Your prefernce for Cabinet Wiring

[JerryFlyGuy]

I'm back, plugging away on my re-wire and looking at what I've got for wiring and space and wondering...

If you have two components in a cabinet that are connected, do you wire them directly or is your preference to wire them each to a common Terminal block first? [talking TTL level control stuff]

Things that come into the cabinet from outside it, are easy candidates for wiring to a terminal block but... inside and on direct connections [ie board to board]?

Curious..

JFG

[Al_The_Man]

The question is a bit general but for the most part, but I usually link them with a continuous conductor but this assumes at least one or both have a entry connector of some kind?
The one down side is if the entry connector is covered and not a screw terminal, it is tricky to monitor a signal if you have to.
I would not connect two systems with which were not capable of being unplugged somehow, i.e. soldered connection etc.
Al.

[JerryFlyGuy]

Sorry, it is a very general question.. hard to nail it down to exact facts but in the simple strokes, I've got boards [everything has screw terms or Dsub plugs for connection on each board] that I've got to connect. Ie a 0.100 x 14 plug on my servo drive going to my Break out board for step/direction. I could either go directly from the plug [it's a ribbon cable so.. need to split out the wires] over to the breakout board or.. I could go to a Terminal [Din rail -12 series Terminal Blocks] then to the break out board. It would double the number of wires but also 'sorta' organize things a bit better than wires running in panduits ....every which way/direction. I'm leaning towards the direct wiring method w/ some deviations for various control stuff.. going to relays.. fuses.. disconnects etc which i would run through an Din rail terminal block. Things like these ribbon cables are a pain.. I'd been thinking they should be split and run directly into a Din rail Term Block, then to the BOB but... not sure ...

More just a general question of 'what is your rules when building your cabinet' type thing...

Hope that ramble makes sense

JFG

[Al_The_Man]

If I have to break out ribbon to terminated cable I use the DIN rail ribbon to screw terminal.
e.g. ebay 180830635388 there are other makes and sizes, if that is what you mean?.
There is also shielded ribbon cable if you need it.
I prefer not to put ribbon under terminal screw.
Al.

[JerryFlyGuy]

Interesting! I've never seen one just like that Al!.... that is certainly one way of getting the job done.. a little pricy but I think it'd be worth it? I've got to look into this a bit more.. I've got 4 [up to 6] 8 x 2 headers, 4- 5 x2 headers and 4- 15p D-sub connectors that I would/could use a ribbon cable with in the cabinet. [shielded of course]. I would keep these as extremely short ribbon runs to the term block and then wire them from there to there respective corners of the cabinet[boards]. My problem is I'm running out of Din rail space to put all this stuff in. Doing things this way.. I've got something like 600 term blocks on rail for the complete system.. ugh..

off to see what I can find for other sizes of these term blocks.

JFG

[Al_The_Man]

If your patient you can find some of the ribbon to terminal alot cheaper come up on ebay.
other makes are Phoenix Contact Allen Bradley & Idec among others.
251007175943
Al.