Tapping into Power line

[Chris77504]

Designing a new train table for my son and I would like to know can I run the power and common ground all the way around the bottom of the train table and into the transformer then tap into those lines with quick splices and wire the quick splices to the lockons connected to the track with no issues. 

[LILarry]

Hi

Yes you can and it is one of the best ways to power up

Great for eliminating slow spots too

Be sure to use heavy wire for your

main line [12 or 14 gauge]

                                              Larry

[Chris77504]

can i use 18 gauge to come off of the main (14 gauge power line) then to the lockons, switches and accessories then?

[LILarry]

Hi Chris

Yes you can

Thats what i use

                                       Larry

[Chris77504]

thank you, you have been most helpful.

[Chris77504]

one more question.  Can the ground wire from the transformer be 16 gauge instead of 14?  I will be running a common ground all the way around as well to attach to the lockons.  I beleive one wire is hot and one is ground.  I beleive it can be 16 since it is just a ground.

[Chris77504]

i found some 14 gauge black.  i'll just run that.  I'm suspecting it will be ok just to drill holes in the wood and run it through there.  I dont' think I need to use conduit correct?

[phillyreading]

Conduit would be a waist of money for use with model railroads. If for regular house wiring, it would be best to use,PVC style or wiremold, conduit for added-on wiring.

If you use 14 AWG wire for the positive, I would also use 14 AWG for the negative or common. From my experiance in wiring, wire nuts work very good and soldering is best for electrical connections.

Ground is a term that gets mixed up very frequently and is not the same as a common or return wire. The word ground actually means to be attached to the earth(example; an 8 foot long copper rod or mat buried at least one foot, horizontally, under ground) then run to the electric service. So basically we don't use a ground wire in model railroading with electric.

Lee F.

[Chris77504]

makes sense.  What about then when I trace the wires, should one end be connected to the transformer or should I just solder them together to make one whole loop and use quick splices to splice into the wire and run that wire to the transformer?

[phillyreading]

You can run 14 AWG wire from each lockon to the other lockon and just splice near the lockons, under the table and run a wire up a hole that is drilled, with a 16 or 18 AWG wire up to the lockon. Stranded wire works very well but is a little more per foot than solid wire. I personally prefer wire nuts, as conveniant tap splicers have come apart on me almost every time I use them.

Don't run a seperate wire or set of wires to each lockon or run a return set of wires to the transformer, as that is a waist of wire. One set of wires out from the transformer should handle all your wiring needs, just tap or splice into the wires as needed.

Lee F.