ESU 36ga. wire

[Joetrain59]

Saw this item in another thread. Available at MBK. Got 2 pkgs., red and black. It's very good so far working with it. Very small diameter overall, unlike NWSL Superflex. That has very thick insulation.
 Thanks to who ever mentioned it, and MBK carrying it.
 Joe D

[peteski]

I too bought some of that wire. Yes, the wire itself is very flexible and the insulation is very thin (so the overall diameter is small), but overall it is much stiffer than the super flexible wire from Ngineering.  While this wire seems perfect for wiring decoders, it would not be my first choice for truck feeder wires.

I'm also questioning the 36AWG specs.  The wire measures 0.010" in diameter which makes it 30AWG.

[Joetrain59]

I have a small wire stripper for 20-30ga wire. 30 strips it just fine. Only wire I got from Ngineering was the magnet wire.
 Joe D

[peteski]

Unfortunately Ngineering does not have separate Web pages for every item they sell. If you go to http://www.ngineering.com/accessories.htm and find Super-flexible Wire, that is the stuff I'm describing.

Here is the description:
Designed specifically for applications that require repeated flexing such as voice coils, linear actuators, and robotics, this wire is extremely supple due to it's high quantity of small strands and super "limp" insulation. At 0.032" nominal overall diameter, the #29 wire is only 0.001" larger than typical decoder wire, but instead of the normal 9 strands, it contains 51 strands of #46 (0.0015") copper wire. It will carry 600ma of current so it is ideally suited for most motor power wiring in Z-Scale, N-Scale and HO. If more power is needed in larger scales, just run additional wires in parallel. Perfect for steam locomotives which usually place decoders in the tender (no more derails). The #32 wire is extremely small for insulated wire with an overall nominal diameter of 0.023". It contains 18 strands of #44 copper wire and will carry 250ma of current. This wire is ideally suited for lighting applications that require flexing of the power connections (truck pickups on rolling stock, crossing gates, bridge lifts, etc. It is also well suited for some lower-current Z-Scale motors.