Create Power Feeds for Kato Track

[@LeonKolenda]

Took me a while to get the hang of soldering, but it works very well. What I like is I can use black and red wire, and not have to use Kato blue and white wire. Also, this does not melt the plastic ballast or burn holes through it. Thanks!

[@andrewkoenigsberg8087]

Really well done video. Thanks for sharing.

[@akr3985fan]

Don what Size of wire did you Use.. on my Outer Route that I Bussed up for D.C.C. I used 18 Gauge I put 3 Wire Block on each side of my Layout from Lowe's) I Ran my wire from block to block and used KATO wire feeders that I tapped into my Blocks, but I'm wondering if using a slightly larger stranded or solid wire than the 24 that KATO provides would be more beneficial.. My Engines all.. are Running pretty well but my Layout is not that Big it sets on a 30X30X96 inch 8ft long Table.. Making them feeders Does makes sense if you have a work Bench which I Don't as I live in Apt. I wanted to Add: I use Via a suggestion from one of D.C.C. Guys at modeltrainstuff & watching a Arthur Houston Video ACT-6006 Track Cleaner my Track Does stay cleaner I'm seeing less black or gray Gunk and my Engines seems to perform slightly better with it Just wanted to Add that in Thanks Art & Modeltrainstuff.. For suggesting what I think is a good product.. Take Care and thanks for letting me comment..

[@donmartin9567]

I believe that I used 22AWG for making the feeders. My main bus would be 12 or 14 gauge, I've used both. And, I've used both solid core as well as twisted multi-strand. That is overkill though. It is hard to recommend because there are a number of factors. For feeders, it depends upon how long. None of mine are longer than 18 inches and have them every 36" or closer (so that means there is no more than 18" of track being powered by a set of feeders). 22 / 24 AWG is more than ample for this. Oh, and as you say, keep your track clean. For your bus, Gauge / Wire Size depends upon a lot of factors including how long your run is, is it a "Y" set up or does power come in at one end? How much track does it supply power to and how many amps are you supplying and how much power is being drawn? Are you near your limits of power supply and usage or do you have lots to spare? 12/14/16 are all pretty good sizes. Heck, you could even go smaller. Personally I like to make sure that I have more than enough power and nothing is being stressed and areas of the track have more than enough feeds so that even if half (or more) of my feeds were cut, everything would still run fine. So, I put in thicker wire than I have to have and put feeder drops in more frequently than I have to.

[@ChinaAl]

What is that wire stripper you used? Looks really cool. Great idea as well for the power feeds. Thanks

[@donmartin9567]

Thanks ChinaAI. Can't recall where I got that stripper from, I think a local electronics wholesale supply shop. They work well for wire from about 26 AWG up to around 16AWG. Doing these yourself lets you determine how long the feeder wire should be and what colour and costs a LOT less.

[@ChinaAl]

@@donmartin9567 Thanks. Idid a Amazon search and came up with this "Kinee Adjustable Automatic Cable Wire Stripper". Looks the same pistol style but different colors. The ones I have are the manual cutter-striper-pincher or the sideways sprung type. Neither is good for the thin wire. It's not expensive either.

[@stuartwinstanley21]

Thanks very helpfull

[@MrYaesu840]

I think I will just pay the $4.95 going rate for these on eBay and avoid the hassle.

[@TONY_FEZ]

having tried this myself, i tend to agree. While this is an ingenious solution, its a very fiddly job at N scale so you have to place some value on and frustration!

[@odalesaylor]

Too far away to see what is really going on. :(