Wire suppliers

[Slippyblade]

So, where do you guys buy your wire?

It seems like such a simple thing, but I'm blown away by how expensive wire is.  I'm using solid core in my builds just cause it is cheaper than the stranded.  That means it doesn't crimp worth a damn, is brittle, and routing it is a pain.  It just drives me bonkers seeing 25' spools of 20g stranded for $5-7.  End up spending more on wire than the electronics!

[harveybirdman]

I've had decent luck with eBay.

[yotsuya]

I've bought this with and have been happy with it:

http://www.amazon.com/Electronix-Express-Hook-Stranded-Gauge/dp/B00B4ZQ3L0/ref=sr_1_1/179-7740755-9523461?ie=UTF8&qid=1440710443&sr=8-1&keywords=wire+spool

[JDFan]

I look for clearance product for example this 10 foot Cat 5e cable for $0.99 shipped (unfortunately they limit you to 2 every 10 days) but for the $1 you get 8 - 10 foot 24Ga wires bundled into a single cable !! - though it is solid core also.

EDIT : They got tricky and added a $3.99 shipping fee that wasn't there when I ordered !!

Another example 50 foot shipped from Los Angelos for $3.25

http://www.ebay.com/itm/50FT-50-FT-RJ45-CAT5-CAT5E-Ethernet-LAN-Network-Cable-Blue-Brand-New-15M-/301183250927?hash=item461febb1ef

[Nephasth]

Empire Wire & Supply

I've gotten 1000' spools of 22g for about $35 shipped.

[Navyplanets]

I bought 2 25ft rolls of 16g wire the other day at Princess Auto. Add in a few extra connectors and it came up around 15 bucks.

[Green Giant]

I just ordered 100ft of 16Ga speaker wire for $11.  Was planning on using it to power some LEDs, run pushbutton cables for random stuff, and whatever modifications I need to make basically.  I figured it is stranded, 2 pair cable, for cheap that is multipurpose.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0044YPN0A?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

[n3wt0n]

I am lucky to have a small independent electronics store near me. They were very helpful when selecting connectors,wire as well as molex crimpers and such. I know I paid a few more dollars and was limited to the selection that they carried but it was advantageous to see what I was buying for my first build.  Otherwise, I was looking at getting stuff from mouser/ebay/amazon.

[michelevit]

ebay is your friend for online wire purchases. i just stocked up on an assortment pack of colored wires for very little.

in the bay area (CA) there are a couple of electronic warehouses that sell surplus wire by the foot.

if you're in a budget stay away from radio shack type stores.

[SavannahLion]

ebay is your friend for online wire purchases. i just stocked up on an assortment pack of colored wires for very little.

in the bay area (CA) there are a couple of electronic warehouses that sell surplus wire by the foot.

if you're in a budget stay away from radio shack type stores.

This.... though I live in Sacramento and it's very dry around here. I did manage to hook a spool of CAT5e for cheap during a Frys sale. I don't care to use it in my bigger cabs though.

Jacket type is a big deal to me. I really like the older lead laced jackets because they remain supple when the temperature drops. The newer lead free crap tends to turn rock hard in the cold. There are similar supple substitutes but they're not cheap. You get what you pay for.

[sleong]

Just wondering if CAT5e wire is too thin to connect the joysticks and or push buttons ?

Steve

[vwalbridge]

Just wondering if CAT5e wire is too thin to connect the joysticks and or push buttons ?

Steve

Definitely not too thin. I've used Cat5 before on both buttons and joystick. Works fine.

[harveybirdman]

Empire Wire & Supply

I've gotten 1000' spools of 22g for about $35 shipped.

and it's ALL black!

[yotsuya]

My homie Neph and I disagree on this. He likes solid-colored wire (well, black), whereas I can appreciate the utility and usefulness of color-coding. It's all good, though. Neph taught me a lot about rolling my own, and I am forever grateful. 

[SavannahLion]

Just wondering if CAT5e wire is too thin to connect the joysticks and or push buttons ?

Steve

Definitely not too thin. I've used Cat5 before on both buttons and joystick. Works fine.

Yeah, it's definitely doable though not my goto wiring.

You have to remember that for switches, you just need a signal so just about any reasonable gauge of conducting wire will work. I've played a bit with the 0.01mm wire and it works fine. Though I most certainly would not recommend it for an arcade cabinet.

If the wire is so thick that you can beat your spouse with it without it bending out of shape, it's probably too thick. Alternatively, if it's so thin that you can't even tell if it's on the spool without a microscope,then it's too thin.

[Slippyblade]

Neph taught me a lot about rolling my own, and I am forever grateful. 

You roll your own?  Cool.

[BadMouth]

I usually use ebay.  I've bought from this seller the last few times, but it doesn't look like they have bulk deals or all colors anymore:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/One-25ft-Roll-Electrical-Wire-22g-Stranded-Core-22awg-/121730128078?var=&hash=item1c57ae58ce

This is what I'd get it ordering today:
six 100ft rolls of 18 gauge in your choice of colors $25
http://www.ebay.com/itm/6-Rolls-100-Feet-18-GA-Gauge-AWG-Primary-Remote-Wire-Auto-Power-Cable-Stranded-/151393402877?hash=item233fbffffd

I've actually come to appreciate the smaller gauge wire.  It's easier to manage and organize.  In some cases the bulk of wire in tight spaces has caused problems getting things back together.

