Battery Cable Gage

[rrhorton]

I am trying to wire up the 31 coupe I purchased with no electrical wiring installed. It was converted to 12 volt and I want to place a cutout in the ground line. I bought a couple of 2.0 gage cables but they seem to be too large and inflexible. What gage cables should I get for my 12 volt system from battery to ground and battery to positive?

[PSXPAK]

not sure exactly but I found the hard way 6v systems require much larger cable than 12, i tried to replace the negative (positive ground car) on my 49 plymouth with a typical starter to battery cable from the parts store. I didn't make it 20ft before it lit a fire in the engine compartment which i put out with my shirt which melted the horn wire to the frame. It sat there blairing while i RAN for my wrench to unhook the battery.

[Patrick L.]

6v should be 1 or 0 gauge while you can get by by on 12v with 4 gauge, but, 2 gauge is preferable.
When it comes to wiring, I'm probably old school. I like the 'more bigger the more better' theory.

[Growley bear]

Hey Buddy,
6 volt systems require twice as many amps as 12 volt systems.
A six volt system is much less forgiving of poor connections (ground)
than 12 volt systems. Some Model A's have been converted to 12 volts only to mask a problem. Remember voltage is constant and amperage/electrons flow. The electrons don't flow through the wire as they flow around it. Is everything else ok?
What Patrick L said.
Chet

[Growley bear]

Originally Posted by Patrick L.

6v should be 1 or 0 gauge while you can get by by on 12v with 4 gauge, but, 2 gauge is preferable.
When it comes to wiring, I'm probably old school. I like the 'more bigger the more better' theory.

Well said, it's better to have a little extra wire.
Chet

[rrhorton]

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I purchased 2 gage but the holes on the lugs are much larger than the terminal posts on the starter and starter relay and on the foot push type start button I acquired. In addition, none of the cable grommets I have are sized for the 2 gage wire diameter, I believe the 4 gage cables which have the correct lug hole openings on a 12 volt car without lots of extra electrical features like power windows, radios etc would be fine. Just looking for someone to tell me NO NO NO and why.

[Patrick L.]

You could go to your friendly local welding supply store and get both the cable and ends you want.

[Rex_A_Lott]

Originally Posted by rrhorton

I purchased 2 gage but the holes on the lugs are much larger than the terminal posts on the starter and starter relay and on the foot push type start button I acquired. In addition, none of the cable grommets I have are sized for the 2 gage wire diameter, I believe the 4 gage cables which have the correct lug hole openings on a 12 volt car without lots of extra electrical features like power windows, radios etc would be fine. Just looking for someone to tell me NO NO NO and why.

The major inrush current draw is going to be your starter. The power windows , radio etc wont be enough to matter a lot.
I like to use welding cable, with the correct copper crimp -on ends. The fine-stranded wire is able to carry more current and is much more flexible. Of course if you are worried about appearance, its not stock-appearing, but its much better performance -wise.
Good Luck

[Growley bear]

The lugs found in store bought are usually made to fit a wide variety of cable studs. Much like hardware store flat washers 5/16 will usually fit 3/8 and if you are wanting a neat and quality job then you could get the cable and lugs and fabricate your own custom cables. A propane torch and some rosin core solder and you have it.

Chet

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by Patrick L.

You could go to your friendly local welding supply store and get both the cable and ends you want.

They have nice flexible cable with little resistance.