# Where to get wire.



## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

Seems like the price of wire for my layout varies a bunch from place to place. Where do you buy your wire?


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## emmetd (Aug 1, 2012)

Home depo 25'coil for about 5.00 spool of thermostat wire. About 18.00


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

I get mine at a local hardware store that carries 25' coils of 14 gauge wall socket wire and I usually get my 22 gauge wire for rail feeders there as well...or the feeder wire comes in spools from Circuit City/The Source, or whatever they call themselves this week.

The further you drive, the greater the cost. So, I phone and ask, and if I am assured, I get in the car and try for one shop.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

I'm all for saving a buck here and there, but I agree with Mesenteria -- the time and gas you use trying to find a bargain for something that is pretty cheap anyway may be penny wise, pound foolish.


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## MtRR75 (Nov 27, 2013)

I get the larger sizes from Home Depot. I order the smaller sizes from DigiKey.


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## wvgca (Jan 21, 2013)

for smaller sizes of wire, old serial or parallel cables, 250 ft of colored wire for a buck or so, many times free ..


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

Even at $5 for 25 feet is .20 a foot which sounds kinda high. I think the wire we use should be about .05 to ,o7 a foot but maybe that's too optimistic. Also may have been twenty years ago too. It just boggles my mind how much stuff costs anymore.
Atlas sells 100 foot rolls in five colors at $34,50. That's .35 a foot which I think is very expensive.
Walthers sells a 3 conductor roll of 33 feet at 33.98= $1.03 a foot or .34 a foot per conductor but Model power sells a 20 foot roll of three conductor wire for $6.75 or .33 per foot for all three conductors or .11 a foot per conductor. That's not bad. Course you have to add freight to this unless you have a good hobby shop close by.
Also do you use stranded wire or solid wire? Solid ought to be less than stranded and easier to work with as long as it doesn't move much. I'm going to look into this as I'm interested in wire and the actual wholesale cost if I can afford to buy enough of it. Is 24 g wire too small for us? Is 16G big enough for bus lines or should they be 14g? Seems like a lot to consider when your talking wire. Pete


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## The New Guy (Mar 11, 2012)

norgale said:


> Where do you buy your wire?


Bought all mine @ auction. Most have adopted online bidding, at least the ones I look at. Spools of wire sell for ¢ on the $.


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

You mean like on ebay?


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

Yard sales. Also a local electronic surplus supply store. Surplus supply stores are great!


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## WIrailfan (Mar 6, 2016)

I got my 16ga wire from Lowes cause they're so close, just search "primary wire" on their website. But they didn't have 18ga so I got that from this eBay seller.....

http://www.ebay.com/usr/ewire-solutions?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2754


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## redman88 (Nov 25, 2015)

I got a could of 14g romex (house wire) and some speaker wire from Walmart for a decent price. The speaker wire is nice as its a more natural color that should blend in better


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Years ago my buddy worked for Ma bell, he gave me enough of the kind where you have to strip the outer layer off and there is around 10/15 different colors of wire inside. around 20 or 22 gauge? Not sure, he is not around anymore, another victim who died in the late 80's from agent orange exposure while in Nam. 
I have enough of that to last a long time.

All my other wire 18,16,14,12,10 was pulled from dumpsters at plants that were remodeling, all kinds of wire. I filled boxes up and brought home. I ask for permission first. Some dumpster companies separate material for the copper, so I ask.

The guy next door to me was getting divorced years ago and he was an electrician. He was throwing away spools of wire, I grabbed that too.

I picked up a bunch more partial spools here and there through out the years.

I have not bought any wire....ever.

Another mans garbage is Ed's treasure. :thumbsup:

If you still have your dog when you walk it keep an eye out at construction sites. Ask first if you find some.
You might have to do a little work to get it but you can't beat the price.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Be very careful of eBay wire. They sell a lot of copper plated aluminum wire, and it's not nearly as good as real copper wire.


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## WIrailfan (Mar 6, 2016)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> Be very careful of eBay wire. They sell a lot of copper plated aluminum wire, and it's not nearly as good as real copper wire.


This is a good point! I saw a lot of copper over aluminum wire while searching for mine. The seller I linked too clearly identifies what your buying :thumbsup:


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> Be very careful of eBay wire. They sell a lot of copper plated aluminum wire, and it's not nearly as good as real copper wire.


