[sdiy] DIY ADAT optical Lightpipe cables?

[WeAreAs1 at aol.com]

Hello listfolk,

I need a bunch of those ADAT "Lightpipe" optical connector cables right now, 
and they all seem to be dreadfully expensive.  I wonder if it might be 
possible to construct them myself?  I think the connector is the same as the optical 
S/PDIF connectors found on lots of consumer-grade digital audio stuff (but I'm 
not absolutely sure about this).  Anyway, I need about eight of these 
Lightpipe cables, and they seem to cost about $30 to $40 each, which does not make 
sense to me, considering how cheap-ass and mass-produced-ass they are.

I have a couple of fairly long commercially-made Lightpipe cables right now, 
and I'm wondering about possibly cutting them in half and putting new 
connector ends on them, so I would have four shorter cables instead of two long ones.  
These cables are the Alesis branded cables, and the connector ends are 
labeled with the Sharp brand name.  Does anyone know if these connector ends are 
available anywhere, what the part is called, and if it's possible to attach them 
to the raw fiber optic cable without using a molding machine or other special 
tools?  And what about that black-sheathed fiber optic cable?  Where do you 
get that stuff?  

Having recently seen and been inspired by Uma Thurman in Quentin Tarantino's 
"Kill Bill", I was thinking I could cut the fiber optic cable in one swift 
motion with a very sharp Samurai sword, or very sharp X-Acto knife -- whichever 
is most convenient -- unless someone has a better suggestion.  Naturally, I 
don't want to destroy my good cables, but I'm such a cheap bastard that I'm 
willing to take a little bit of a chance on this.  Nevertheless, I'd like to know 
if any of you has any real-world experience with this, especially if you were 
successful, or even if it's just to warn me about something that I might not be 
aware of.

As Mr. Batz Goodfortune so eloquently put it, any clues would be gratefully 
accepted as fact.

Michael Bacich
Sin City, USA

P.S. - If anyone knows where I can purchase ready-made Lightpipe cables for 
more Earthbound prices, please do let me know.