I KNOW IT'S BAD TO UNDERSIZE WIRE, BUT IS IT ALSO BAD TO OVERSIZE? LIKE IF A CIRCUIT ONLY NEEDED A #16 GAUGE WIRE, AND I USED A #14 OR #12 GAUGE WIRE, ( OTHER THAN THE COST OF THE WIRE AND HARDER TO WORK WITH) WOULD IT AFFECT THE FLOW OF CURRENT? LIKE USING A 2" FIRE HOSE TO WATER YOUR GARDEN FROM YOUR HOUSE FAUCET.
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Nope, just more expensive, and more difficult to work with. If you need to connect to the terminals on most toy trains, you might have difficulty if the wire is too large, Some of the terminals and Fahnestock clips are fairly small.
I KNOW IT'S BAD TO UNDERSIZE WIRE, BUT IS IT ALSO BAD TO OVERSIZE? LIKE IF A CIRCUIT ONLY NEEDED A #16 GAUGE WIRE, AND I USED A #14 OR #12 GAUGE WIRE, ( OTHER THAN THE COST OF THE WIRE AND HARDER TO WORK WITH) WOULD IT AFFECT THE FLOW OF CURRENT? LIKE USING A 2" FIRE HOSE TO WATER YOUR GARDEN FROM YOUR HOUSE FAUCET.
Interesting because of the common and usually helpful comparison on current flow and water thru a hose. In the case of the water thru a hose, the water flows slowly because of the large volume in the 2 inch hose that the faucet cannot fill. In the case of current thru a wire, the current flows as an electromagnetic wave, not the movement of electrons, and flows roughly the speed of light mostly regardless of the size of the wire or medium.
I agree with mlewski and C.W. For some reason, I have found that voltage drop always turns out to be more than Ohm's Law says it should be.
Miewski
Good choice for wire runs.
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