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Wire Gauge?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ranger
  • Start date Start date
R

Ranger

Guest
I think I might be making my own wiring harness or atleast cutting into the existing wires but I'm not sure what gauge most wires are. Bikebandit sells 25ft rolls for $3.xx of 18 gauge. How many feet would be needed.
 
Most of the wires on the bike are 18 or smaller. If I remember correctly, for the short wire lengths on our bikes, that would be good for about 13 amps.

Charge and ground wires should be 8 or 10 gauge, battery to solenoid to starter wires should be at least a 6, maybe even 4 gauge.

I have not rewired a bike, so can't help you with quantities.

Just a note, though, consider getting colors as close to original colors as possible. Some time ago, someone posted a source for wires with all the stock colors, including the stripes. I am sure a search will find that post.

.
 
Doesnt say what possible uses are. A universal wire seems like it could pose problems without being able to safely handle difference currents...
 
Steve said:
Most of the wires on the bike are 18 or smaller. If I remember correctly, for the short wire lengths on our bikes, that would be good for about 13 amps.

Just a note, though, consider getting colors as close to original colors as possible. Some time ago, someone posted a source for wires with all the stock colors, including the stripes. I am sure a search will find that post.

.
Click to expand...
That was Basscliff- he went thru his pockets and found a list! I hope it's readable here.
 
tom203 said:
That was Basscliff- he went thru his pockets and found a list! I hope it's readable here.
Click to expand...
Thats for an 850 right? I cant find many similarities when comparing it to the original wiring diagram atleast not whats readable.
 
Ranger said:
Thats for an 850 right? I cant find many similarities when comparing it to the original wiring diagram atleast not whats readable.
Click to expand...

Those color codings should be pretty (95%-100% )consistent across all GS's
 
a reputable dealer should be able to supply the correct amp cable for the right application. if the colours dont exactly match, create your own wiring diagram. i did it with my bike and laminated the diagram so i got a permanant record, also saved on disc,just in case
 
Ranger said:
Doesnt say what possible uses are. A universal wire seems like it could pose problems without being able to safely handle difference currents...
Click to expand...

Wire comes in 2 flavors solid and stranded. Solid is used mainly in building construction such as Rom-ex 12/2 it conducts better than stranded but is not flexible beyond certain points and is not use flexible at all, it will break. Stranded is very flexible and is used mainly in vehicle and equipment construction. also used in buildings 'Essex'.

Wire comes in 2 main materials copper and Aluminum. Copper is slightly less conductive than Aluminum but has better dissimilar material corrosion resistance and is less likely to build a surface layer of oxidation causing resistance and heat in the joint. Aluminum has been mainly phased out of building construction by the NEC and is only used in feeder lines.

Wire sizes are gauges smaller the gauge the larger the wire
Power & Ground Cable specs

Amps Guage
350 0/1
225 2
150 4
100 8
60 10
40 12
25 14
15 16
10 18

Remember one main thing, the supply and return carrying conductors should be balanced. Your main ground wire should be the same gauge as the wire going from the battery to the starter solenoid. Even the majority of the wiring in the bike is 18 gauge the 3 main circuits are mostly balanced among the 3 circuits. The ground conductor must be of sufficient gauge to safely return the current from all 3 circuits simultaneously.
 
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Also a distance run and amps chart given in feet

Amps in wire/Watts at 12volts/14 gauge/12 gauge/8 gauge
1amp/12watts/84'/131'/337'
2amps/24watts/42'/66'/168'
4amps/48watts/18'/33'/84'
8amps/96watts/10'/16'/27'
10amps/120watts/8.5'/13'/33'
15amps/180watts/6'/8.5'/22'
 
Ranger said:
Thats for an 850 right? I cant find many similarities when comparing it to the original wiring diagram atleast not whats readable.
Click to expand...
Make sure you go to Basscliff's site for a READABLE wiring diagram (colors!). Even if he doesn't have your exact model, as Posplayr said, they're all pretty close.
 
