Suitcase connectors for wiring?

I have used these repeatedly in car stereo instalation without failure. Never had one come open, or lose power. I plan on using them on my main buss. There are several different types of them. You can find them in the automotive section at walmart or any autoparts store like autozone. The ones I use, clamp on the main wire, and have a male spade type connecter that plugs in.

these are the kind I use most.

these are also good for wire close to the same gauge, but hard to adapt for large gauge to small gauge such as 22 ga wire feeders to 14 gauge main buss.

these are the only 2 types of connecters I have used. others may have some better info.

Before you decide to use suitcase connectors, please at least try Posi-Tap connectors. Thet are easier to use, especially in tight spaces, because they require no crimping. You can tie in up to four 22 gauge wires to one bus wire with one Posi-Tap. They are fast, reliable, and the results are stonger than soldering. I've used them to wire 59 streelights and building interior lights in about half the time of any other method I've ever used. I have no connection with them, just a satisfied customer. You can find out more about them at http://www.posi-lock.com/posiplug.html. 

Thank you for the information and the photos, they'll be a help in locating them!

JaRRell

medic_149 wrote:

I have used these repeatedly in car stereo instalation without failure. Never had one come open, or lose power. I plan on using them on my main buss. There are several different types of them. You can find them in the automotive section at walmart or any autoparts store like autozone. The ones I use, clamp on the main wire, and have a male spade type connecter that plugs in. these are the kind I use most. these are also good for wire close to the same gauge, but hard to adapt for large gauge to small gauge such as 22 ga wire feeders to 14 gauge main buss. these are the only 2 types of connecters I have used. others may have some better info.

Jim, I had forgotten about these.  Not that I've used them, but I have heard of them.  I like the idea of connecting for feeders , that might be especially helpful around my turntable area.

Thanks,

JaRRell

UP2CSX wrote:

Before you decide to use suitcase connectors, please at least try Posi-Tap connectors. Thet are easier to use, especially in tight spaces, because they require no crimping. You can tie in up to four 22 gauge wires to one bus wire with one Posi-Tap. They are fast, reliable, and the results are stonger than soldering. I've used them to wire 59 streelights and building interior lights in about half the time of any other method I've ever used. I have no connection with them, just a satisfied customer. You can find out more about them at http://www.posi-lock.com/posiplug.html.

One brand name for the suitcase connectors is Scotchlok (though there are many Scotchlok connectors that are not suitcase connectors).  Some people swear by them, some swear at them.  I believe the key is proper installation, the 'connector' part is to be put in place first, then the 'suitcase'.  Don't try to push the connector into position by just pushing down the cover.

Here is an example:

http://products3.3m.com/catalog/us/en001/utilities_telecom/electrical_contractors/node_GSLQW8MSW6be/root_GST1T4S9TCgv/vroot_GSBCDFDZ1Zge/gvel_RZZJLFZNT6gl/theme_us_electricalcontractors_3_0/command_AbcPageHandler/output_html

Installed DCC in 1999, used suitcase connectors for the power bus and the cab bus, have had no problems 8 years later.  Still use them on new work too.

Bob

John, I agree with you on the expense part.  But, the reason I'm looking into these is that, while in the middle of a benchwork remodeling, I noticed I ain't all that good at soldering under the bench.  Now where the track feeder connects to the rail, no problem... but I'll bet 1 out of 4 of my under the bench connections were no good, thus I'm looking into alternatives 'cause I'm a terrible solderer..  :)

JaRRell

jwar wrote:

I have been around the so called suitcase connector for years, but only in automotive and truck wireing, it was also the first items I checked out if I had a poor connection. Also if the sliding connector spade is crimped at an angle it will partualy cut the second wire. I did think about using them, but saved the expense and got out the ole sodering gun, of which in my personal openion is soooooo much better, and cheeper too..and never a doubt of a good connection....or I would check out as csx stated above, the posi tap...Just my 2 cents...John

JaRRell

You picked a subject that people have very strong opinions on, pro and con.  I've seen this subject debated numerous times in numerous places.

I've used the suitcase connectors (3m brandname is Scotch-Lok) to make feeder connections on modules I've built.  IMO, they are a fast, reliable way to connect track feeders to a power buss, especially in DCC where you're not worried about block wiring.  They have been mentioned in numerous articles.  The primary one that comes to mind is one a few years back by David Barrow, of Cat Mountain fame, in his domino series of articles.  He is a very experienced modeler and I figure if they're good enough for him then well you know.  They have have been used in a recent MR project layout.

