Power cable

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Sjoerd1985

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I have a circle railway with a track length of about 20 meters in my backyard. For the power supply, I buried speaker-wire (this stuff: https://www.allekabels.nl/luidspreker-kabel/4479/1302342/luidspreker-kabel-op-rol.html) along the track, which is connected to the track at six locations.

In the winter of 2023-2024 the connections to the track all broke , probably as a result of freezing temperatures. Last year (2024) I didn't restore it, as I only used remote controlled battery powered trains (Playmobil 4010, 4011, and a Newquida Steam locomotive) on the outside track.

Now that we are starting to get warmer weather, I just tried to strip of the end insulation on the ends of the wires in order to re-connect them to the tracks; I want to use the line with track power again, so more models can run outside (LGB/Piko/USA Trains).
However, every time I tried to strip off the insulation on the end, that end of the cable just broke off immediately (both insulation and the core wire). So... complete power cable replacement seems to be needed, but this time I want something more durable.

So my question is; what kind of cable do you use, which can be used multiple years without having to be replaced?
 

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Rather than a stranded wire, how about solid wire as used in mains cable....
 
even indoors i preferably use small diameter stranded household cables made out of copper. (stranded, because it is more flexible)
they, being thicker, are easier to solder and they do not break as easy as speaker cables.
and, if one wants it cost effective, there are sources galore. cut lawn-mower cables, out of use elongating cables, discarded used cables from electric installations, etc.
 
Sjoerd1985 said:
I have a circle railway with a track length of about 20 meters in my backyard. For the power supply, I buried speaker-wire (this stuff: https://www.allekabels.nl/luidspreker-kabel/4479/1302342/luidspreker-kabel-op-rol.html) along the track, which is connected to the track at six locations.

In the winter of 2023-2024 the connections to the track all broke , probably as a result of freezing temperatures. Last year (2024) I didn't restore it, as I only used remote controlled battery powered trains (Playmobil 4010, 4011, and a Newquida Steam locomotive) on the outside track.

Now that we are starting to get warmer weather, I just tried to strip of the end insulation on the ends of the wires in order to re-connect them to the tracks; I want to use the line with track power again, so more models can run outside (LGB/Piko/USA Trains).
However, every time I tried to strip off the insulation on the end, that end of the cable just broke off immediately (both insulation and the core wire). So... complete power cable replacement seems to be needed, but this time I want something more durable.

So my question is; what kind of cable do you use, which can be used multiple years without having to be replaced?
Click to expand...
I use mains cable - house wiring stuff - single strand copper.

But, if you want the flexibility of multi-strand, look for cables that are suitable for boats.
 
The two-core cable from discarded garden appliances. - Lawnmower or hedge trimmer, is a good starting point..

All cables need protection from UV damage, and you can even run it through cast-off Garden-hose.

Moisture will have got into your old cable. The inner conductors corrode and swell, so you have to cut off a long length, to get past this.. You then have the problem of joining the cable, and making the joint 'gas-tight' so that no moisture can get in.

Having your distribution cable in boxes off the ground, then connecting 'droppers' to the track, should mean you only need to replace failed 'droppers' in the future.

If you were to use solid-core mains cable for the main feeder, you can coil a little excess in the boxes, and the conductors are thick enough to be cleaned up with fine abrasive paper, if they become tarnished.

PhilP.
 
Using speaker wire was probably a bit optimistic TBH. As Rhino and others have said, householx wire works well, if you can, do as PhilP suggested, run your cable through some sort of duct. It won't keep the cable from getting a bit damp, but it will certainly put of any nibbling animals, and hopefully prevent damage whilst gardening. Of course, what weremeant to suggests SWA glanded into IP rated junction boxes, but that is prob over the top for 24 Volts :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
 
Rhinochugger said:
I use mains cable - house wiring stuff - single strand copper.
Click to expand...

Ditto

My cabling has been in place since 2006. Although I no longer use it for track feeds as I've gone over to battery RC, I still use it for operating point motors. I'm now on my second batch of LGB point motors, but the wiring is still going strong.

How did I do the electrics?

Narrow gauge large scale model garden railway. Battery powered, radio controlled locomotives, some Bluetooth. Set in Cheshire UK in 1930s
riksrailway.blogspot.com

Rik
 
I put all my cable in poly irrigation pipe and fittings which I get from either garden centres or hardware stores mainly because it is cheap, water tight and can be buried.
It is a cheaper alternative to conduit.
 
I learnt the lesson the hard way that the cheap man pays twice. I took a first attempt at using cheap-ish speaker wise which basically turned to powder within a year. My second attempt was with more premium speaker cable which has been great since. It was a bit of a toss-up between this and household cable but eventually went for the speaker cable due to the flexibility of the cable itself (my trunking is too tight) and I was off-put by the excess earth (this, with hindsight makes no sense but niggled at me at the time).

For the accessories, I use household 12V cable (used for LEDs) as the main bus than outdoor 12v cable from the bus to the accessories.

I spoke about my setup a little in this video if it's helpful:
 
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In my track power days I used speaker cable for the power successfully moving the wire from my Hemel Line to St.Neots after 12 years to another 5 or 6 here before going dead rail. The cable must have been a better quality one as it lasted but there were a few inches to be cut off at the ends where outside due to oxidation as to be expected. One of the ways to reduce the oxidation running into the wire is to fuse the plastic covering when soldering the wire to create a loop to fix to clamps as I did. The fusing was mentioned in here after I had fitted my lines. Some of that wire has been used again in my loft line again cutting off a few oxidised inches from the former external joints.
 
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