[Danny]

How critical is the wire gage connecting variable capacitor to coils.
I used real thin wire. Could that be the reason I can't this 116 going?
 

[morzh]

The cap to coils should be regular wire, not too thin. I am not sure this is the reason for whatever troubles you are having but the thinner the wire the more inductive it is and the inductance will distort the coil-to-cap connection and can, at least potentially, shift your frequencies.