Get your wire here..
http://www.eficonnection.com/eficonnection/Wire.aspx

They sell TXL wire.. Its' the same stuff GM/Ford use in new cars..
It has a polyethylene jacket good to 257?F (125?c) so it won't melt and shrink like mad if you solder it.

EFI sells by the foot in many colors w tracer lines.. There are only a couple color combos you can't match up to a stock GS wire color.

I ordered mostly 18g when I did my repairs.

I also highly recommend the Vintage Connections RTL crimper.
http://www.vintageconnections.com/ConnectorKits.htm..
Get the kit if you are going to do OE bullet connections.. The crimper is available seperatly for $35 otherwise..

Eastern Beaver is great if you are going with Metripack type connectors.
http://www.easternbeaver.com/



Vintage connections end crimped with their crimper on TXL wire I got from EFI..
Looks almost OE when done..
IMGP1919.JPG

IMGP1914.JPG
 
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raistian77 said:
Wire comes in 2 flavors solid and stranded. Solid is used mainly in building construction such as Rom-ex 12/2 it conducts better than stranded but is not flexible beyond certain points and is not use flexible at all, it will break. Stranded is very flexible and is used mainly in vehicle and equipment construction. also used in buildings 'Essex'. .
Click to expand...

I think stranded wire conducts better than solid because of skin effect. Current actually flows along the outside of a wire more than inside (skin effect). Stranded wire has more surface area than solid.
 
7th day said:
I think stranded wire conducts better than solid because of skin effect. Current actually flows along the outside of a wire more than inside (skin effect). Stranded wire has more surface area than solid.
Click to expand...

Very true, the problem is there is more resistance in stranded than there is in solid wire (not enough to really matter though). Also stranded wire tends to be damaged at the termination and tends to raise the resistance also.

The differences are very minute, the main difference is stranded is much more flexible and stands up to movement and tempeture variations better than solid.
 
7th day said:
I think stranded wire conducts better than solid because of skin effect. Current actually flows along the outside of a wire more than inside (skin effect). Stranded wire has more surface area than solid.
Click to expand...

Just for fun that same reason is why data lines are solid rather than stranded. As the electrons jump from wire to wire in stranded it builds up attenuation and can cause signal noise.
 
All these numbers are giving me a headache. Maybe I should have someone good with electrical work help me out, I'd rather do it right the first time since its time consuming.
 
raistian77 said:
Just for fun that same reason is why data lines are solid rather than stranded. As the electrons jump from wire to wire in stranded it builds up attenuation and can cause signal noise.
Click to expand...


Skin effect is a high frequency effect (for signals that are changing millions of times per seconds). For GS purposes everything is essentially DC as far as "skin effect" and standard cross sectional area and length calculations can be used to compute voltage drop.

The stranded wire is primarily used because it can flex more than solid wire without breaking making it much more tolerant of high vibration environments (like a motorcycle or auto).

Most all the wires should be stranded (and IIRC) 18 GA, with the exception of the primary power (orange and Orange/White) and the grounds to the R/R. Also excluding the battery connections.
 
dont use solid wire it will break. Also the OEMs used the smallest wire they could. If your making a wire harness. Use a size larger if you can. 16 instead of 18 and so on. the biger the better but you dont want a harness thats as big around as your frame :)
 
Ranger said:
All these numbers are giving me a headache. Maybe I should have someone good with electrical work help me out, I'd rather do it right the first time since its time consuming.
Click to expand...


Let's go back to the start where you said you need to replace your wiring harness..

Why?

And if you're hesitant about the data we've given you, I'm not quite sure you're up to replacing the bike's entire wiring harness, it's actually more complex than you may think. I have my old one if you'd like it. It ran the bike, but if I recall correctly there were a few things I wasn't terribly happy with, so I bought a brand new one. Interested? Some of it has been re-wrapped, and it's been extended to put the electronics under the seat.:dancing:

I'd like to see a few pictures though, showing some parts of the harness that justify replacing the entire thing.
 
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