As I said, I've used them or provided them as part of mdules I've built for the 4-H group.  This gives the kids/parents a way to do wiring with out needing to solder.  Just make sure you use the right size wires in the right connector.  They are color coded.  While HD or Lowe's may only stock the yellow, blue or red ones.  3M does make them that use 20ga for the tap and 14ga for the run.  They are much harder to find, a little more expensive, but you should be able to mail order them off the internet if you look hard enough.

jacon12 wrote:

I don't remember the 'correct' name for these devices, I've only seen them referred to as suitcase connectors.  I'm wondering how reliable they are for connecting track feeder wires to the main buss.  I looked around Lowes Home Improvement but didn't see them, perhaps don't stock them. Anyone used them and can recommend them... or not? JaRRell

Scotchlock is the best brand. Made by 3M corp. If you use the proper size and crimp correctly they work fine. Sizes are written on the boxes.  Some off brands do not work so well. Caveat emptor.

Karl

I noted in passing, "I'm not that good at soldering under the benchwork."

I absolutely, positively DETEST soldering under the benchwork - so I bring all my wiring out to the aisle side of the L girders and do my soldering while seated in a comfortable chair in the aisleway.  Actually, most of my wiring is run from terminal block to terminal block and I do quite a bit of "soldering" with a socket wrench.  All of my real soldering is done from the top down, a lot of it pre-wiring prior to installation.

When it comes to pain-free electricals, a little pre-planning saves a lot of grief.

As for suitcase connectors, count me in the camp of folks who swear at them.  My background is aircraft maintenance, and any aircraft electrician who used them for any purpose aboard anything airborne would do so at risk of his FAA certification.  When it comes to flying machinery, "Good enough," - isn't.

Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)

So far I have not used them, though I may as time goes on.  I've been using wire nuts.  It does require cutting and stripping the wires, but after that they are pretty easy to use.  And it isn't hard to add or subtract.  I don't have any real objection to soldering, but I have been using child labor (actually older teen) to do a lot of the wiring, and have been haappier with the results with the wire nuts than soldering.  Getting the 14 gauge hot takes a bit of patience and preparation.

I think that installed correctly there should be no trouble with the IDCs, in a model railroad environment.  Every phone cable, network cable, ribbon cable, etc., is in the same technology family, though these try to be a bit more general purpose.

tomikawaTT wrote:

I noted in passing, "I'm not that good at soldering under the benchwork." I absolutely, positively DETEST soldering under the benchwork - so I bring all my wiring out to the aisle side of the L girders and do my soldering while seated in a comfortable chair in the aisleway.  Actually, most of my wiring is run from terminal block to terminal block and I do quite a bit of "soldering" with a socket wrench.  All of my real soldering is done from the top down, a lot of it pre-wiring prior to installation. When it comes to pain-free electricals, a little pre-planning saves a lot of grief. As for suitcase connectors, count me in the camp of folks who swear at them.  My background is aircraft maintenance, and any aircraft electrician who used them for any purpose aboard anything airborne would do so at risk of his FAA certification.  When it comes to flying machinery, "Good enough," - isn't. Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)

Oh-Oh! I'm in trouble if my trains start flying. Just a little humor Chuck. Not flame thrown at you. Being a pilot, I total agree with you about there use in aircraft. I'm against there use in automotive use too.

Eriediamond wrote:

I'm against there use in automotive use too.

See also this forum thread:

http://www.trains.com/trccs/forums/1217657/ShowPost.aspx

Good Luck,
-John

Strange, not a single mention of the October 2007 MR article that actually discusses this very issue.

Look at Page 78, the DCC Corner column that covers Good Wiring Practices to get a true perspective on your options.  It is a good article by Mike Polsgrove and worth a read.

Oh, and on Page 51 there is an under-layout picture that shows lots of suitcase connectors on Steven Barkley's layout. 

jeffrey-wimberly wrote:

I've tried the suitcase connectors and didn't like them. I also don't like soldering under the bench. I came upon a comprimise that works well for me. Instead of securing may power buss wires directly to the bottom of the layout, I have them hung by wire loops 3 to 5 inches below the bottom of the layout. With the wire in this configuration I can get to it easily and soldering is not a problem.

Amen to that. I run all my cables that way. I drill a hole from the top down, and do all my connections to the track first, then feed the cable through the hole, cross it underneath the layout by way of the loops (and cable ties), and then finish the connections sitting in a chair. No way am I going to do soldering upside down under the layout. (I did plenty of that when I was still doing electrical assembly work for a living and physically I want no more of that)

Woodlandtoots 

Jim, I sent the Posi-Tap folks an email asking about their product and this is the reply.

