Wire & cable

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“Wire” and “cable” are almost interchangeable terms, but “wire” is usually understood to have a single (solid or stranded) conductor while cable has multiple insulated conductors within an outer jacket. There are many types of wire and cable, and they all have different uses.

The gauge of a wire measures its diameter. A thicker wire has less resistance and is capable of carrying more current, while thinner wires are typically cheaper, more flexible and easier to install. In North America, wire gauge has been standardized since 1857 under the AWG system. A larger AWG number has a smaller diameter, so a 22 AWG wire will be thicker than a 24 AWG wire.

Choosing a wire gauge for a particular application involves weighing the expected voltage and current of the wire against the physical demands of its installation. The weakest part of a wire is usually the point where it is terminated. Very thin wires are susceptible to breaking at their termination point if the terminal is too heavy for the wire, or if the wire is subject to a lot of mechanical stress. It is common for older instruments to stop working simply because a wire has snapped at its terminal or otherwise fallen out of place.

Insulation is another thing that differentiates different types of wire and cable. Most wire insulation is plastic, but, in the 1950s, it was very common for wires to have cloth jacketing. Many types of plastic melt when exposed to high heat—including the heat of a soldering iron. Other plastics, like PTFE (Teflon) are extremely heat-resistant, but are more expensive and somewhat difficult to work with due to their slippery texture. So, knowing the type of wire insulation in a given circuit can be evidence of a range of engineering and cost-benefit decisions.