In the less than immortal words of Rhett Butler: "Frankly my dear, I don't think it matters too much."

As a general rule, Aircraft Cable is 3/8" and smaller, in 7x7 and 7x19 constructions. Aircraft Cables have a wire core in the same construction as the outer strands. Wire rope tends to be sizes larger than 3/8"--and in constructions other then the former: 6x19, 6x25, 6x36, 6x42, etc. Wire ropes also have varying types of cores, ranging from the Independent Wire Rope Core, or IWRC, to poly ropes, fiber ropes, or even no core at all in some applications.  

Having said this, now I'm going to tell you that all of this doesn't really matter. Why? Well, we make 3/16", 6x37 wire rope, and also have a reel of 1" 7x19 cable in our warehouse. The first is not an aircraft cable, and you'd be hard pressed to tell anyone that the second is not a wire rope!

What does this all mean? It means that a rope by any other name is still a rope, and the most important thing to remember is that when you are ordering material: specify the size, construction, and material. That way we know exactly what you need!

If you have any questions about this, or any other topic, feel free to contact a product manager and we will be certain to get you the information you need.