Cheap trick for plug wires

[rigbuilder]

If you have Ann iPhone or other smartphone that has an old worn out charger you don't use anymore there are a set of four different colored wires inside those chargers. I pulled apart an old iPhone charger the other day, took me roughly 30 minutes, but I found a green, red, white and black wire inside. Imagine my surprise. Lol and my wife told me to throw it away and not to use it for model stuff. Lol that'll never happen.

[Danno]

There's a lot to be said for scavenging.

[Blown03SVT]

Just be sure to double check the thickness of the wires with a caliper to make sure they are close to accurate size for plug wires. Alot of my detail wire comes from throw away electronics.

[rigbuilder]

I use whatever I can get my hands on. Being an OTR truck driver my resources are very limited. I have been hounding my wife, who rides with me on a daily basis, to get me a caliper but she isn't hearin it. Lol. But yea I use whatever is available and it jut so happens that I have an old iPhone charger to use for wiring. Woohoo. Or in the words of that camel on the insurance commercial, "What What".

[Blown03SVT]

Jeremy, look for a harbor freight around your parts. Get a coupon online and a digital caliper is less that $10. I also bought my flat files and jewelers files there for cheap and they work awesome. For less than $20 in tools you can dramatically open new building possibilities

[Jeremy Jon]

I often get most of my wiring from old electronics items, there are so many possibilities, old TVs, old computers, old phones, etc

Small electric motors have cooper windings inside, which are very fine wire, and with a single coat of flexible acrylic paint, become bendable chassis wiring, that stays in position bent to

[hooterville75]

Is the proper gauge for spark plug wires for 1:24 1:25 scale autos 30 Gauge wire ?

[Agent G]

If you work in a building, at some time, someone, somewhere, will add to the plethora of lines for telephones and computers. Make friends with the IT installers/building maintainence folks. You won't go wrong.

G

[BenfromKC]

I've also found CAT5 and CAT6 cable to be extremely helpful for fine wires. While cleaning out my father's old house we stumbled upon some 35 year old telephone wire that had some colors inside that I haven't found anywhere else.

[southpier]

I thought I was a sneaky-pete cutting up an old charger cable. wired the engine and had everything glued and dried. but when it came time to droop the spark plug wires, the twisted strand wire I used maintained its "spider-legs" memory and wouldn't snuggle down along the upper side of the heads.

doesn't look horrific - just very symmetrical and not extremely realistic. so it might be worth trying to see if your wire will behave for the spot you're intending to use it before grabbing the ACC.

Edited September 18, 2014 by southpier

[railbuilderdhd]

So what is the correct wire gauge for scale 1/24-25 scale spark plug wires? Or what would the correct original size of the wires on average?

 

Dave

[Ace-Garageguy]

17 minutes ago, railbuilderdhd said:

So what is the correct wire gauge for scale 1/24-25 scale spark plug wires? Or what would the correct original size of the wires on average?

Wire gauge refers to the size of the conductor INSIDE the insulation. Insulation thickness, and therefore OUTSIDE diameter, can vary.

In 1/24 - 1/25 scale, for older stock wires, a good diameter is around .013". Later-model and high-performance wires will look about right at .016".

[railbuilderdhd]

 Thanks for the tip, I wasn't thinking about hte AWG being the wire and not the cover.  TGrsfgfsdbdb nhdThanks for the tip. I wasn't even thinking about the AWG being the wire and not the cover. 

Dave