RRaddict2 posted:Getting ready to rewire my layout. I used 22 AWG wire last time but it seemed a little thin. Does anyone know if 20 or 22 AWG would be recommended?
this sends me back to when i was a kid. my dad took over the dining room from Thanksgiving through New Years and wired us up a fairly good size L-shaped layout with a tubular track mainline & 3-4 sidings and a loop of Super-O for the new Santa Fe Diesel. he never used anything but doubled-up solid phone wire to a number of Lock-On connectors. pretty sure that was in the 20-22 gauge range.
and in all the years of operation, we had very few electrical problems and no fires i can recall. i sure wouldn't recommend it today, but despite the fact we probably dropped a few volts here and there, it worked just fine back then.
personally for small layouts (all i ever build) i stick to 16 gauge stranded all around. easiest to work with directly soldered to track, connectors are the bottlenecks anyway and i rarely draw more than 2-3 amps.
cheers...gary
