Need help with wire!!!!

[jstern429]

I am now done building my first cnc router and I am in the process of wiring this bad boy up and need some advice on what kind of wire to use to run the stepper motors. From some of the instruction manuals I have they list some cables that can be orded from the company that makes the drive but lists no specks on the cable. With a little digging I was able to find out that the cable had 16 gage conductors in it and in another place in the instruction book it stated that it needed to be in twisted pairs. In the book I got when I started this project it also stated that it needed to be shielded. I am running two Vexta motors and one Superior Electric stepper motor. Two of them are in the 600+ oz/in range (X+Y axis) and the Z axis is a 400+ on/in range. The motors are in the 3.25-4.5 amp range. The drivers are one Superior Electric SS2000MD4 and the other two are Bi-Poler driver kits that I put together (I see them on Ebay now all the time). I saw the other post on the six conductor wire that someone was looking for and that didnt realy answer all my questions (sorry) so I guess I will ask again, from all the info I have seen it seems to be telling me that I need a 4 conductor 16ga in twisted pairs that is shielded. Is this true?? Also I think that the longest run will be to the Z axis, it should be around 18 feet and the others will be much shorter than that if it makes any differance. Thanks for any help can give me.

[Karl_T]

What you suggest would certainly work well. McMaster Carr is a good source. Order today, it will be at your door tommorrow.

Karl

[jstern429]

Thanks for the input I have used McMaster Carr in the past for other hardware, but what I percieve to be the wire of choise, is it over kill for the system as this wire always seems to be in the $10 a foot range of pricing.

[Syp]

Why do you need twisted pair if your wires are shielded?

I gotta think any noise coupled from one wire to the other wire is not goign to have enough current to mess up your other coils...The shielding sounds *ok*...surely 4 conductor shielded plain 16 gauge wire is less than $10/foot.

[jstern429]

Yes you are correct a 16 gage 4 conductor shielded wire is much less than $10 a foot, I have found high flex stuff in the $1.40 range. As far as the twisted pair wire goes here is what the Superior Electric installation manual states: Cabiling from the drive to the motor should be done with a shielded, twisted-pair cable. The wires for each motor phase should be twisted to gether about six times per foot. Now the 16 goge part I got from looking on the web and finally found a company that was selling the cabling that is in the instruction manual that Superior Electric offers and they stated that it was 16 gage wire but didnt offer any other specs on the cable.