Electrical Tips for Rookies

[Stephen Kowski]

just a few things that you can buy to make things a little easier are Monster Cable Power Wire it is very difficult to find, but if you find very the extremely high strand gauge wire it feels similar to a piece of liquorice in your hand and makes it extremely easy to organize you wiring. Also for major components that may need to be changed quickly (besides the battery) you may want to try Anderson Powerpoles they are quick to disconnect (think a smaller version of the battery connector, but for a single wire) and very sturdy.

[suneel112]

For COMPLETE ROOKIES:

Red is to red as black is to black. Do not short circuit batteries. If you must hook up a FIRST battery to something powerful, put a 1.6Mohm resistor on the circuit to avoid part damage.
Also, use the Speed Controllers very carefully. They're $125 per part.
When machining a robot, put a paper towel or grease towel on top of your circuitry. A tiny aluminum flake can destroy hours and thousands of dollars of work.
Thou shalt not use thine aluminum frame as a grounding device.

[Billfred]

One thing to add to the list--don't use too little wire, either. Leave some slack, just in case something shifts. (bites tongue before he tells a rather applicable, but somewhat off-color joke)

Trust me, crazy things happen.