True but it's still use full in applications. For my track I had leftover lighting wire, don't remember the guage, 16 ? I used speaker wire for momentary acessories. Probably aluminum, but I'm not worried about it expanding and contracting for years to cause a short. I secured everthing with nice crimp connections and then attached to the screw nuts of the accessories. No problems so far.


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## The New Guy (Mar 11, 2012)

norgale said:


> You mean like on ebay?


No no. Local stuff. This Place, and this place to a lesser extent. I watch for train gear, gizmo's, and what not's mostly. Towels for the local rescue groups and Vets, (animal type, not military type) and clothes lots for the thrift stores and Mel Trotter.


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## fcwilt (Sep 27, 2013)

I got my 14 gauge bus wire (500') from Home Depot for 9 cents per foot.

I got smaller wire from http://www.allelectronics.com/ 

They have 25' and 100' foot spools of solid or stranded in various colors at 9 to 5 cents per foot.


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## MacDaddy55 (Aug 19, 2008)

T-Man said:


> Yard sales. Also a local electronic surplus supply store. Surplus supply stores are great!


When we go visit our Son in Minneapolis I go to AxeMan Surplus on University Ave they have Spools of every wire known to Scientists and Model Railroaders...funny but the guys from Scale Model Supplies turned me on to that so T-man is spot on!!


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## Lemonhawk (Sep 24, 2013)

I use to live in Minneapolis, and AxeMan was always on my list of places to go! They to have a web site
https://www.ax-man.com/


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

That's a lot of great info guys. Guess there's a lot out there if you can find it. Really appreciate all of your input.


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*Wire source*



norgale said:


> Seems like the price of wire for my layout varies a bunch from place to place. Where do you buy your wire?


norgale;

you might try www.allelectronics.com they sell wire along with just about any kind of electronic parts. I have used them and they ship on time, and always get the order right.

Traction Fan


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

Do you have any set color coding for your layout wiring? I know we have green,yellow and red that go to our turnouts from the turnout switch and I always use red and black for wires to the track and to control units and switches. I know the color doesn't really make a lot of difference but on my new layout I want to be able to look at the wires under the table and see what they are for without following the "wrong one" to where a problem might be. Let me know what you think. Also it looks like I may have some wire for sale too. I'm buying 500 foot rolls to get a better price and I'm sure I won't need all of it. I have 1 roll of red 22ga now and will order green and red soon for the turnouts. If you need any let me know.


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## The New Guy (Mar 11, 2012)

I just ran across a "for instance". It's not great, and of course YMMV, but I use this stuff to wire Flyer switches. A buck to lay all your switches, if your into that sort of thing.

HTH


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

Thanks for that New Guy. I also have a box of telephone wire and it works great for just about everything. However I have to unwind so much of it to get the colors I want for my color coding that I end up wasting a bunch of it. I plan on using some of it but I'm looking to keep the wires for things separate so I can work with them if I have to. My last layout was all a jumble of different color wires and the new one will be three times the size so lots more wires. The wire has to be organized so I can easily track a problem. This time I'm going to do it right if it kills me. 
Since the house and the train room are a ways away yet I'm trying to get what I can now, like the wire, so I won't have that expense when I'm ready to build. I can also twist wires together too so I can make my own wire harnesses where they could be useful. Like with the turnout wires where there are three strand from point to point. I can twist them together for each turnout and not have a whole bunch of wires to pick through if I'm looking for just one.
I do want to use DCC with this but I'll probably use DC for the turnouts and not have to buy all those decoders. One extra Tx will take care of all the turnouts. The new layout will be 5x24 walk around.


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## The New Guy (Mar 11, 2012)

I don't adhere to a color code system, but a tag 'em as you make em' system. 

But the stuff is out there, and usually cheap. Best of hunting for the new layout.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

I tried to be as organized as I could be with my wiring, so I'm following the NMRA recommendations (red/black for track bus, green for ground, white/yellow for switch machines, orange/gray for DC power for lights) and tagging the wires too. I ordered my wire from Del City on the internet. They've got various gauges and lengths and colors to choose from. As mentioned above, search for "primary wire".