"They are great for Model RR, but, only with stranded.  It would be worth it to change to stranded wire for the time you will save."

JaRRell 

UP2CSX wrote:

Before you decide to use suitcase connectors, please at least try Posi-Tap connectors. Thet are easier to use, especially in tight spaces, because they require no crimping. You can tie in up to four 22 gauge wires to one bus wire with one Posi-Tap. They are fast, reliable, and the results are stonger than soldering. I've used them to wire 59 streelights and building interior lights in about half the time of any other method I've ever used. I have no connection with them, just a satisfied customer. You can find out more about them at http://www.posi-lock.com/posiplug.html.

Posiplug connectors are 50 cents to a dollar each, while 3M suitcase connectors at an auto supply store will cost you 15-20 cents each. Big price difference between the two technologies. For model railroading, I can't see the reliability of posiplug would be 5 times better, so the "return on investment" isn't there.

I've used 3M suitcase connectors on my HO Siskiyou Line for over 10 years now, with not one failure ever. And we run op sessions each month, so the layout is used to run trains regularly.

As to whether or not you would trust building an airplane with these, I also expect wire nuts used in house wiring are NOT used in airplanes either, but that doesn't stop house electricians and it's allowed by code.

If I had answered this thread yesterday I would have given them my unqualifed approval.  Tonight I'm not so sure, since I spent most of this morning rewiring a failed suitcase connection. Last year when I relocated a wall in the basement I also installed a new 120v outlet.  Having used suitcase connectors with success on my layout, I decided to employ them in a little house wiring.   After running a length of Romex up to the ceiling box where all of the existing outlets merge, I used the connectors to tie the new lines into an existing pair of lines.  At the time it seemed to be a more elegant solution than peeling the electrical tape off of the existing wire splices and resoldering them.  Well it worked for about a year, but this AM when I went to fire up the PC in the basement, I discovered I had no power!  Odd given the fact that there were no tripped breakers, and every other outlet in the basement was working.  Starting with the outlet itself I traced the dead circuit all the way back to the ceiling box.  Apparently one of the suitcase connections failed.  I ripped them both out, peelled off the tape and soldered the leads onto the old wires. The outlet and the PC is back in operation.   So it appears that you should not employ these devices on heavier guage wires.

stebbycentral wrote:

If I had answered this thread yesterday I would have given them my unqualifed approval.  Tonight I'm not so sure, since I spent most of this morning rewiring a failed suitcase connection. Last year when I relocated a wall in the basement I also installed a new 120v outlet.  Having used suitcase connectors with success on my layout, I decided to employ them in a little house wiring.   After running a length of Romex up to the ceiling box where all of the existing outlets merge, I used the connectors to tie the new lines into an existing pair of lines.  At the time it seemed to be a more elegant solution than peeling the electrical tape off of the existing wire splices and resoldering them.  Well it worked for about a year, but this AM when I went to fire up the PC in the basement, I discovered I had no power!  Odd given the fact that there were no tripped breakers, and every other outlet in the basement was working.  Starting with the outlet itself I traced the dead circuit all the way back to the ceiling box.  Apparently one of the suitcase connections failed.  I ripped them both out, peelled off the tape and soldered the leads onto the old wires. The outlet and the PC is back in operation.   So it appears that you should not employ these devices on heavier guage wires.

I don't believe that either the suitcase connectors or the soldering are code approved for what you are using them for, in 120V wiring.

On the subject of wiring I have a stupid question, I am setting up my wiring this weekend. I am just using the two wires from the zepher right now but going to do wiring since I am runing more trains.

 My questions is when you run the two bus wires, the black and the red what do you do with the ends? I know one end goes into the terminal but the other end? Do you loop it or cap it off or what? This is my first layout and I am no pro. Can some one post a picture of your wiring? I have a 5x9 with two main line ovals with multiple switches. Thanks

GTX765 wrote:

On the subject of wiring I have a stupid question, I am setting up my wiring this weekend. I am just using the two wires from the zepher right now but going to do wiring since I am runing more trains.  My questions is when you run the two bus wires, the black and the red what do you do with the ends? I know one end goes into the terminal but the other end? Do you loop it or cap it off or what? This is my first layout and I am no pro. Can some one post a picture of your wiring? I have a 5x9 with two main line ovals with multiple switches. Thanks

For that size of layout, there's no problem just taping off the ends and tying them up out of the way.