

I'd just loop 1A's on the back side with jumper wire to suit the size of the installation. We have done them with as many as 25 pairs of multiples before.

I will say that the norm with 1A2 was to use the QCBIX5A's where each pair received a five pair multiple. I still think that it is best to stick with 1As and just loop (AND LABEL) them according to the site/system requirements.

Even with 66 and 110 blocks, I used to like to set up yellow "dip" fields where blocks were there for no reason other than to provide multiple pair appearances. As a 66 block user here, I use a yellow backboard with four 66M1-25 blocks that provides for one pair in-three out. If more are needed, then I just loop the rows.

I think that it is safe to say that with any of today's horizontal cross-connecting block systems, the big problem is proper labeling. I can lay out a job with printed labels for what I expect to be necessary for growth, but then some jackleg comes in after the fact, stealing block positions and screwing up your proper plan.

Yet another one of my soap box peeves.

Ed, you have used BIX for 1A2??

Jeff, Bix has been around & extensively used in Canada for over 25 years, so yes it was used in the later years of 1A2. Think about it, a connecting block is exactly that and can be used for at least most applications if used properly.

Chris, I use 1A4's when I'm running 4 pair, which is always for any business application. 1A's for almost everything else.

I still a few 5A's & 7A's for bridging. When they're gone, I'll do like Ed.

Of course I use the others as well, 32, 46, etc., but never the useless 2A's.

i just had to revive this, at work today a maintenance guy, instead of calling me, decided to work on one of the nortel systems, i caught him punching down the bix with a flathead screwdriver!!!!!

I've seen a contractor punching bix down with a credit card....

True story.

An alarm guy told me about the punchdown tool he had for a 66 block...a pocket clip flathead screwdriver

I hope you told him Phillips head works better

ive done that in a pinch

Ive done my share of 1A's but dont recall how 1A2's or other bix waffers are internally wired. Anyone care to clearify me on this?

Don't quote me on this, but I recall that the (5A?) had five pairs multipled on the front with one input pair on the back. This permitted multiple appearances for cross-connecting.

This "one-in, five-out" design was similar to the 66B4 block.

If additional multiples were required for larger 1A installations, the input pair could be multipled on the back side to expand the number of front-face pair appearances.

Basically, the white/blue position on the back of the block was tied directly to the white/blue through white/slate pair positions on the front and so on for the remaining four base-color positions.

There was another BIX version designed to accommodate a ringing diode matrix with the diodes placed in the back (6A?).

You're half right, Ed.

The back is the same as the front, at least on the 1A, 1A4, 2A, 5A & 7A blocks.

So, in theory, with a 5A block, you could in a pinch have 1 input pair and 9 out...but that's pushing it. I always just bridge on the rear for the next group of 5, or change the block out for a 7A.

Um guy's...this thread is a year old...

I know, Dean. I just figured that this information might be useful in a search on this forum. I'm always careful to review prior posts before I add to old ones.

...and I think Dave said it best: "Pay attention to your teacher."

Ed wrote:
And have you guys seen how many old Sundance Tech Forum threads come up in google searches? (It's pretty amazing..)

Moral of the story: Careful what you say on here, because people will still be reading it years and years from now!

Sundance Tech Forum = The next Dead Sea Scrolls (in 10,000 years).

Jim
**************************************************
Typing things for future generations to ponder in a secure...

So I was closer than I thought. Imagine us US boys knowing almost as much about BLICKS blocks as Canadian guys do! Watch your back.