Mark


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

Hi Mark. I tried that with the labels and had a time with them curling up and becoming unreadable. I hadn't bothered so much with color coding either on the last three layouts and I knew they would be temporary anyway. But the next one will be my biggest yet and I don't want to have a mess of wires under the table. I want to be able to look at a wire and know what it is for. I never have really finished a layout and I'm always making changes as I go along. Since wiring is such a big part of RRing I'm going for the color coding this time. I just hope it'll be worth all the effort. I intend to have 500' rolls of ten colors all together so I'll have plenty to choose from and shouldn't run out half way through the job. Thanks for your comments.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

norgale said:


> Hi Mark. I tried that with the labels and had a time with them curling up and becoming unreadable.


Regarding tagging, I bought a bunch of small zip ties that have a "tab" on them for holding a label. Had to order them on the internet as I couldn't find them in any local stores. I then printed labels on my computer printer using permanent adhesive backed paper. I could then stick these on the zip tie tabs. I'm in the process of building my layout, so I've only had these in place for a few months, so don't know how they will fair years down the road, but they definitely won't be curling. The weakest link is the adhesive on the back of the label paper. Hopefully they won't just fall off over time.

Mark


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

Mark VerMurlen said:


> I tried to be as organized as I could be with my wiring, so I'm following the NMRA recommendations (red/black for track bus, green for ground, white/yellow for switch machines, orange/gray for DC power for lights) and tagging the wires too. I ordered my wire from Del City on the internet. They've got various gauges and lengths and colors to choose from. As mentioned above, search for "primary wire".
> 
> Mark


 I looked at the NMRA site for color coding and didn't find anything. The black/ red for power to the track is good and green as ground is ok for somethings but all the turnouts I've ever had were wired in green,red and yellow with the yellow as the ground. Wonder why they would recommend white and yellow for switch machines when they all take three wires with the yellow as common/ground?
Another thing is that Del wire only goes down to 20 ga and is solid instead of stranded. I'm using 22ga and stranded wire as it will take more bending and abuse than solid wire. Del's prices look good though but shipping for a small amount like a hundred feet could be about $10 to $12 bucks which would ruin any savings unless you could buy $100 or more and then shipping is free. Pricing for wire is so diverse that you wonder what the heck your getting from some places. I've seen 100' rolls at$9 to $10 and 30 foot rolls at $35. Reading in MRR magazine I see that everybody suggests using 22ga for turnouts and accessories but most places don't sell 22ga stranded wire or if they do it's small amounts and more expensive. Hard to find just the right deal and shipping is usually the deal breaker unless your buying 1000 foot rolls or bigger. Then you can get really good prices even with the shipping being extra but what do you do with all that wire?
I mentioned before that I am getting 500' rolls and if anybody wants any 22ga stranded red (what I have now) I would sell some at .17 a foot shipped. So 100' would be $17 with no extra for shipping and that's a lot better than $25 to $35 for a 100' without shipping. I think that price came from Atlas but I'm not positive.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

You're right that buying small quantities isn't cost effective at many internet sites. For the small gauge wire used for track drops, I got that from a local hardware store. The rest I bought from Del City. 

I had the color code page up in my browser for several weeks, but closed it not long ago. Now I can't find it again either. The point is to pick a color code and stick with it. I'm using slow motion motors on my turnouts and that's why I only have 2 wires to them. Solonoids take 3 wires as you state. If I remember right, the recommendation from NMRA was to use white, yellow, and blue in that case. Just try not to use the same color for different purposes. I had to violate that rule because I wanted to use different colors for my programming track feed, so I used blue and white. Since it was for this limited purpose, I wasn't too concerned with reusing white wire for my programming track and the switch machines. 

It's your railroad, so you can do whatever you want that makes sense to you.

Mark


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

I forgot that some turnouts only have two wires and I've seen some with five wires but don't have any of either. Guess your right about figuring out your own color code and sticking with it. makes sense that way.


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## feldon30 (Dec 30, 2012)

I have found no cheaper provider for 22 Gauge Solid Hook Up Wire than AllElectronics. *$6.88* for 100 ft in several different colors. I use them all so I have different colors for yards, main line, etc.

Digikey wants a heart-stopping *$17.98* for the same thing.


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## Tranz4mr (Sep 3, 2013)

http://www.allelectronics.com

Less than $6 for 100' single strand for smaller gauge wire in multiple colors.


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## feldon30 (Dec 30, 2012)

Tranz4mr said:


> http://www.allelectronics.com
> 
> Less than $6 for 100' single strand for smaller gauge wire in multiple colors.


That's what I said.  

