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Re: (ET) wiring



Ferguson Apiaries said the following on 4/12/2006 10:33 AM:
I use 400 amp speaker wire that I got cheap for a 12v hydraulic power pack.  It is amazing what this small wire will carry. It has a lot of small wires in it and very flexible.  I have used it for close to 10 years now with no trouble..
Ferguson Apiaries
Hensall, On
I'm afraid I'm not quite sure what the context of your note was, but my mind is reeling at the thought of 400 Amp speaker wire.  Or maybe more at the thought of 400 amps feeding a speaker.  If we're talking an 8 ohm speaker, that would be over a megawatt of power - yikes!  I confess that I went to some loud concerts in my younger days, but I'm not sure I'd want to be on the same planet with speakers that were pulling that kinda juice.  And as far as wire size goes, I use 2/0 welding cable in my EV where peak load is 400 amps.  The stuff, finely stranded, is roughly 1/2 inch diameter of the conductor, near 3/4 inch with the insulation.  Even solid 2/0 wire is about 1/3 inch in diameter of copper - not exactly what I'd call "small."

So I'm not sure what this wire is of which you speak, but if it is described as speaker wire and is "small", I don't think I'd want to put anywhere near 400 amps through it.  And of course our ETs aren't pulling anywhere near 400 amps, so we can get by with something a bit more modest, but still not anything I'd expect to see as speaker wire. 

- Tom Coate
Purcellville, VA
E-20 Elec-Trak
1993 120V Escort EV