Technical Battery cable size

Well I know that the bore of a 12 gauge is the size of a ball of lead that equals 12 to a pound... One tenth of a pound of lead in ball shape is the diameter of a 10 gauge....
and a 20gauge is the diameter of a ball of lead that's 20 to a lb.
After that it all gets fuzzy.

-rick

 

You do realize that #4 cable is NOT the same thing as 4/0 cable, which is a much larger diameter.

#4 cable is what the factory likely used for the battery in your engine compartment.
4/0 cable is used when you want super overkill for a battery moved to the trunk.

 

Jesus man…you’re mistaken on this. 4 gauge wire is smaller than 2 gauge wire, 4 ought wire which is what you said, is bigger than 2 ought. You can spin it however you want but it doesn’t change that fact.

 

^^ He ain't been clear on this yet.

Mr. 48: Think of 4/0 wire by its proper designation- 0000.

 

I may be getting 4 gauge and 4/0 mixed up as I was only thinking in automotive sizes,

Still we have gotten way to hell and gone off base from the OP's original question about battery cables. And that goes back to the simple answer that the heavier cables required for 6 volt operation will work better for 12 volt operation than the quite 12 volt cables. If you go out and crank your big engine hot rod and then reach down and grab that "12 volt cable" and it is hot that cable is too small to carry the amp load that your starter is demanding from the battery.
Then it all went down hill from there when someone dug up an industrial electric wiring chart that lists electric cable sizes all together different than automotive does.

Probably the reason that when it comes to AC electrical for my house or garage I call one of my brothers who are both Journeymen electricians to do the work rather than dealing with it myself too.

I've probably been wrong on the 1/0 and 4/0 or 00 wire sizes for the past 50 years ago as it was always my info that the higher the number the smaller the cable.

 

Another chart that doesn't apply to welding cable or fine strand cable.

 

Where can I ask about oil filters, oil brands, or spark plug brands?

 

What a shame Fram doesn't make spark plugs. We could simplify the discussion.

 

I like the OP plan on installing the battery in the trunk. What I’ve learned:
-Most short run universal cables are 2 ga.
-Many package trunk mount kits 16 ft are 1 ga. Some are 00.
-Automotive battery cable is oil and gas resistant and has fine stranded wire.
-Most welding cable is not oil and gas resistant but you can indeed get oil and gas resistant welding cable. Also fine stranded.
-Welding cable will work , your ride should be relatively clean, oil and gas leaks should be fixed.
-Fine stranded wire has a higher amp rating per gauge, should’ve and maybe did know this. To this end you should use a chart for the given wire.
Dan

 

If nothing else , this thread , full of faults, should be viewed as the reason why folks default to battery cables for large diesel engines rather than sizing them for what they're intended to do . Ultimately , the thing that get hurt the most is their wallets ....... Kinda sad .

 

Great thread.
I learned a lot of good things and a lot of bad things.
I'm sure I'm not the only schmo who needed the education.

 

And a LOT of BS. Mostly good. Just when I think I am knowledge about something I learn. .AGAIN!

Ben

 

I guess it's a good thing this question comes up about every 6 months and usually goes the same way, I'm pretty forgetful so it keeps reminding me...

.

 

Lane,

Thanks for this pic. I've saved it and now I won't have to explode my brain trying to figure out what wire size I need.

I've been following along on this thread 'cause I'm about to run a new wire from my rear mounted battery forward (to new remote battery terminals in the engine bay) on Clarence.