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soldering milspec
- Thread starter prkaye
- Start date
I may not be understanding your description Phil, but if I am, what you want to do is tin the connector - heat it with the iron, and touch the solder to it until it flows into the depression. Then tin th stripped end of the wire. Now touch the connector with the iron to make it hot, touch the tinned wire to where you want it, and the two should flow together, with the wire in the depression, encapsulated in solder. Remove heat, slide on the heat shrink.
Paul
Paul
rv7charlie
Well Known Member
practice, practice, practice
I'd consider modifying Paul's technique a bit. I don't attempt to tin the connector's pins because it usually makes it difficult to insert the wire. (The pins are typically gold plated and accept solder easily.)
If you strip only enough wire to fit in the cup, tin the wire without melting the insulation, and use good technique when soldering, you won't need heat shrink. The technique is to insert the pre-tinned wire in the cup and heat the cup with the iron. If you have everything stabilized without having to hold it, you can add solder, *if needed*, with your free hand.
Don't let anything move until it cools, and let it cool naturally (don't blow on it). A few seconds is usually enough on a small joint like this.
Using crimp-type pins is a good idea if you don't want the learning curve for solder, but they cost a lot more and until recently, the proper tools were ridiculously expensive.
Charlie
I'd consider modifying Paul's technique a bit. I don't attempt to tin the connector's pins because it usually makes it difficult to insert the wire. (The pins are typically gold plated and accept solder easily.)
If you strip only enough wire to fit in the cup, tin the wire without melting the insulation, and use good technique when soldering, you won't need heat shrink. The technique is to insert the pre-tinned wire in the cup and heat the cup with the iron. If you have everything stabilized without having to hold it, you can add solder, *if needed*, with your free hand.
Don't let anything move until it cools, and let it cool naturally (don't blow on it). A few seconds is usually enough on a small joint like this.
Using crimp-type pins is a good idea if you don't want the learning curve for solder, but they cost a lot more and until recently, the proper tools were ridiculously expensive.
Charlie
One addition to soldering a gold plated contact.
After tinning the contact, you need to use solder wick and remove the solder. This is reported to help eliminate hydrogen embroilment. After you remove the solder from the gold contact, you are ready to tin it and solder the wire in. Removal of the first solder going in the gold contact is the way I was taught when I was CERTIFICATED to solder for space flight connections. I think it was an old NASA spec that required it.
I prefer to use mil-spec crimp connectors and only solder if I can find no other way to do the job.
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I concur with the additions to my comments! I was a little too brief in my explanation....
fl-mike
Well Known Member
Regarding the gold embrittlement issue: I don't know of any reputable connector manufacturer that makes solder cup style connectors that require a de-golding operation. The pins are usually selectively plated with the gold only on the contact area. The solder cup is usually tin plated.
This is something that our fellow builders should NOT worry about.
No need to add another "your wings will fall off if you don't do this" boogeyman to the list.
This is something that our fellow builders should NOT worry about.
No need to add another "your wings will fall off if you don't do this" boogeyman to the list.
briand
Well Known Member
I wouldn't do the dbl. tinning either. Tin the wire fast (with flux) to prevent solder from wicking into the insulated portion of the wire. If you birdcage the wire at any time clip it and start over.
Use 63/37 solder. If you really want to have fun you can use lead-free.
Don't move the wire until the joint is solid and don't crank your heat all the way up, you should only need about 500F with 63/37.
Use flux, the liquid RMA kind in a Soldering Flux Bottle works the best.
http://www.phonetechsupply.com/product_info.php?products_id=98
I skip the heat shrink on solder cups and pot the whole back of the connector with RTV. Sure if you have to service any one wire you have to replace the whole connector, but all your wires will be the same length. I don't like having one wire shorter and at ~$0.30-$0.50/ea. it's not like you can't afford to have extra connectors around.
Then clean your excess flux with a brush and Isopropyl Alcohol. Do this right away because the flux residue gets harder to remove the longer it sits. The mil-standard 2000 required it to be done within 24 hours, IIRC.
Oh yea, leave one wire dia. of insulation clearance between the end of the insulation and the top of the cup.
http://www.omnitraining.com/images/poster_term_c.jpg
http://www.empf.org/empfasis/2007/Aug07/images/techtips_fig1.gif
Use 63/37 solder. If you really want to have fun you can use lead-free.
Don't move the wire until the joint is solid and don't crank your heat all the way up, you should only need about 500F with 63/37.
Use flux, the liquid RMA kind in a Soldering Flux Bottle works the best.
http://www.phonetechsupply.com/product_info.php?products_id=98
I skip the heat shrink on solder cups and pot the whole back of the connector with RTV. Sure if you have to service any one wire you have to replace the whole connector, but all your wires will be the same length. I don't like having one wire shorter and at ~$0.30-$0.50/ea. it's not like you can't afford to have extra connectors around.
Then clean your excess flux with a brush and Isopropyl Alcohol. Do this right away because the flux residue gets harder to remove the longer it sits. The mil-standard 2000 required it to be done within 24 hours, IIRC.
Oh yea, leave one wire dia. of insulation clearance between the end of the insulation and the top of the cup.
http://www.omnitraining.com/images/poster_term_c.jpg
http://www.empf.org/empfasis/2007/Aug07/images/techtips_fig1.gif
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Here's the best tip. Throw them away and put crimp connectors on there...at some point down the road you'll be glad you did!
Cheers,
Stein
