Terry wrote:

This sounds like what we call a California 3 - way. I Google for it
and found many messages about it but the only drawing I found was
wrong.

In a California splice you have only 3 wires going to the next 3 way
switch (out to the garage) It is connected so that you are switching
the neutral. This will allow the light switch as expected but, as
others have pointed out, would make the screw shell of the light hot.


That is not a California 3-way. A California 3-way does not switch the
neutral and is legal.


This is a California 3-way:

H ------------------------------
| |
O O
o----o
O O
|----------------|
| |
lite lite
| |
N -----------------------------

A California 3-way is rather clever and is an advantage only when you
need power at the far end and a common-switched light at each end. It
is, on the other hand, much harder to troubleshoot. You can not wire it
with Romex (or other cable) anymore unless it is 4 wire cable.

So Now I know another way to wire 3-way switches. Now, I mentally add
it to the 2 I already posted diagrams of.

It does take more wires, though.

It uses fewer wires if there is power at the far end and a
common-switched light at *both* ends. See the jpg below.

And like I said, a California is much harder to troubleshoot. If you run
across one and don't know what a California 3-way is, you may have big
problems. The first problem is figuring out the circuit is not a
conventional 3-way. Then it still is more difficult. The tipoff may be
both power and switched light at both ends with 4 wires. But I once
worked with a guy that made all 3-ways a California (the jerk).



I tried to work out what he describes. It takes the same number of
wires as near as I can tell using either setup. I can't follow those
ASCII drawings.

I made a very rough sketch.

http://i15.tinypic.com/2edma6p.jpg

As your sketch shows, using a Califorina 3-way *4* wires are required.
As your sketch shows, a conventional 3-way takes *5* wires. (Your sketch
may have a redundant wire on the California ckt - not obvious if the dim
line is intended to be a wire.)



From you other post:
"You even admit that you can not do without using 4 wires anymore."

I said it couldn't be run with cable. It can be run with a raceway and 4
fished wires. In the past it would have been run with 2 2-wire Romexes.
The NEC was changed (1996?) to require all circuit conductors to be in
the same raceway or cable (300.3-B). That requires 4 conductor Romex,
which is going to be hard to find. The conventional 3-way at the bottom
of your jpg now requires a 3-wire Romex and 2 2-wire Romexes (7 wires
with cable - or 5 if fished). (Presumably 4 wire Romex is becoming more
available to run 2 branch circuits without a common neutral.)

--
bud--