I have a question about which one of these is the correct wire?

[Anonymous]

Hi

My LHS sells these wires.I was wondering which is the correct type for wireing my power pack to the track.I have very little experience and i was hoping that someone would know which one to use.

14 GUAGE WIRE PINK 12FT

SILICONE INSULATED WIRE

14 GUAGE WIRE VIOLET 12FT

PARMA 14G SILICONE WIRE 2FT

12 GUAGE WIRE RED & BLACK 12" EACH

RED & BLACK 16 GA WIRE



Many thanks and i really really hope somebody knows which one to use!

Many many thanks to you from pavariangoo!
[8D]

[Anonymous]

pavariangoo, You'll likely save all kinds of money, if you don't buy these items at your hobby shop! Go to your local hardware store and shop their prices. To make a determination of what gauge wire you need, you need to state what type of control system your going to use, DC or DCC also how long of run the wire will need to be.

Your best bet would be to purchase a book on wiring your layout.

[cwclark]

any 14 gauge wire is plenty to wire a layout with...in fact...18 or 16 is plenty...the bigger the layout the bigger the wire size you'll need so that you don't encounter a resistance drop from wire that is too small...instead of purchasing it from the LHS you can get better deals elsewhere...I use the wire from radio shack that is 18 gauge..it is supplied in 80 or 100 feet spools and runs about $5.99 a spool...if you go to Lowe's or Home depot, they sell a 14 and 16 gauge speaker wire by the foot..to me, it's too big, but it will work if you are trying to keep the price of the wire to a minimal amount....one other hint...use the solid wire for the track ..it's a lot easier to work with than the stranded wire...it bends where you want it to bend...the stranded wire usually gets a stray strand out to the side and can cause problems if it breaks off or strays above the rail...use the stranded wire for everything else but the track...Chuck

[Anonymous]

I disagree with Chuck's last statement ; "use the stranded wire for everything else". Solid wire is easy to work with and excellent for this intended use. Stranded wire is designed for applications where the wire needs to be flexable or is subject to vibration. If you prefer stranded over solid, by all means have at 'er! Otherwise, look at the intended use of the wire and use the properties specific to the type, where that specific need should be a factor..

[Anonymous]

I dont mean to "strand" anyone here but solid wire is good on the track for feeders right? Stranded is ok for swithces, signals and such right??

[retsignalmtr]

stranded or solid? it's a matter of preference. i prefer stranded but i do have some solid wire on my layout when i ran out of stranded and 4 different radio shack stores had none. don't buy your wire at the hobby shop. i dont know if the wire sizes are the same where you are but 14 gauge is good for a power buss with 20 gauge wire from there to the rails. 14 gauge wire is the same used as residential wiring and can be bought in small amounts at building supply centers. auto supply stores are another source for the thin wire. it comes on rolls in more colors too. if you have an electrical contractor in your area you might be able to get some of the scraps left over from some of his jobs. also suitcase connectors make it easy to connect the rail feeders to the buss without having to strip and solder under your layout.

[dehusman]

If you are using a "power pack" I will assume your layout is fairly small (4x8 or so). In that case you don't need 14 ga wire (that's light house wiring).

18-20 ga wire is plenty heavy. A hardware store or home improvement store is a good place to get wire cheaper. A handy thing is 2 conductor "bell wire". Usually about 18 ga solid copper. Perfect for most short run applications.

For longer runs 15-20 ft I have used 16 ga lamp cord or zip cord. Also available from hardware stores. Its stranded so its not that good for feeders to the track, but its great for runs from the control panel to blocks on the layout (then use 18 ga to 24 ga to the track).

Now if you are running 100 ft of DCC main buss line, you will definately need a heavier wire (12-14 ga) but I think you are probably in the shorter run category.

Dave H.

[cwclark]

QUOTE: Originally posted by DeSchane

I disagree with Chuck's last statement ; "use the stranded wire for everything else".

let me re-phrase that...I use the stranded wire (22 gauge) when i need a flexible wire such as in an Athearn locomotive...Athearn has a steel bar that runs the entire length to the pick up wheels and I always remove it and replace it with 22 gauge stranded wire ....the stranded wire is flexible so that it won't bind the trucks in a curve like solid wire would...if i use stranded wire anywhere else, i'll tin it with a soldering iron so that there will be no stray strands...i mainly use solid wire exclusively for the track because i can bend it into an "L" shape with needle nosed pliers and after positioning it, the "L" shape will hold itself against the rail while i solder it to the track....stranded wire can't do that unless it is tinned first...since the wire is pulled from a toggle switch, then throughout the layout and then to the track, tinning is not economical because i'd have to cut the wire longer than necessary to be able to tin it and then shove the excess back through the hole.... using solid wire makes it more economical and easier for using it on the track because once it's pulled, i'll cut it, strip it, bend it, and solder it to the rail without the fear of strands coming loose or breaking off near or on the track...Chuck

[jrbernier]

Layout Wiring for basic DC - Go to Home Depot and by spools of #18 stranded wire, both black and red. Use this wire to run from your cab control/power packs to the actual drop for the block wiring. I bought some small 2 position solder tabs and run the wire from the block control switch to that, then I use #22 wire to actually do the feeder to the rail - Makes a nice clean looking connection!
Now with DCC, I use #14 wire(Home Depot again) and run my 'bus' around the layout. I still block the track with gaps so I can troubleshoot easier(and I have the layout devided in 4 'power districts'). I use 3M Scotch brand insulation displacement connectors to attach the drop feeders to the rails now rather than the old solder tabs. The reason one wants to use the heavier wiring with DCC is that ALL of your layout track power is running through that bus, rather than the power from a single cab to a single block. That said, I have seen a lot of small(4 by 8) layouts just run #18 gauge wire from the DCC system to the tracks. On a larger layout(my DCC bus extends over 50 ft), the larger gauge wire really is needed.

