I use this method under my baseboards for keeping the bus wire taut. Using two screw in eyelettes per bus wire and a few cable ties, you can keep the bus wire tensioned all the time. Screw the eyelettes into the end of the baseboard frame. Make a loose loop from a large cable tie and fold the bus wire over this and secure it tightly with a smaller cable tie. You may wish to fold the bus wire back over again and secure with another two small cable ties. Repeat this at the opposite end. Now the larger looped cable ties can be tensioned up, pulling the bus wire taut. Using three cable ties guarantees no slippage on the securing of the bus wire. Cheers, Gary.
This may sound like a stupid question, but if the bus wires are clipped in place and supported, why do you need to tension them.
No such thing as a stupid question Steve ! I exhibit my layouts which are plank/shelf style, which means a fair bit of moving the layouts around. Moving layouts about could result in snagging the wiring beneath the base board. I generally run the bus wires from one end of the layout to the other and have them supported/tensioned as in the diagrams. All my droppers are soldered to the bus wires (no droppers at the ends) and the droppers do not allow such support as it may on a permanent layout. Cheers, Gary.
Gary - a further thought. Using a bit of bungee cord tied in a loop somewhere in the chain between eyelet and bus would retain tension, but also a little bit of 'give' if you ever snagged it whilst moving it about - the amount of 'give' being determined by the diameter of bungee cord used and the overall size of the loop. I go sailing a fair bit, and it's useful for keeping certain ropes under tension - you can get various diameters from about 3 or 4 mm upwards from Yacht Chandlers - normally one or two near yachting centres, or lots on line. Dave C
