wire size???

[gamenut]

I'm expecting my buttons any day now, And was wondering what gauge of wire to get.
I'm pretty sure i'm going to go with a solid core.
I've looked through a bunch of project posts but have yet to find someone mentioning gauge.

Thanks

[AlanS17]

I would recommend against going with solid core. It has the potential to bend and snap within its sheath. It also doesn't bundle together well. If niether of these are a concern for you, though, go for it.

[gamenut]

Does it really get enough movement in the CP to break?

[Dervacumen]

I used 22 ga. on all of my buttons, joysticks, trackball and spinner.  I used 18 and 20 ga. for the lights on my coin door (Since I didn't have enough of either.  Either will work well)

The reason I liked 22 ga is it allowed me to easily insert two wires into one quick disconnect.  The other wire sizes I had didn't fit well.

Keep in mind that the wire size is independent of the final diameter once you take into account the insulation.  For instance, my 22ga ground wire loops are much thinner than the 22ga wire I used for the other connections.

I used stranded wire becuase I can get it really cheap - lke 4 cents per foot or something.

[gamenut]

Sweet! Thanks for the info.
I think the only reason i was going to use soild was for the ease of keeping the wiring "clean" during setup.
I could bend it in the path i wanted and it would stay there

[kelemvor]

I just use LAN (Cat 5) cable.  Worked great and I had a ton of it laying around.  Pretty sure it was Solid core and not stranded because straned probably wouldn't work as well in quick connects.  As is I had to double the wire over before putting it in the connectors.

[AlanS17]

Stranded is actually easier to manipulate (IMO).

A lot of people use multi-core wire like cat5 for it's cleanliness. I've never personally tried it so I couldn't say one way or another.

[releasedtruth]

I used both and it worked out, but if I had to do it again I'd go stranded. The solid core bell wire I used is good, but it is pretty stiff and could break, yes.

GT

[ChadTower]

I think the breakage worry is a bit overrated.  Once it is in place, and tested to work, it barely ever moves at all. 

[eccs19]

I think the breakage worry is a bit overrated.  Once it is in place, and tested to work, it barely ever moves at all. 

I would agree. The only place that you may want to consider the stranded wire may be from control panel to your I-pac, or whatever your using, as it's more likely you'll remove your control panel more than anything, so those wires from CP to the machine will most likely get moved around the most.

[ChadTower]

If you're going to remove them even once it would be worth the effort of a mated set of adapters.

[RandyT]

Wire size:  I like 20 - 22 ga  for panels.  Any bigger is probably overkill.

Stranded or Solid?

I have seen this debated so many times.  The truth is that it really doesn't matter, unless you keep the machine in your RV and travel a lot.  Solid core wire has been around a long time and if it was that prone to breakage, you wouldn't see it that much.  As others have said, once it is in place, it's not going to be moved much, if at all, and that means no worries about breakage.

All of your house electrical wiring is solid core, as are most likely your network and telephone cables.  Solid core has advantages in that you don't need to worry about short circuits when stuffing it into screw terminals and PCB holes for soldering, it seems to strip easier, it's more likely to stay where you bend it without  as many mechanical supports, and so on.

There is one big disadvantage to solid core, however, and that is that most people prefer to use crimped connections to their controls.  Crimp terminals aren't the best choice for solid core, as they can loosen and fail far easier than with the appropriate stranded wire.

Also, there is a cross out there of both types.  I bought a bunch of it recently and it's pretty decent stuff.  It's stranded wire with a tin overcoat.  This gives it desirable properties of both types of wire and most importantly, it takes a crimp well.  If you are unsure which type to use and you can find it, this type seems to be a good compromise.

RandyT

[gamenut]

Thanks for the reply randy!
You always seem to give non-objective input.
My plan was/is to solder the ends onto the solid wire. I'm not afriad of soldering, i do it a couple times a week at work.
BUT, i wanted the ability to disconnect if i needed to for some reason.
I can't find 20 gauge wire here localy. so i went with 18.
should do fine as long as i don't have to daisy chain. But if i do, I can just solder the "extra" wire together
I just got my Keywiz and LEDWiz in the mail(thanks for such fast shipping) and i think the 18's will do fine.

Gamenut