wire gauge question, new battery cables

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

so i bought new battery cables and they have pig tails which are 12 gauge i think. the cables are only 4 positive and negative. they did not have 2 gauge positive cables. i have no idea why...
so i'm crimping wires to the pig tails and i have 10 gauge going to the alternator on the positive cable, is this acceptable? i think 10 gauge is the right size. also i'm thinking of using the 10 gauge for the ground to the inner fender or is a 14 gauge ok for that one? i dont have 12 gauge wire for some reason, i thought i did.

i would rather have gotten AC delco cables but i can get those later as they cost more and i needed new ones now so i can junk the old ones. but i am keeping them for the copper, lots in them!

i dont like the ends that bolt up to the side of the battery, they're not covered like the factory ones. they seem ok otherwise though.

 

[454muscle]

Are you sure you know what 10 and 14 gauge cables look like? I ask because that sound's way too small for ground strap and alternator (I could be wrong, someone correct me). Ideally, I'd go with 4 gauge cable for battery ground to engine and another 4 gauge to the frame. I'd go 8 gauge for alternator power wire, and 8 gauge for battery ground to the body.

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

Are you sure you know what 10 and 14 gauge cables look like? I ask because that sound's way too small for ground strap and alternator (I could be wrong, someone correct me). Ideally, I'd go with 4 gauge cable for battery ground to engine and another 4 gauge to the frame. I'd go 8 gauge for alternator power wire, and 8 gauge for battery ground to the body.

yes i checked, the wire stripper i have strips each one according to gauge and they only fit in the 14 and 10 gauge holes. the 10 gauge doesnt appear any smaller than the wire on the factory cable going to the alternator and i know it's not smaller than the pig tail on the negative factory cable as that one looks like a 12. i say looks like because the insulation is somewhat melted. where it hasnt melted it looks like 12.

if i went with 8 gauge wouldnt that just put more "load" on the smaller pigtail? i'm asking because i dont see anything that indicates fusible link on the factory ones.

the 10 gauge for the alternator MAY be one size smaller than factory and if it is i'll make sure to get heavier wire. but i know the ground wire on the factory cable is probably not even 10. it looks like 12 but it may have thinner insulation making it look thinner. 10 gauge wire i have has a good amount of insulation around it so it may just make it look bigger than the ground wire but also might make it look like the same size as the wire to the alternator on the factory cable.

i'm 100% sure about the negative cable, 90% with the positive. the positive may need 8 and to be honest i dont think it would hurt but the butt connector (i hate these things, soldering is far better) is a 12/10 gauge connector so 8 gauge wont fit and while yes i know i can get another connector i'm not sure 8 gauge is needed.

the car is stock, the engine is pretty much stock, i have power nothing except brakes and they only need vacuum lol. the most i have is an electric fan pulling like 14 amps and the extra wire i used to install it is what i'm using with the cables. the fan hasnt had a problem with the wiring yet and i put it in many years ago. so the loads on the system are still pretty minimal IMO.

i know wiring but when it comes to charging and starting i dont like to mess around and i want others with experience with god awful universal battery cables to give me a little insight on them. i still think 4 gauge for a positive cable is BS but it doesnt look any smaller than the one already in the car and it's factory. i'm going to reconfirm all of this tomorrow during the day. if the wires all look to be of the same gauge i'm just putting it all in tomorrow. i dont want to cut the wire on the factory cables but they need replacing anyway.

i still think butt connectors on battery cables is just a failure waiting to happen.

 

[454muscle]

Well that's a good plan. Keep them the same size as factory, considering you don't have additional amp draw. If different, I'd opt to go bigger rather than smaller. Also consider one more thing: the cables used from the factory are different density (different metal strands) than ones used for stereo system installations. So a factory cable will have less resistance and will also look smaller than an aftermarket stereo system power cable.

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

Well that's a good plan. Keep them the same size as factory, considering you don't have additional amp draw. If different, I'd opt to go bigger rather than smaller. Also consider one more thing: the cables used from the factory are different density (different metal strands) than ones used for stereo system installations. So a factory cable will have less resistance and will also look smaller than an aftermarket stereo system power cable.

thats why i dont use stereo system cables and wires, they're a whole other animal i just dont want to fool with. they're made for stereo equipment for a reason.

the 10 gauge wire IS thicker than the ground wire on the factory cable and around the same size as the one going to the alternator so it all looks good. even the cables look like the same size. it's way too hot and humid for this crap and im not putting them in today. the weather has been unseasonably hot. it feels like august and its only june.

humidity has to be the work of the devil. curse you humidity!

 

[454muscle]

Humidity sucks... Got any pictures of your GP? I wanna see! 🙂

 

[FE3X CLONE]

On my car I have 1 gauge positive and negative cables with an 8ga alternator wire and 8-10ga negative wire to fender. In my opinion you can never go too big for these items. Especially with grounds. The more grounds you have the better off you are.

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

On my car I have 1 gauge positive and negative cables with an 8ga alternator wire and 8-10ga negative wire to fender. In my opinion you can never go too big for these items. Especially with grounds. The more grounds you have the better off you are.

i bought a side terminal bolt that allows me to add wires onto it so i can run redundant grounds to the frame and other parts of the car, not just the stock location.

not sure where you got 1 gauge wires but the local oriellys didnt have them. i only had 40 bucks to spend.

 

[FE3X CLONE]

I had the wire left over from years ago. I bought I think 25' of the stuff from Jeg's years ago. It was basically a battery relocation kit without the battery box.

I just cut it to lenght then crimp and solder new ends on.

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

I had the wire left over from years ago. I bought I think 25' of the stuff from Jeg's years ago. It was basically a battery relocation kit without the battery box.

I just cut it to lenght then crimp and solder new ends on.

i think 1 gauge might be overkill for me. yes i know you can technically never go too big but i dont think such measures are necessary but is something to consider in the future.

and the heat and humidity were unbearable today. didnt even think about working on the car. god is punishing the ohio and tennessee valleys.