28 gauge wire and RJ45 Keystones

[Aberran]

Got a lot of 28 gauge wire and plan to run it into some rj45 keystone jacks in an area with limited space.  I thought the smaller wire might suit the limited space well and the fact is I got a lot more of it than almost any other size.  I could use 24 gauge since that is standard for Cat5 but would rather use that for the actual patch cords.  I have read that these jacks either accept 22 to about 26 and other places will say 28. I was wondering if this is done just in case 28 is too small and they are being cautious or if I could expect any troubles using a little 28 AWG copper wire.  Also it might be useful to know that the jacks I bought where from a dealer who was not sure one way or another what it will accept.

I almost feel silly posting this since one day I most likely will try for myself a sacrificial jack just to see how well it works and if it does just keep that one as it is.

Still the same if anyone has any knowledge pertaining to my concern please share.

Thank you,

Aberran

[bkenobi]

Those keystone jacks have a set of blades that you press the wire into.  If the wire is too thin for the blades, there may not be guaranteed contact (the blade may cut the insulation, but not cut down to the wire.  If the keystone says it's good for a set of wire gages, then I would guess that would be the region you want to stick within.  If you want to know whether it will work outside of that bound, I suggest you try installing a few wire into the keystone, pull them out, then inspect to see what the connection looked like.  If there is always sufficient contact in your combination of keystone and wire, you will probably be good to go.

[mgb]

I would stick with the 24gauge so that it bites propely.