thanks for thought you put into this Al and the detailed explanations.
I am trying to work with what you are suggesting and having negative results. where you write:
INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ( "T4.03||" )

each unit is generated as a memory variable which I collect as a string - can I instead add this to my cursor as they happen instead of at the end:

Here is the way it currently runs

SCAN FOR field1 = 1
A_unit=crs+LTRIM(STR(sct,5,2))+ '||'  &&& ie ('T4.01')
mystr=mystr+A_unit
endscan

so can I plug in your cursor thus?

SCAN FOR field1 = 1
A_unit=crs+LTRIM(STR(sct,5,2))+ '||'  
INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ("&A_unit")
endscan

then at end of procedure add your concluding code ---- because unfortunately it ain't workin'

LOCAL lcResult
m.lcResult = ""
SELECT MyUnits
SCAN ALL
	m.lcResult = m.lcResult + ALLTRIM( MyUnits.MyUnit )
ENDSCAN
?m.lcResult

>>Is there a way to present the following character string in alphabetical order:
>>
>>T4.03||T4.01||E2.05||W27||W211||
>>re-ordered to
>>E2.05||T4.01||T4.03||W27||W211||
>>
>>I am collecting the data one unit at a time (T4:03||) then (T4:01||)
>>so perhaps while it is being collected it can be ordered.
>
>You could create a cursor, index it appropriately and INSERT rows corresponding to each unit. Then SCAN the cursor and assemble the finished string.
>

>CREATE CURSOR MyUnits ( MyUnit C( 7 ) )
>INDEX ON LEFT( MyUnit, 1 ) + REPLICATE( "0", 7 -  LEN( ALLTRIM( MyUnit ) ) ) + SUBSTR( MyUnit, 2, LEN( ALLTRIM( MyUnit ) ) - 1 ) TAG MyUnit
>* This INDEX expression is the trickiest bit, see notes below
>
>* Gather values, INSERT into the cursor:
>INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ( "T4.03||" )
>INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ( "T4.01||" )
>INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ( "T2.05||" )
>INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ( "W27||" )
>INSERT INTO MyUnits ( MyUnit ) VALUES ( "W211||" )
>
>LOCAL lcResult
>m.lcResult = ""
>
>SELECT MyUnits
>SCAN ALL
>	m.lcResult = m.lcResult + ALLTRIM( MyUnits.MyUnit )
>
>ENDSCAN
>
>USE IN MyUnits
>
>?m.lcResult
>
>* Notes
>* Figuring out how to sort/index is actually the trickiest part of your question
>* Even that is relatively easy except for the W27||W211|| at the end
>* If your strings always end (i.e. are delimited by) that pair at the end, it makes indexing easier
>* You accumulate everything except those two strings in the cursor, then manually add those two strings at the end
>* In that case you can simply
>INDEX ON MyUnit TAG MyUnit
>
>* If you want something that will work without knowing the finishing delimiter(s), what you can do is pad the total
>* length of the final two strings in the index expression up to the 7 character length of the others. In your case
>* in the index expression you would want them to be sorted as "W0027||" and "W0211||" in order to be sorted properly.
>* The INDEX expression in the main code sample injects the proper number of zeroes
>* in the proper location to pad the expression indexed to 7 characters
>