Vintage Rewiring tips and tricks.

[Bowl987]

Hello all,

My electric and soldering skills are novice. I know how to use a multimeter and understand basic circuits. I'd like to learn more. Please post any of your tips and tricks here. Examples of the supplies you use would be helpfull to me - bulb types, wire gauge, terminals, etc. I'm about to rewire the machine below so any knowledge shared would be appreciated.

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[sparky kilowatt]

I'm by no means an expert, but I've replaced all the soldered connections on the last few machines I've restored, where I had to extend or replace wires, I've used 18 gauge stranded, but 20 would work just fine for such low amperage. For a power source, I like to use a 9v battery and a little box with an on / off switch I get off of Amazon. I like to replace the lamps with the LED's pictured below that I've gotten off of Ebay, they're small and use far less power than an incandescent bulb, so the 9v battery has no problem powering 4 lights, maybe even more. If you decide to go with these LED's, you have to make sure the polarity on the lamp sockets (Ebay as well) is the same for all lights, in other words the center of the socket should be positive + and the threaded socket should be negative -, otherwise they won't all light.

[Bowl987]

I'm by no means an expert, but I've replaced all the soldered connections on the last few machines I've restored, where I had to extend or replace wires, I've used 18 gauge stranded, but 20 would work just fine for such low amperage. For a power source, I like to use a 9v battery and a little box with an on / off switch I get off of Amazon. I like to replace the lamps with the LED's pictured below that I've gotten off of Ebay, they're small and use far less power than an incandescent bulb, so the 9v battery has no problem powering 4 lights, maybe even more. If you decide to go with these LED's, you have to make sure the polarity on the lamp sockets (Ebay as well) is the same for all lights, in other words the center of the socket should be positive + and the threaded socket should be negative -, otherwise they won't all light.

Thanks for the info. I've got some leds on the way. The battery case with the on/off switch is a nice touch.

[sparky kilowatt]

The wire that comes out of the battery box is pretty small gauge, when you put it under the set screws of the fuse block, it tends to break some strands. I strip some extra off, fold it back over to double it up, twist it and then tin it with some solder before I put it in the fuse block.

[machgo]

E10_sockets.jpg

I would recommend new sockets. Socket size is E10. Disregard the bulbs in the image--you can find better, flat LED bulbs that will fit better in the machine.

I would replace all the wiring since you want to work on your soldering skills anyway. Silicone jacketed wire is NICE to work with, but pricier than "regular" wire...