Being a little new at the hoby I am wondering if 14 or 18 gauge wire wolud be acceptable to use on a N-scale layout I am starting to build. I have the book N Scale Modle Railroading, Getting Started in the Hobby, but it doesn’t really give me the gauge wire to use. Are either ok or is one acceptable over the other. I would appreciate any guidance someone could give me in this issue. Thanks.
14 guage is good enough. You could use 18 gauge without any problem as well.
A lot would depend on the length of the wire run (from power pack to track). A long run (20 feet or longer) would be best done with 14 AWG wire. The larger diameter conductor (metal part of the wire) will reduce the amount of voltage drop over the length of the wire. In wire gauge, the higher the number, the smaller the conductor diameter.
14 gauge for outdoor low voltge lights is fairly cheap. Good to use for your main bus. I’d use 22 gauge wire (12" pieces) to connect the track to the bus. If you solder the track joiners you could connect your track taps every 5 feet or so. If you don’t solder the joiners you should connect a tap onto every section of flex track.
Mark in Utah
Generally, use the heaviest wire you can where ever you can. Twelve or 14 gauge is easy to find.
For the final connection to the track, use wire like 18 gauge, or lighter, but one that you can easy form and solder. But only for a couple of feet, or less.
The idea is to limit the power loss in the wiring, so that you deliver as much power to the track as possible. You should feet the track at regular intervals to minimize the effect of the track’s resistance too.
Thank you for your advice and suggestion. Being a novice and a rookie at this I am still a little confused about terminology like “bus” and how exactly that works. My layout that I am going to start constructing in in N-scale called the Carolina Central. I am a teacher and I am going to have it in my classroom. The layout is actually done on a door which only measures 28" wide and approx. 80’ or 6 feet long so it really isn’t that big of a layout. Thanks again and I would appreciate any other ideas, advice, suggestions.
A buss (the electrical type is spelled with two “s’s”) is simply a heavier gauge conductor used to take electricity a longer distance with less loss of voltage as compared to a lighter gauge conductor. The actual feed to the rail, also called “drops,” are a smaller gauge as stated above for ease of connection between the buss and rail. Copper wire has a slight resistance to it which adds up with the length of the piece. Using too small of a wire for the current (amps) being drawn through it will also contribute to this loss of voltage.
As a follow-up to my email about wiring is there some trype of plastic connectors that can be used to connect a “buss” wire to the feeders that go to the track? Is there a plastic connector that a guy can just lay the wire together and crip them together that allows that wires to make an electrical connection. I understand that soldering is another possibility but I am new at that also, so was just thinking maybe there was a plastic connector of some kind. If there is, where can connectors like this be purchased?
One thing you can use is a standard wire nut that is used in electrical wiring. Also, there is a thing called a ‘suitcase’ connector. Like this: http://multimedia.mmm.com/mws/mediawebserver.dyn?6666660Zjcf6lVs6EVs666e1wCOrrrrQ-
Tom, with respect, this is not correct. The term is bus, and only takes a second “s” when it is pluralized. I know many people type it as buss, but they are wrong, just as those who say they “seen” it are wrong.
A “buss” is a slang expression for a quick and energetic kiss of the type a teenager gives his Mom when he dashes off to school in the morning.
I think this may have been perpetuated by a brand name of fuses. I looked for a definition, and it did say it was an alternative spelling, but I think it is a case of the wrong becoming accepted, rather than it actually being correct.
I like the idea of using the suitcase connectors. I never thought about those. I am anticiapating using 14 gauge AWG for the buss and then using those terminal joiners to connect as feeder to the buss. Is there a particular size of suitcase connector I need to look for?
The size of the wire depends entirely on what is being powered by it. Each gauge of wire will handle “x” number of amps. Go to your local Lowes or Home Depot and pickup a good “How to wiring manual” or better yet go to your local railroad hobby store and get a book on the basics of wiring your layout. You really need to understand the basics of amperage draw and voltage before you can determine correct wire size.
As for connectors, I have spent a majority of my life as an electrician, and have seveal year experience both wiring ambulances (you would not believe how many miles of wire are inside one) and working for a company that built customized computerized robotic machines for manufacturing companies. (One control panel for one robot had enough wire and connections inside it for me to work one solid 40 hour week just to make the connections inside of the control box.) If you do not want to solder every connection, the best way to attach one wire to another is by “crimping” a connector on them. You can "crimp on terminal connectors that have slotted prongs on one end that are intended to slip under a screw on a terminal block (or an “eye” for a screw on the terminal block to go through), and the other end slips on the end of the wire, after you trim the insulation back. You use a crimping tool to squeeze the connector down on the wire. If done properly the connection will be permanent and you will not have any problems with conductivity.
Again, go to your local Lowes of Home Depot and look in the electrical supply section and look for both crimping tools and connectors.
DO NOT settle for the cheap combination wire strippers/crimping tool. They do not have enough crimping power to do an adequate job. Pay a little extra and get a good heavy duty crimping tool and buy a separate stripping tool. Again there are all kinds, sizes, and qualities out there. Quality is more important than price on this very important part of your layout.
The one I referenced above (Scotchlok 905) takes a 14-18 gauge through wire and taps off a 18-22 gauge.