Color Coding Wiring on Your Layout

[Buckeye Riveter]

I'm in the process, albeit rather slow, of rewiring my layout. I am using red and black insulated wire for the track wiring, but was wondering what color schemes you use for your accessories, switches, etc. Some accessories are not just two wires as is the case of the burning switch tower and the hobo water tower.

The rewire for the track is working magnificently, so something was done right for a change. [:)]

[ben10ben]

Being an American Flyer guy in addition to Lionel, I have always tended toward Gilbert's four wire color scheme when possible. American Flyer accesories generally use a flat ribbon four conductor wire with black, green, yellow, and red. Black is always "base", or ground, and yellow is always "fixed" or hot. Red and green handle special controls for the accesory.

For example, on switches, black provides the ground for the entire switch. Yellow lights up the light. Putting hot to red throws the switch in the divergent path, and hot to green puts the switch in the straight through.

[laz 57]

BUCKEYE,
I got 16 gauge stranded wire from the local army navy store. The kind that looks like the lamp cord wire that is on lamps it is all brown in color. 300 feet for $15 bucks. What I did was take a black magic marker and do one side every foot or so with the marker and designated one side the positive and one side the negative. Works great and was probably the best thing I did (rewire the layout) now I have better continuity and seems my trains are running better. The only thing I would have done was to buy the cord in white so the black marker would show up better.
For the accesories I still am running the 18 gauge red and green wires.
laz57

[eZAK]

For switches and acc. I use trailer hook up wire.

It comes in 4 cond., Brn, Grn, Yl, & Wh, 16awg

I picked up a 100' spool for under $20 at Menards home center.

[wrmcclellan]

Buckeye,

I use:

14 AWG
Black for all common
Red for track 1
Orange for track 2
Blue for yard
Yellow for accessories
Orange again for constant voltage to switch bus - short runs so not confusing)

14 AWG
Paired red and black in Gray insulation for control lines to Lionel switches.

I need to clean my wiring up. I started out real neat and then got tired of working upside down.

Regards,
Roy

[brianel027]

I can echo what Roy just said: my wiring started off real neat and must be I too got tired of working upside down.

Sticking to some kind of color code for your wiring is a good idea. But sometimes practicality or budget can get in the way of that goal. Laz's idea of the magic marker is a good one. I've done the same thing with paint pens.

The best idea of all (I think) is to make tags and label somewhere on the wire what it goes to with the voltage. I used self-sticky mailing labels (many I got for free as left overs from long bulk-mailing runs). I fill out the info 2 times on the same label, on the left and then the right. I then fold the tag in half over the wire.

Not as "pretty" or visually uniform as doing color coded wiring, but the labels do the job and help save money like when you need 24 inches of red wire, yet only have 6 inches. Meanwhile on the shelf you have 50 feet of green wire.

[FJ and G]

I use bare 14 ga solid copper wire for the center rail incl. where it goes under the table and white 14 ga solid wire for the outside rails. I place a tag on the white wire that is facing the rear of the layout in case I want to make a control rail device.

[Roger Bielen]

I was lucky and came into a few 1000' spools of various color wire that was/is used for wiring car audio systems, maybe 14GA stranded. In addition to the common red and black for my track feeds I also had a brighter red that I used for accessory power feed, a green for the return, gray, white,brown for I don't remember without my wiring book. I also used small quantities of yellow where accessories had that color to extend to terminal strips. I also found the tape on wire ID letters & numbers extremely helpful.

[Anonymous]

Hello All: A Lot of good Ideas, I like to keep a diary everyday on what I wired to where colours, loads ect. You will be surprised at how quick it comes back to you even after 6 months . Kind Regards Steve

[Big_Boy_4005]

Hi Buck. I have a lot of wire on my layout, and I'm just starting. Do you know the resistor color code? Black, brown, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, gray and white, each represents a number 0-9. Not only do I use colored wires, but I have a full set of electrical tape in all 10 colors that I use for marking. Home Depot sells the 3M tape. very handy stuff.

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by laz 57

BUCKEYE,
I got 16 gauge stranded wire from the local army navy store. The kind that looks like the lamp cord wire that is on lamps it is all brown in color. 300 feet for $15 bucks. What I did was take a black magic marker and do one side every foot or so with the marker and designated one side the positive and one side the negative. Works great and was probably the best thing I did (rewire the layout) now I have better continuity and seems my trains are running better. The only thing I would have done was to buy the cord in white so the black marker would show up better.
For the accesories I still am running the 18 gauge red and green wires.
laz57

Laz, you shouldn't have to mark lamp cord even if it is one color. Every lamp cord that I have ever seen is marked with "ribs" on the jacket of one conductor, while the other is smooth.

[Buckeye Riveter]

QUOTE: Originally posted by laz 57

BUCKEYE,
The only thing I would have done was to buy the cord in white so the black marker would show up better.

And with the thousands of colors available in felt tip makers, this is a great idea. Thanks LAZ and everyone else for their ideas.

[lionelsoni]

I use the color-code system that Elliot described whenever there is any numerical significance to the wires. You can get thermostat cable with 10 conductors in those colors (except for violet, which is pink in mine). It's not heavy enough for powering trains, but it is useful for wiring turnouts and such.

Something else to consider is the telephone-industry convention for labeling colors with single letters. Although black, brown, and blue all begin with B, they use X, Z, and B for those colors, respectively. Green and gray would also be a problem, except that they call them green and slate, G and S. (I suppose I should use P instead of V, for either purple or pink, considering the colors in my cable.)