Pros, cons, and conversion factors when substituting wire materials.

Historically, almost all high-efficiency motors were wound with copper wire. However, to cut manufacturing costs and reduce weight, many modern consumer appliances use aluminum magnet wire.

Aluminum has a higher electrical resistance than copper. If you are rewinding a burned-out aluminum motor using copper wire, you can technically use a slightly thinner wire gauge because copper is a vastly superior conductor.

Conversely, if you must replace a copper winding with aluminum, you must increase the cross-sectional area by approximately 60% to maintain the same current capacity. Always ensure the larger aluminum bundle will actually fit inside the stator slots before committing to this change.