My never ending search for wire...

[chromesphere]

Hi all,

I seem to have trouble finding the right type of wire...i swear when i find the right stuff im going to be about 10 miles of it...

I ordered some AWG20 chandler wire from Mammoth.  according to my wire strippers, AWG20 is the right size.  The stuff i recieved was too big.  Way too big...Maybe nearly double the size.

Also, im not sure if its a result of the wire being too thick but its very stiff, and as you would know, routing stiff wire around an enclosure is a PITA...It doesnt mould to where you route it.

So what am i after?  The best wire i have had so far was stripped out of some outdoor lights, 12v stuff.  Copper stranded, soft insulation, and...again, according to my wire strippers, AWG20 (i think they might be lying to me).  I'll check when i get home, im sure the strippers say AWG20...

Anyone else using stuff like this?  Where the hell do you buy it from?  I've bought the wrong wire so many times now...

Cheers
Paul

[LucifersTrip]

the problem is that the insulation can be thinner or thicker on different awg20's, making it more or less flexible. though, I use mainly awg26 for pedals.

currently, I've been looking for awg20 solid strand with thin insulation, but I've only found the thicker stuff recently.

[chromesphere]

Even the wire inside seems more plentiful then what i've used in the past...im convinced my wire strippers are lying to me...ill check them tonight.

So it looks like awg 24 / 26 is more like the thickness i should be looking for. 

The chandler stuff wont work for you lucifer.  Its got some pretty thick insulation, and is obviously multi stranded.

Paul

[Pyr0]

I also use 26awg, I find anything bigger can have problems going into pcb holes once tinned.

[chromesphere]

Of course tayda and mammoth dont have 26 awg...where do you guys get your stuff from?  (im in Australia)
I could probably try awg 24 from mammoth if i get stuck i guess.
Cheers
Paul

[davent]

the problem is that the insulation can be thinner or thicker on different awg20's, making it more or less flexible. though, I use mainly awg26 for pedals.

currently, I've been looking for awg20 solid strand with thin insulation, but I've only found the thicker stuff recently.

20awg Teflon insulated will have your thin insulation. You can get solid core 20 by the foot from Apex Jr, not sure about a minimum order.  http://www.apexjr.com/wire.html

Small Bear has a really nice prebonded 24awg, do you really need to go thinner then this, i use 22awg for pretty much everything but tube heaters. Running low on stock. http://www.smallbearelec.com/servlet/Detail?no=85

[chromesphere]

Thanks for the link davent.  Unfortunately im geographically challenged so small bear is pretty much all but off the menu (shipping with SB is expensive).

Ill probably just roll the dice (again) on some mammoth 24awg and throw it on the heap if it doesnt work out.

The other thing that confuses me about AWG, is that im sure i actually ordered some awg24 or maybe even 22, and it was microscopic...my strippers couldnt even strip it...

Anyway, like i said, soon as i find some that works, im going to buy enough to be able to run it around the planet 3 times.

Thanks
Paul

[LucifersTrip]

where do you guys get your stuff from?  (im in Australia)

after over 100 pedals, almost all the wire I use is pulled from other devices. My favorites are the A/B switches since they usually have tons of high quality wire hooked to 15-30 pole switches, all near perfect length in a variety of colors.

In my "normal" boxes, I wire within a 1/4" of what is needed, so I use very little...around 3 feet per box

[LucifersTrip]

currently, I've been looking for awg20 solid strand with thin insulation, but I've only found the thicker stuff recently.

20awg Teflon insulated will have your thin insulation. You can get solid core 20 by the foot from Apex Jr, not sure about a minimum order.  http://www.apexjr.com/wire.html

thanx...i'll keep that link as a possibility

[chromesphere]

Yep, like i said early on, best stuff i've used was from outdoor lighting (low voltage).  Soft insulation, copper stranded, perfect diameter / size...everything since has been rubbish.

I feel like writing a love song about it.

Paul

[Pyr0]

Old computer cables can be a good source, try stripping down some old VGA cables, or better still some of those old centronics parallel port printer cables.

