Wires

[TheWingsOfFire]

Does the wire gauge matter? What wires should I use?

[cheese]

don't use too thin of wire because it could blow up, don't use too thick of wire because it might be too resistive and make your motor less powerful. I use in between 20-24 gauge.

[cheese]

also, solid core is a little easier to work with because it stays in place. Some people use stranded wire because it can bend everywhere. Whatever makes you happy

[MadCow2357]

Where do you get the wire?

[cheese]

You can find it a lot of places. Most hobby stores will have wire, and big box stores like home depot or Menard's will have some doorbell wire of some sort.

[shrewdPanther46]

Literally just find any sort of electrical wire anywhere. You will know its too thin if it gets hot while running. I think it would take some really really thin wire for that to happen in our scale.

[MadCow2357]

You can find it a lot of places. Most hobby stores will have wire, and big box stores like home depot or Menard's will have some doorbell wire of some sort.

Literally just find any sort of electrical wire anywhere. You will know its too thin if it gets hot while running. I think it would take some really really thin wire for that to happen in our scale.

I found these wires on amazon, Which is better? Are they reasonably priced?
https://www.amazon.com/BNTECHGO-electri ... rical+wire
https://www.amazon.com/StrivedayTM-Flex ... rical+wire

Thanks, MadCow2357

[shrewdPanther46]

Both are overpriced, but both will do the job nevertheless

[kinghong1970]

if you have an old PC, take the wires from there... most molex connections are 5v and 12v rated...
the motherboard connector has a plethora of colors you need, or you can get the ATX power connectors or power connectors that supplies power to the graphic cards.

[SPP SciO]

Something that saved a lot of time for us was using pre-made wires with alligator clips on either end. I have bundles of them in my classroom from old circuit lab kits; I'd say there's a very high probability you've got something similar tucked away in a closet somewhere in your school. They're about 30cm long and come in all different colors, which made building a circuit from a diagram much easier to follow. The only minor challenges are keeping the wires tidy, which can be accomplished with small cable ties, and avoiding short circuits, which can be accomplished by careful connecting and using the plastic insulator covers for the alligator clips.

https://www.amazon.com/SE-TL10-10-Piece ... B0002KRABU Something like this - but look around before you buy something, they're pretty common.