# bus wire question



## mopac (Feb 24, 2011)

I take it an ideal bus wire would be one long uncut wire running length of layout.And then feeders off of it. I am planning an around the walls layout. Good chance we will move some day. I want to build in 5 or 6 foot sections designed to come apart for moving. So bus wire needs to be broke at each section. Am I defeating reason for bus wire if I break at each section? The plan is to just have screw wire terminals at each section. Any ideas?


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## waltr (Aug 15, 2011)

Not at all. If the buss wires ends are connected with low resistance then no problem.

For Modular layouts the Buss wires connect from module to module with connectors.


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## manchesterjim (Dec 30, 2011)

mopac said:


> The plan is to just have screw wire terminals at each section. Any ideas?


Hi Mo,

What's important about the bus wire is the guage and the length of the run. (Longer run "usually" equals Larger Guage) This is just a rule of thumb :thumbsup: of course.

Connectors shouldn't be too big of a problem as long as you use good ones. The RR Club I was with up north used a modular plug system called Anderson Power Pole. This is a link to their site.

Screw terminals will work well also...just make sure you keep them tightened down! 

Its good that you're planning ahead for moving the layout :thumbsup: . I was about 2/3 of the way through building mine in the basement of our place in NH when I took the job in Virginia.....since I started as a modular design (Not NMRA Complient, but still modular), it was easy to unplug everything and take it apart.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

We're using #12 wire and Anderson Power Poles in our modular club. I understand a number of clubs use the same thing.


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

I plan to use #12 solid wire when I wire my layout.


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## mopac (Feb 24, 2011)

Thanks guys. I think I have 2 spools of #12 solid out in the garage. One red and one light blue. That will work great. 
I got them when some new parking lot lights were installed where I worked and they let me have them.


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## mopac (Feb 24, 2011)

Memory not too good. There was 2 spools. Red one and blue one.
Not 12 and not solid. Here is what it says- 10 AWG 600 volts gasoline and oil resistent and looks like maybe 10 strands. Would probably work but solid would be better.


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

Mopac,
#10's WOW your trying to step into my field of play! I use #10's for my main buss but people say I'm a little off!:retard:
Normal DCC Bus is #16 to #12 and Drops are #24 to #18. 
It's a toss up on stranded or solid, I personally like stranded!
You can make connections right now or just make a loop at every place you might have to cut it apart then when you do move it. When you move you just cut the main bus and solder it back together after the move.:thumbsup:
When doing your main bus it is better to run the bus out from the command station but never back to it in a complete loop!


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

There's absolutely nothing wrong with #10 stranded wire for the main buss, sounds like a great choice. Stranded is actually easier to work with in many cases than solid, no problem there.


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## C&O Railfan (Apr 13, 2012)

"When doing your main bus it is better to run the bus out from the command station but never back to it in a complete loop![/QUOTE]"

This catches my interest.... I have a 6X8 loop and I ran my 14 gauge bus all the way around my loop and back close to station. I am planning on adding an additional loop, a small yard, and some spurs (posted in Layout Design thread). I planned to connect/run it around 2nd loop again, with additional power to yard/spurs. Apparently, I'm wrong... I thought I had this right, so how would/should it be done? I've attached my layout plan for reference.


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## Brakeman Jake (Mar 8, 2009)

Looping your buss wire back to itself isn't a problem in itself,it just makes troubleshooting tougher if you should have a "buss" related problem as current comes from two directions instead of one.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Brakeman Jake said:


> Looping your buss wire back to itself isn't a problem in itself,it just makes troubleshooting tougher if you should have a "buss" related problem as current comes from two directions instead of one.


Current will actually flow in just one path ... the one of least resistance ... either through the CW left side of a loop, or the CW right side of a loop, as the case may be. From there, through the train, and back through the other rail.

I say this, because we had a "help me" thread a while back ... someone was frustrated that a train ran well for a portion of their simple loop, but always slowed down in another portion. I forget the details of the fix, but in the process of debugging, we realized that current was flowing one way for the train in one region of the track and the other way with the train in a different region of track.

TJ


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

The power aspect of the DCC end of things is not the issue. 
They say it's the digital signal that can become a problem.
I have not personally run into any problems with this. 
There is some talk of the signals looping back on itself and collapsing upon itself causing a degrading of the digital signal. I would think that it would take a very large run to cause enough signal delay to cause a problem.


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## Southern (Nov 17, 2008)

Stranded vs solid wire. Solid is great if the wire is signatory. ie: home. building, permanent Model train layouts. Stranded is best if the wire is moving or exposed to vibration. ie Cars, power poles, model locomotive, module train layouts. The bigger the gage the better (smaller gage number). Less than 12 is not needed but if you got it, it will work and it is free.

NIMT thanks for the info on DCC loop. I did not see anything wrong with looping the power.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I can see in a really large loop that signal delays might cause some distortion of the signal. It's really dependent on the frequencies involved and the distance the signal is traveling.


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