Jim Bernier

[Anonymous]

Why are you guys recommending to Mr pavariangoo he use stranded wire? Tell me how the attributes of stranded conductor wire out weight the attributes of solid conductor wire as a wire run for block wiring in DC or as the DCC buss?

[rrinker]

Try pulling #12 wire around your layout for a DCC bus. Try it with stranded #12, and try it with solid #12 and THEN tell me you still think solid is better.

I'm with Chuck, I use solid for the track feeders because it's a lot easier to work with in that case, but internal loco wiring for decoders is stranded, as is my big heavy main power bus. If it needs to or is going to flex - stranded is the ONLY choice. Solid wire when repeatedly flexed WILL break, and many times it's not even visible outside the insulation.
For example, I am using Tony's electronic circuit breakers to divide my layout into power districts. At the termination of the wiring, I am mounting the ECB and terminal strips to a panel that is hinged to the underside of the layout. That way, I can fold it down and work on it right in front of me from a seated position. Trying to work upside down is a literal pain in the neck. Since the layout is under construction, I can see where I will have to open and close that panel many times. If I used solid #12 wire for my bus, all that flexing would likely break a wire, or at the least make it VERY difficult to swing the panel.

--Randy

[Anonymous]

pavariangoo, Buy some of each type, solid conductor and stranded. Work with both and decide which YOU like best. Remember there will be applications where one may have an advantage over the other and other applications where either will suffice. Make up your own mind and I still recommend buying a book to read about the topic.

[Anonymous]

Deschane's advice is right about getting a book and reading about the topic.

You sound like you're in a place with your first layout where you could use an Atlas wiring manual, and maybe some track catalogs from Atlas, Kato, or Peco, and maybe a scenery manual from Woodland Scenics. Before I bought a single piece of hardware for my first layout, I had a whole stack of model railroad "how-to" books and magazines. Some of them I used, some of them I didn't. But I had the resources if I needed them.

Can you get them in Australia?

mike

[howmus]

QUOTE: Originally posted by retsignalmtr

stranded or solid? it's a matter of preference.

I'm with retsignalmtr. It is really a matter of preference not right or wrong. I tend to use what I have. In that light I am using #12 black and white for my main buss for DCC. Why? Thats what I had. Took it out of a romex cable. Some have said in other threads, "never use black and white for your main buss, some one could mistakenly connect it to the house wiring...." Since I am the only one who does any of the wiring and I removed the wire from the romex casing, I doubt there will ever be a problem. Actually it would have been much easier to use #14 stranded primary wire for the buss. I would have had to buy that so I used the black and white solid #12. For the sub busses, I am using #16 stranded. The track feeds will be a mixture of #18, #20, and #22 solid and stranded as that is what I used for DC years ago and there is no reason to resolder all the feeds to the track. Feeds that I am adding will be #18 solid for the reasons listed in other responses. The main thing is to make sure that you are systematic in color coding and make good solid connections with what ever wire you use. Have fun with your trains. [:D]

[Don Gibson]

QUOTE: Originally posted by pavariangoo
My LHS sells these wires.I was wondering which is the correct type for wireing my power pack to the track.I have very little experience...
14 GUAGE WIRE PINK 12FT
SILICONE INSULATED WIRE
14 GUAGE WIRE VIOLET 12FT
PARMA 14G SILICONE WIRE 2FT
12 GUAGE WIRE RED & BLACK 12" EACH
RED & BLACK 16 GA WIRE

MY ANSWER is none of the above.

I cannot imagine anyone using 12 or 14 guage wire for this application].

MR. Pavariangoo:

HOOK UP wire (switches, terminals, etc,) 18 - 20 guage is desirable.
1. It's geneally short runs with little resistance 2. flexing connections should be stranded - such as to your power pack. Balance can be solid..

BUSS WIRE such as for DCC - 12 - 14 guage is recommended for lower resistance (longer runs} and carrying low amplitude DCC signals.Are you DCC?

FEEDER WIRES (track to buss) can be 20 -24 guage.This is a multi-wire distribition system.


I SUGGEST A Hardware or Electrical supply house for any long runs, but your power pack can get by two short stranded 18 guage wires. If you have a small DC layout you can do everything with 20 guage wire.

[CP5415]

You could also check out your local automotive parts store!!

I work in the field & have bought all my wire this way.
They come in as little as 10' rolls & as long as 100' rolls of 10-22 guage wire.

Gordon

[Anonymous]

Mr. Pavariangoo:

From what I've seen and read on your other posts, I believe you are building a layout in N scale that is about 3 ft. by 5 ft. The hookup wire for this size layout does not need to be anything larger than 18 ga. due to the fact that it isn't carrying power very far. Larger conductors work better for longer runs because there is less voltage drop along the run when using the larger wire. As has been suggested, go to one of your local hardware stores and ask about their wire selection. Check the wire out for yourself. If the stranded looks easy enough for you to work with, get a little bit and try it out for your application. If you don't like the idea of using stranded wire, get some solid wire and try that out. Again, for the size of your layout, you should not need any more than 18A.