OgreMike
Active Member
Hello everyone. I’m wiring up my very first home layout (DCC), but “currently” (pun intended), I’m overwrought with trying to wire up the teeny, tiny Atlas switch machines to an old AC transformer. I’m finding out that wiring these tiny machines with their tinier wires is a tedium and a stress that I’d definitely like to reduce! I’ve already learned that I’ll need a Capacitor Discharge Unit (CDU) to fire multiple Atlas machines at once such as at crossovers, since there’s not enough power to fire more than one at a time without something to provide an extra burst like the CDU is designed for. But my real question for any and everyone . . . How for the love of Pete do you handle and work with such small wires (24 gauge?) with the kind of shaky hands an old fellow like myself has? With wires that small, I can’t strip the insulation off with any of the tools I have without often cutting the whole wire!! Do “they” make wire strippers for such small gauge wire? Also, do you all solder such small connection wires? Or simply use heat shrink wrapping? What’s the best way(s) to work with such small wires? If you solder, can you please elaborate as to how or point me to a video perhaps? Bear in mind that these Atlas switch machine wires are relatively short, and coming out under the layout framework can mean very little room to work in an otherwise awkwardly small space! Help! Mike