[Nephasth]

My homie Neph and I disagree on this. He likes solid-colored wire (well, black), whereas I can appreciate the utility and usefulness of color-coding. It's all good, though. Neph taught me a lot about rolling my own, and I am forever grateful. 

 

If the wire is so thick that you can beat your spouse with it without it bending out of shape, it's probably too thick.

There is nothing funny about spousal abuse...

[clok]

I look for clearance product for example this 10 foot Cat 5e cable for $0.99 shipped (unfortunately they limit you to 2 every 10 days) but for the $1 you get 8 - 10 foot 24Ga wires bundled into a single cable !! - though it is solid core also.

EDIT : They got tricky and added a $3.99 shipping fee that wasn't there when I ordered !!

Another example 50 foot shipped from Los Angelos for $3.25

http://www.ebay.com/itm/50FT-50-FT-RJ45-CAT5-CAT5E-Ethernet-LAN-Network-Cable-Blue-Brand-New-15M-/301183250927?hash=item461febb1ef

this^^^^^
I have used old phone cable or CAT 5, its super cheap, its cheap enough you can run 1 for 6 buttons, and 1 for a joystick (not using all the wires) but its nice to have it all tidy with 8 wires in a single cord. I end up with 5 cat cables, 3-4 feet long.. so one 15 -20 foot cat cable will do it all. Ebay $5 shipped.

[SavannahLion]

If the wire is so thick that you can beat your spouse with it without it bending out of shape, it's probably too thick.

There is nothing funny about spousal abuse...

S&M dude... S&M

[DaOld Man]

I have found stripping multi-conductor cables a good resource for wire. They are stranded (which I prefer for flexibility), and they are color coded, or sometimes numbered.
One source is old printer cables (the db25 pin cables).
It can be a pain in the asbestos to strip the outer jacket sometimes, but the prize inside is worth it.
I have also bought spools of wire off the net and even Radio Shack, however Radio Shank tends to be grossly over priced, but it works when Im in a pinch and a hurry, since I have a store locally.

[yotsuya]

Enh, I did the Cat5 thing once. Once. Never again.

Whoever suggested raiding a cheap JAMMA harness for the wire is a hero in my book.

[vwalbridge]

Enh, I did the Cat5 thing once. Once. Never again.

Whoever suggested raiding a cheap JAMMA harness for the wire is a hero in my book.

Speaking of "raiding"...I've ripped the wire harness from a broken desktop power supply and it works in a pinch.

And yes, while Cat5 technically works, I certainly wouldn't use it on a full-scale build. Crimping terminals on the wires isn't worth the hassle.

[Nephasth]

Crimping terminals on the wires isn't worth the hassle.

Disagree. Unless you're specifically talking CAT5. Using CAT5 is a short cut. And if anything is worth doing, it's worth doing right. So CAT5 is out always, unless you're running network cable.

[yotsuya]

Crimping terminals on the wires isn't worth the hassle.

Disagree. Unless you're specifically talking CAT5. Using CAT5 is a short cut. And if anything is worth doing, it's worth doing right. So CAT5 is out always, unless you're running network cable.

He's agreeing with us, bro.

[vwalbridge]

Crimping terminals on the wires isn't worth the hassle.

Disagree. Unless you're specifically talking CAT5. Using CAT5 is a short cut. And if anything is worth doing, it's worth doing right. So CAT5 is out always, unless you're running network cable.

He's agreeing with us, bro.

Yes, I agree with you both. Good wire is cheap so do it the right way.

[sleong]

Then what is a good guage of wire to use for buttons and joysticks?

[BadMouth]

I like 22 gauge.  I strip twice as much as necessary off the end and fold it back on itself before crimping.

I come from a car electronics background, so it took a while to get out of a bigger is better mindset.  With an encoder, you're dealing with such a small current that it would be difficult to use too small of wire.

That said, if the best deal is on 18 gauge, I'm using 18 gauge.

[eds1275]

I use 22 gauge and solder everything

[sleong]

With so many replies and range from cat5 to 18 - 22 gauge wire would 20awg wire be the average guage for wire? I have two wholesalers i have contacts with and can get any guage needed at good deals.

[Slippyblade]

20g stranded would be good.  What kind of deals are we talking about?

[JDFan]

With so many replies and range from cat5 to 18 - 22 gauge wire would 20awg wire be the average guage for wire? I have two wholesalers i have contacts with and can get any guage needed at good deals.

figure 18 ga is 0.0403" - 20ga is 0.0320" - 22ga is 0.0253" and 24ga is 0.0201" thickness so not really that much difference in thickness which is why the variance in usage mainly you just need it thick enough to be able to get a quick disconnect onto it ( Soldering to the disconnect is better if using 24ga cat5 cable or any other gauge that is solid core)  and not so thick that routing the wiring and/or the wire itself becomes harder.

But yeah a 20gauge stranded core wire would be fine as it is thick enough to provide a good connection and takes to crimping well and not so thick that running the wires becomes cluttered.

Here's a scale guide (though the forum seems to upsize it so click the view image to see to scale !) that shows the various gauges ( as you can see the 18-24 gauges are fairly similar and since not much power is being transmitted any of them works fine for button wiring)

[JDFan]

Deleted Double Post !!