Making a flash cable?

[.glib]

Okay here's the scenario: I've been playing around in action photography (mountain biking and bmx mainly) for about a year now. I'm shooting with an old Canon AE-1 program, and a Majestic 45BC (I assume the name has something to do with the time it was created ). Anyway, this is all my parents' old gear. Now they also have a very short (not much longer than a foot) cable that can be used in lieu of the hotshoe mount and fires the flash. It looks fairly simple technically wise. I'm looking to get a much longer cable since I want to get a remote flash sort of effect without having to shell out the cash for a remote (I'm a poor university student ), so I figure having a long cable so I can either hold the flash out at a distance, or, if I go nuts and make myself a REALLY long cable, even put it down on something and angle it, then step back a few feet and take my shot.

Ghetto I know, but it would let me get the effect I want for (hopefully) minimal money.

What I'm wondering is if this cable is anything special. I mean this equipment is pretty old, and pretty simple, so I'm think it's probably just carrying a charge from the camera to the flash that tells it to "go". So just some wire of about the same guage and resistance, and a trip to radioshack to match the connectors (or maybe cannibalizing my old cable for them) and little finesse should get me a nice long cable?

 

[Galaxy_Stranger]

Ah - I did that once too to replace a sync cord for my power pack when I couldn't get a hold of the right jack. I went to radio shack. Can't remember the guage. But regular copper wire works ok. Just don't go for those wires they have in individual spools - they're too thin and get breaks REAL easy.