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Hook up wire for cheap - what do you use?

Jcricket

Jcricket

not someday, but today
Subscriber
Sorry I had to put the cheap in there as I know some of our more knowledgeable and prominent members use gold plated plainum stuff that you could trade for a new car. That don't work for me.

Anyway, what do you folks recommend or use for hook up wire. I had an idea that I might just try.
Sprinlker system valve control wire. You can get 50' lengths for about $15. It has six or seven colors in it and I believe it is 20 AWG.
Thoughts?

Other recomendations?

BTW - solid or stranded - which produces the least noise?
 
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Solid is easier to work with, and a good free source is wire cut off of old fluorescent light ballasts. It is usually copper, and the insulation strips nice and is rated to 600v (some to 1kv). Find a friend who is a maintenance guy in a large office building and you're set. I use that for power supplies and heaters, then stranded copper silver plate for the actual circuit. It's not that expensive from the guy I buy from on ebay.
 
What's the insulation voltage rating on the sprinkler system wire? If it's high enough it should be fine. Solid core is easier to work with for point to point wiring. I doubt you could hear the difference between the two wire types.

AES has 600v hook up wire for $5 per 50' roll. If you bought a half dozen rolls you'd be set for the foreseeable future.
 
I used door bell wire for my power supply. It is solid copper. I don't know the specs on it, but it looked good enough and I had a bunch of it so, what the hey. I cut off 5 feet, stripped the outer casing and put one end of the two wires in my vice and the other end in my hand drill and twisted away.
 
I have been using Teflon sleeved wire from tubedepot. It doesn't shrink or melt like regular plastic. Comes in solid or stranded. John
 
One thing worth mentioning is when I use stranded, I lightly pre tin the wire after stripping it. It sounds like a PITA, but it actually becomes automatic, like wiping the iron before and after every joint.
 
The only thing about doorbell wire is the insulation. I doubt VERY seriously if it's rated for 400 volts.:no: It also melts real easy.:thumbsdn:
 
jaymanaa said:
One thing worth mentioning is when I use stranded, I lightly pre tin the wire after stripping it. It sounds like a PITA, but it actually becomes automatic, like wiping the iron before and after every joint.
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That's because you were taught to solder by someone who knows what they are doing :thmbsp:
 
jaymanaa said:
The only thing about doorbell wire is the insulation. I doubt VERY seriously if it's rated for 400 volts.:no: It also melts real easy.:thumbsdn:
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Might be worth looking into. I dont know the value. I only used it on a phone pre and I don't think I am over 300v anywhere in the system.
 
There is no markings on the wire just the casing. No V though. It is 18g solid copper. I could not make out those charts.
 
I tried doorbell wire to make a twisted pair for filaments. As soon as I soldered, the insulation melted and shorted out the twists. I now only use teflon sheathed silver plated copper wire. Looks much neater and is rated for 600v. Sometime I use the cloth covered stuff. John
 
DANG. Now that I read your post Slobber, I remembered I used the doorbell wire for the filaments only, not the B+.

I did not have any problems with the cover melting.
 
I saved a lot of old cloth covered wire, very cool MOJO. Try and use Teflon if you can for your signal wire .24ga. CAT5/6 (Teflon) will work here.
 
I bet the designations are on the roll it comes on.:scratch2: I'll try to remember to take a look next time I'm in a hardware store.
 
golana said:
I saved a lot of old cloth covered wire, very cool MOJO. Try and use Teflon if you can for your signal wire .24ga. CAT5/6 (Teflon) will work here.
Click to expand...

You're probably right, but I never use anything smaller than 20g. for the signal. I just feel like the smaller stuff may leave something behind.:dunno:
 
I haven't experimented, per say, but, on a pre I built I useed .20 thinking same thing. I read several threads around and built some RCA's.Tried Belden cAt5, as I have too much, and A/B'd against others, I fine with it. It would be nice to be able to go NASA and check it right thought. Shucks, maybe you're right Error on the left.
 
i use whatever suitable scraps i have laying in the stripped out dead gear pile. as long as the copper is thick enough and insulation is good, its all good.
 
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