A few years back I got a few rolls of Belden silver plated copper multistrand wire with ptfe jacket. It's rather expensive and it comes in long runs, but a roll should last a lifetime. It's super thin, and it works very nicely for line level stuff.
For cases that need shielding, I have a roll of twinax silver plated copper wire with ptfe jacket. It s made by temp-flex. It's a molex company and according to some people it's the company behind nordost (owns some of the patents). They also have very nice silver/ptfe ribbon cables
For heavy duty stuff I use plain electrical grade copper wiring with PVC jackets (1.5mm). It's super cheap to get full rolls in various colors. For heavier stuff I have started using multistranded copper with silicon jackets. It's softer and easier to work with. Plus it's more resistant to heat, since most of the time I need to use a torch to properly solder them to bananas or spades or whatever.
Before that, I was using solid core electrical grade cable. But Mighty ZM suggested to me that solid core is prone to vibrations that might result in broken solder joints. So I just switched to multi-stranded and never looked back.
Stay away from copper clad steel wire
For cases that need shielding, I have a roll of twinax silver plated copper wire with ptfe jacket. It s made by temp-flex. It's a molex company and according to some people it's the company behind nordost (owns some of the patents). They also have very nice silver/ptfe ribbon cables
For heavy duty stuff I use plain electrical grade copper wiring with PVC jackets (1.5mm). It's super cheap to get full rolls in various colors. For heavier stuff I have started using multistranded copper with silicon jackets. It's softer and easier to work with. Plus it's more resistant to heat, since most of the time I need to use a torch to properly solder them to bananas or spades or whatever.
Before that, I was using solid core electrical grade cable. But Mighty ZM suggested to me that solid core is prone to vibrations that might result in broken solder joints. So I just switched to multi-stranded and never looked back.
Stay away from copper clad steel wire
@roboDNA Wrap around screw terminals are visually accessible so a quick look will suffice to verify a clean, tight wrap. Enclosed terminals that use a bare screw or bearing plate to apply pressure to the conductor can sometimes be deceiving. Tightening the screw until it feels snug usually provides a solid connection but not always...
Imperfect threads, plastic from the molding process or debris occasionally provides physical resistance without firmly securing the conductor. A little tug assures that all is well.
A loose connection may or may not work just fine initially but over time, the resistance (electrical) can increase to problematic levels. High resistance terminations can become a serious problem at higher voltages, producing arcing, which degrades the connection further, and is indeed the cause of many fires.
I just repaired a piece of equipment for a friend and a 120VAC faston terminal on a circuit board was the culprit. The female connector was seated on the board mounted blade with the blade between the connector and the insulation instead of inside the female. The machine ran for years until it failed to start... Likely due to the low-ish 3-4 amp draw and intermittent use.
Power outlets that no longer provide a tight, secure hold when something is plugged in should be replaced immediately for the same reason. Thermal cameras are a terrific tool to spot heat anomalies and if you have or have access to one, sometimes make troubleshooting easy. Knowing whether your fets are all conducting with a quick glance is pretty nice.
For wire? I use fine strand cl2/cl3 ul listed cable and always have it on hand for business use. Marine wire is typ fine strand, tinned copper and I'd use it if I had it stock.
Cheers
Imperfect threads, plastic from the molding process or debris occasionally provides physical resistance without firmly securing the conductor. A little tug assures that all is well.
A loose connection may or may not work just fine initially but over time, the resistance (electrical) can increase to problematic levels. High resistance terminations can become a serious problem at higher voltages, producing arcing, which degrades the connection further, and is indeed the cause of many fires.
I just repaired a piece of equipment for a friend and a 120VAC faston terminal on a circuit board was the culprit. The female connector was seated on the board mounted blade with the blade between the connector and the insulation instead of inside the female. The machine ran for years until it failed to start... Likely due to the low-ish 3-4 amp draw and intermittent use.
Power outlets that no longer provide a tight, secure hold when something is plugged in should be replaced immediately for the same reason. Thermal cameras are a terrific tool to spot heat anomalies and if you have or have access to one, sometimes make troubleshooting easy. Knowing whether your fets are all conducting with a quick glance is pretty nice.
For wire? I use fine strand cl2/cl3 ul listed cable and always have it on hand for business use. Marine wire is typ fine strand, tinned copper and I'd use it if I had it stock.
Cheers