Anderson Plugs - Soldering?

I crimped and soldered mine. Use a small blowtorch or similar to heat the connector and use plenty of solder, Can't go wrong.

Greg

All Auto electricians have a Humungous crimper that will do this.
Regards Philip A

If you have an Arrid Twin Charge battery charger, then its maximum output is only 20 A maximum. At this output current they are probably 85-90% efficient. This means that the maximum input current will be in the range of 25-28 A. This makes an Anderson plug a complete overkill. You only need a flat 12 pin plug or a large round 7 pin connector. Both of these have pin ratings in excess of 30 A. By using one of these you will have a simpler trailer hook up. Why go for the extra complication of a two cable hook up?

PeterD

I am impressed with the follow up here following my first post.

Within minutes of posting this topic, I had most of the answers I need, and although I have been touring exploring Oz for 25 years, I have learnt there is alway room for improvement and more knowlege if you ask.

I used anderson plugs for a batt charger connection in the CT and soldered them as the wires were "only " 6mm2....

If the wires are too small for the lug, then crimping is a no no, as there will be a void left after crimping, which means the full surface area of the wire is not being utilised and in worst case scenario, a hot joint can develop...

Used to do a fair bit of soldered lugs years ago and didn't tin the wires 1st, but tinned them as they were inserted ( slowly ) into the lug..

Hi GNG - the pros all say CRIMP only. ( I used vice grips then a nail punch.)
The main reason for using anderson plugs with heavy wiring is to minimize voltage loss. There is a simple formula - but here is the site. Site Link
Also read 'Electrics: wiring woes' article plus the items on fridge wiring.
...............................Keith

Yep, a good quality crimp is better than soldering. But an poor quality crimp falls apart. Because I don't have the flash crimp tools, I tend to crimp and reinforce it by soldering just the tip.

Main problem with soldering is if you overdo it, and the solder creeps up the wire, away from the connector. It then becomes susceptible to breaking from vibration.

Solder only with mine and no issues to date, but can appreciate the flexing issue, if present. My cable is reinforced with outer shielding (poly irrigation pipe I think), so the ends don't bend much at all. When soldering, I just sit my terminals on the edge of a gas ring - when really hot, I pick them up with the pointy pliers and run the solder in - it pools at the bottom - I then poke the wire in and blow them cool.
Love the Andersons - great engineering - ultra simple but effective.

The anderson lug needs to be "full" of cable.....in other words the size of cable ( core size ) needs to be the same as the lug..

If it is, why not solve all discussion and crimp it 1st then solder it 2nd !! Just heat it as normal and fead the solder in ( small resin core solder is easiest )

Folks,

IMO the cable entry size on a 50amp Anderson connector (grey) is way too big to just whack in a cable, then crimp, or solder.

What you should do first, is take a single strand of copper conductor wire from a piece of stranded 240 volt electrical cable and wrap the end that is going into the Anderson connector. The tin the end with solder by heating with a small blow torch and a good quality resin cored solder.

Place the connector in a vice between a couple of pieces of wood to limit conductivity and gently heat the connector end with the blow torch.
Half fill the cable entry port with solder, then plunge the tinned cable in, keeping still and allowing the assembly to cool.

Now you will have a good quality, low resistant joint that will stand up to anything you give it.

The "secret" is in wrapping the cable with another copper wire to increase the overall diameter of the cable end, before tinning. Just something I "picked up" at Trade School many many years ago.

Yes, it is possible to crimp the cable if you have the right crimping tool but a soldered joint, done properly, will be as good, if not better. If I was crimping, I would still pre-wrap the cable first, unless the cable diameter was close to that of the conductor's cable entry port.

Or if the cable size is approx 1/2 the size of the anderson plug, double the cable over itself and feed it in to take up the slack and solder ( this method is still not recomended to crimp as all the void won't be filled )

Where's Derek on this one?

What does the manufacturer recommend?

I crimp only and some are around 10 years old with no problems. But i do take care to support the cable as near as possible to the plug and try to limit the flexing and weight supported by the crimp.

Trevor

The reason low voltage wiring should be crimped not soldered, is because of the heat produced due to the high currents under short circuits will melt the solder.
As a guide, the short circuit current of a battery is around 7 x the AH rating, ie. a 100AH battery can supply 700A. Any wiring after the protection device, fuse, circuit breaker etc could be soldered, but never solder any connections between the battery & fuse.

There is no advantage or disadvantage as to whether you solder or crimp Anderson Terminals as long as either form of fastening is done correctly.

If you by genuine Anderson plus, the data sheet that come with them describes the recommended procedure for both soldering and crimping and and if the manufacturer states both means are recommended then there is no reason to argue the pros and cons of either method.

I have been working with Anderson products for many years and I personally use both methods and have never had a problem either way.

Crimping is more convenient but must be done correctly so to both secure the wire tightly but at the same time not to split the terminal wire housing, which is very easy to do.

As for soldering, it’s nearly always an available way to connect the cable to these terminals while accessing the correct crimps may not be.

As for the size of wire, if you buy the standard 50 amp housing, the terminals supplied with them accept up to 16mm2 cable and as posted above, this size cable housing may be a bit large for the wire used in some application. If you are going to be using a few Anderson plugs with thinner wire, you can order the 50 amp Anderson plugs with smaller or larger cable housings in the terminals and they should to cost any more that the standard 50 amp plugs.

One additional point, Anderson recommend using resin core solder but as is posted above, the use of Baker’s flux will improve the solder join but if Baker’s flux, paste or liquid, is used, it MUST be cleaned off after the joint cools as it is corrosive at room temperature while while resin core flux is not and does not have to be cleaned off.

Cheers

Like all processes the right tools and technique are critical. The use of other than than the correct crimping tool, with the correct jaws, will produce a poor joint, worse than soldering. Some of the tools mentioned earlier in this thread would not produce a satisfactory, low resistance, reliable joint !
I suggest more people have adequate soldering equipment than have crimping equipment.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with soldering although the use of Bakers fluid is entirely inappropriate for electrical work where copper wire and tinned connectors are used. Residue from this acid based fluid is nearly impossible to remove and in a short time will corrode the cable.
If, as one post warning against soldering claims, the cable is drawing enough current to melt the solder there has to be a problem, in which case if the solder melted and the circuit was opened it would surely be a good thing wouldn't it. In this imaginery and highly unlikely circumstance, the connector and or the cable becoming hot enough to melt solder could not be considered normal operation.
Ken