Soldering in lugs?
I saw an interesting way to handle battery lugs (the ones that are sealed: 1: Put heat shrink tubing on, move it well away from where the action is going to take place. 2: Pour molten solder i...
Forum Discussion
TechWriter wrote:RoyB wrote:
There is a special 'art' when soldering connections that only a select few will master that over the years.
x2 - I tried, and was not one of the select few. Went to crimping and was far more successful.
There is no "special art" involved nor "luck" to making good solder connections.
It is more about UNDERSTANDING a few key and important items.
#1 CLEAN contamination free wire.
#2 Proper heat source sized to the wire AND termination (IE 250W solder gun does not make a good heat source for 20 gauge wire).
#3 Proper solder for the material to be soldered (do not use plumbing solder and plumbing flux for electrical connections)
#4 PATIENCE.. Takes a certain amount of time to get wire and connector to the proper temperature to melt the solder but yet not apply too much heat which will melt the insulation and also overheat the wire causing the solder to not properly tin and bond to the wire.
#5 ALWAYS check the wire temp with your solder, simply put apply heat then start touching the solder to the wire.. When the wire and connector reach the proper solder melting point the solder will melt when touched and as long as wire and connecter are clean the solder will wick right in.. Sometimes you will need to remove the heat for a moment or two to prevent overheating, if removed too long the solder will no longer melt and if you need more solder simply reapply the heat source. Repeat until you have the amount of solder in the connection you desire.
Practice on some scrap wire will go a long way to making good solder joints!
Overheating is the number one mistake made and one that IS easy to avoid.
Take a look at how I made my OWN "ends" for 1/0 wire.. See page 37.
HERE