Just make absolutely sure you order Solid Core. It's very easy to end up with stranded (unless that's what you really want).


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## teledoc (Oct 22, 2014)

*Possible Color Coding*

Guys looking to Color Code your wires, might want to use what the Telephone companies used (Ma Bell). I was a trouble shooter in the Cable Splicing dept. for 41 years. The standards used are not that hard to understand either, once you get the hang of it. Normal people look at a splice, with all those colored wires, and freak out as to what is what.

Cables are made up in 25 paired increments, with five primary colors of Blue, Orange, Green, Brown, Grey (Slate), with the mate as White to the first group of five wires. These are pairs # 1,2,3,4,5. The second group of five are the same five primary colors of Blue, Orange, Green, Brown, Grey, with the mate as Red. The third group same as above, with the mate as Black, followed by a mate of Yellow, and finally Purple.

So you can possibly use the following order (For smaller 24/22 ga. wires to accessories)
1=blue
2=orange
3=green
4=brown
5=grey/slate
6=white
7=red
8=black
9=yellow
10=purple

Hopefully you can understand the explanation.


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## feldon30 (Dec 30, 2012)

I bought rolls of every color and tried to keep everything separated out so that troubleshooting is easier later. I'm using cat 5e for wiring up switches and lighting.


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## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

teledoc said:


> Guys looking to Color Code your wires, might want to use what the Telephone companies used (Ma Bell). I was a trouble shooter in the Cable Splicing dept. for 41 years. The standards used are not that hard to understand either, once you get the hang of it. Normal people look at a splice, with all those colored wires, and freak out as to what is what.
> 
> Cables are made up in 25 paired increments, with five primary colors of Blue, Orange, Green, Brown, Grey (Slate), with the mate as White to the first group of five wires. These are pairs # 1,2,3,4,5. The second group of five are the same five primary colors of Blue, Orange, Green, Brown, Grey, with the mate as Red. The third group same as above, with the mate as Black, followed by a mate of Yellow, and finally Purple.
> 
> ...


So the mate is a solid primary color and the pairs are multi colors?


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## teledoc (Oct 22, 2014)

*Possible Color Coding*

Norgale, The make up of telephone cables that are spliced are made up of twisted pairs of wires. The twisting is done for electrical reasons of which one is what we referred to as 'Cross Talk'. There are capacitive and inductive effects that have to be balanced. The typical smallest cable was a 25 pair cable, upwards to 3600 paired cables. They had to come up with a way to make sense of it all. Below is a list of the first 25 pairs, which wind up being bundled into what we called a binder group.
1. blue/white
2. orange/white
3. green/white
4. brown/white
5. slate/white
6. blue/red
7. orange/red
8. green/red
9. brown/red
10. slate/red
11. blue/black
12. orange/black
13. green/black
14. brown/black
15. slate/black
16. blue/yellow
17. orange/yellow
18. green/yellow
19. brown/yellow
20. slate/yellow
21. blue/purple
22. orange/purple
23. green/purple
24. brown/purple
25. slate/purple
THIS FIRST TWENTY FIVE ARE WRAPPED IN A BINDER OF BLUE/WHITE.

The next twenty five group is the above colors 1-25, with a binder marker of ORANGE/WHITE, followed by a binder marker of GREEN/WHITE, and on and on.

So, instead of using the color chart above of a pair of wires, just use a single wire of say 24 ga. or 22 ga., or 18 ga. with the primary colored side for the first 5 wires, then use the secondary colors of white/red/black/yellow/purple as the next 5, for the # 6-10 numbered wires.

Hopefully you can understand the reasoning behind it.

That is about as easy as I can explain it, but being a cable splicer for the telco, it is just an automatic thing to remember after doing it for 41 years.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I'm not typically running 100 pairs of wire in my locomotives, so my color coding is much simpler.


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## teledoc (Oct 22, 2014)

Touché' John!!!!!! Everyone likes to make a simple way to color code wires, and there is NO set standard that fits everyone's needs. I thought I would present an option, that of course is easy for me to remember.......not every mans choice. ROFL!


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

It was simply too big a target, I couldn't resist!


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## redman88 (Nov 25, 2015)

With my tortoise switches I am just using the cat5 standard. Easy enough for for those. And for my engines that I have to isolate I just keep pictures that I refer back to. Again pulling cat5 cable apart for the connections.


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