[chromesphere]

I have stripped a VGA cable before, unfortunately the wire was too small in diameter.   It did have some shielded stuff though that was useful.

Edit: I got some decent ribbon cable from USB front panel connectors too actually.

Paul

[chromesphere]

So i decided to destroy a perfectly good usb cable.  It has 28awg / 28awg printed on it.  I think its trying to tell as that its awg is 28...just a guess. 

So thats obviously too small.  Im narrowing this down slowly.  Somewhere between 22-26 is the spot im looking for.  Id say 22 is to still big, and probably, 26 is still too small.  So 24awg is hopefully about right (for me).

Now all i need is 1) copper stranded and 2) soft insulation.

Wire is such a personal thing isnt?

Paul

[rutabaga bob]

I've used all sorts of stuff...24 gauge teflon-insulated, 22 gauge from old computer power supplies...the thinner stuff always seems so fragile.  I've had it break off, and then go through the hassle of unsoldering and resoldering.  A nice way I've run across to get wire is buying some lengths of 22 gauge eight-conductor cable...it's grey sheathed, but the individual wires are all regularly insulated, and in different colors.  If you buy 5 or 6 feet of it, you get 40 or 48 feet of wire.

[amptramp]

I have used 30-gauge wire-wrap wire.  Single strand, Kynar insulation and low coupling capacitance to ground or other wires.  Available in different colours and dirt cheap.  Solders easily and you can put more than one wire in a hole.

[chromesphere]

I've used all sorts of stuff...24 gauge teflon-insulated, 22 gauge from old computer power supplies...the thinner stuff always seems so fragile.  I've had it break off, and then go through the hassle of unsoldering and resoldering.  A nice way I've run across to get wire is buying some lengths of 22 gauge eight-conductor cable...it's grey sheathed, but the individual wires are all regularly insulated, and in different colors.  If you buy 5 or 6 feet of it, you get 40 or 48 feet of wire.

I have done this with some wire ive bought from the local electronics shop.  It was descent, but like you said, you get a heap of it per meter.  I think it was 4 core alarm system cable.  Could have been this one...it was quite a while ago:

http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=WB1590

Of course it doesnt say the awg.  I think by the strand size it would be sitting, roughly around awg25ish...

Paul

[armdnrdy]

Yeah, I get my hook up wire from a local electronics store as well. I buy 12 pair, 24awg stranded that they sell by the foot. This allows me to have 24 different colored wires instead of buying multiple spools at $4+ a piece. It makes sense and saves $$$$$.

[Eric.nail]

I ordered wire from PedalPartsPlus a few times. 24 gauge 7 strand wire. Thinner insulation than mammoth but one hell of a lot easier to deal with. It's not too stiff and is very manageable. I wired my 7 channel looper with it with fantastic results!

[Beo]

Another vote for the teflon wire at ApexJr. It's tricky to order from them, but worth it.
This wire and a Patco PTS-30 (can be found on ebay for reasonable price) is a solder-junky's dream.

[greaser_au]

Paul,
you have a few options down under...    it depends exactly what in particular you want to achieve, cost? voltage rating? insulation type?...

OH O'Briens have nearly everything wire & insulation related (mostly in 100m rolls, though...) :  http://www.oba-ic.com.au/  I found these guys are excellent to deal with (I was looking for spaghetti sleeving & high voltage wire).

RS have some surprising bargains in wire,  look for rolls of equipment wire in 7/0.2 mm (24AWG = 0.22mm^2)  and 16/0.2mm (22AWG = 0.5mm^2)  - I prefer mine tin plated, but plain copper is a bit cheaper.

I stripped a 2m stranded cat5e patch lead & got 8 2m lengths of 7/0.2mm wire (with a bit of a twist in it!) . a 100m roll of this stuff is about AUD$80 off ebay (careful - stranded is unusual in this application). It turns out you can't easily buy it from wholesalers here as installing fixed comms cable without a license in Australia is illegal...  (note: 7/0.2  is 7 strands of 0.2mm wire!)

david