Hi all.
New guy here. I've been reading through the forum and seeing many members advise soldering their wires together. I respectfully disagree. One should use quality sealed connectors that crimp onto the wires in vehicle applications.
I'm not saying those cheapy little butt connectors are any good. If you're dropping coin on a quality build, a few bucks on a good automotive grade connector is the way to go. Crimping the pins can take a little skill and creativity if you do't have the correct crimping tool.
The problem with soldered joints in a vehicle application is vibration-induced fatigue. the transition point between bare wire and solder, strands will crack and fray.
If you have an electronics device of some sort on a vehicle, it may have headers at the circuit board rather than bare wire soldered to a pad, or the wire is kept from vibrating at the joint with some sort of strain relief. In any case, the idea is to prevent vibration at the joint.
If you're not worried about weather, molex connectors are fine. Shoot a little silicone in the ends to seal it is not a bad idea. If you're an uptight, anal retentive perfectionist, Deutsch are as good as anything. The crimp tool is major $$$ though. If you don't plan on rewiring a lot of vehicles, probably not worth it.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
New guy here. I've been reading through the forum and seeing many members advise soldering their wires together. I respectfully disagree. One should use quality sealed connectors that crimp onto the wires in vehicle applications.
I'm not saying those cheapy little butt connectors are any good. If you're dropping coin on a quality build, a few bucks on a good automotive grade connector is the way to go. Crimping the pins can take a little skill and creativity if you do't have the correct crimping tool.
The problem with soldered joints in a vehicle application is vibration-induced fatigue. the transition point between bare wire and solder, strands will crack and fray.
If you have an electronics device of some sort on a vehicle, it may have headers at the circuit board rather than bare wire soldered to a pad, or the wire is kept from vibrating at the joint with some sort of strain relief. In any case, the idea is to prevent vibration at the joint.
If you're not worried about weather, molex connectors are fine. Shoot a little silicone in the ends to seal it is not a bad idea. If you're an uptight, anal retentive perfectionist, Deutsch are as good as anything. The crimp tool is major $$$ though. If you don't plan on rewiring a lot of vehicles, probably not worth it.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
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