An easy way to estimate this is:
Not perfect, but it will get you close enough.
ruins the taste imo
So wire gauge is calculated in kcmils (don’t get me started on this stupid measurement system) which is a circular volume of cross section but the nice part of the system is it is math is basically decimal inches diameter x 1000. One thing that’s good also is adding circular dimensions is easier because just using the total cross section isn’t equivalent to the total of each individual strand as dar as electrical resistance is concerned.
The braid that is rated as a conductor will have the rating available which corresponds to this dimension. Because it isn’t insulated it is probably best to avoid the published rating and instead use the equivalent cross section because battery use case will be enclosed and not free air like is assumed by bare conductor ratings?
Example:
This is just from an amazon ad, bulk buying from other sources is harder but going to a local electrical supplier will usually get you genuine awg equivalents as all the stuff they sell here in the us has to be listed. The mix of units in this ad contributes to the confusion so I’m just gonna use metric. Because i can easily find awg to metric equivalent tables.
40 strands of 10 .12mm wires
.12mm is apparently between 36 and 37 awg which has an area of between .0127mm2 and .01mm2. But im going to use .01 because math is easier
.01 x 10 x 40 is 4mm2. Or just shy of 11awg with some margin.
So this example is probably good for 40-50 green column or 80-100 red column
I’ve got two taste buds left and both of them disagree. Mapp is the good - pure oxyacetylene is best
I dont trust braid so much soldering. Most have a thinnnnnnnnn strip of solder. I have it soldered over a broad area. Ridiculous even.
Did the builder ever come to a conclusion on why this happened?
Looks to me like the braid was soaked with flux and hard.
Or potentially the braid was too short, so when the board flexed it would want to rip it in half?
Regardless of if there is a distinct separation between the solder pool and the shiny braid, the braid can still easily become soaked with flux/solder.
Especially when it’s thinner braid (1/2 inch like pictured) and a shorter strip.
In some of my personal tests braid that’s soaked w/ flux is hard and will crunch and buckle when flexed. It seems clear to me that it wouldn’t hold up to repeated flex over time when testing. Also note that the joint may flex perfectly fine when freshly soldered and hot.
Looking at that picture also seems kinda suspicious that there’s no burns or discoloration on the braid. Without more context it looks like it didn’t fail in use - as I d think as the braid broke resistance would go way up and it would show evidence of overheating and even if fully broken but in close contact it would arc and spark. Seems like it failed during demolition or as the board was moved around and the packs sliding around messed it up. Without context it’s hardly worth speculation
Are there any obvious downsides to stripping a few 12/14 AWG wires in place of braid for height saving? I can’t see a reason it’d cause more solder wicking, but the lack of silicone seems like it could make fatigue a bigger issue
It would depend on the wire, but removing the jacketing from the silicone wire I have here seems like it would just be more hassle than it’s worth.
Not sure if it’s available but could a 16g (or something like that) silicone ribbon wire could be an alternative to braid?
Has insulation, might not wick as much, small diameter, neat arrangement with wires all connected…? 
Might be better doing multiple parallel smaller gauge wire
This is meant to be a rigid pack, in a rigid deck/enclosure. The braid helped keep it lower, since it seems the vertical space in the enclosure isn’t generous enough to allow a thick top layer of conductors.
So sure, braid probably isn’t really appropriate for flexing jumpers across segments of an enclosure, but I don’t think it’s so hazardous as to avoid using it ever.
