Electrical Advice

[Hobbyman2]

I am close to 60 years old ,,all I know is ,, if I had a dollar for every crimp on connector on motors and capacitors that I have replaced over the years I could live pretty good.


Electric is a science ,, should be taught in school like it was years ago in shop class.

motor connectors should not get much more movement then vibration,,,

On a crimp connector if a wire gets hot it will expand,, then ya have a potential issue with the connector.

This thread was about motor wire,, I think the advise here is all top notch and would love to see this stuff taught in schools like it use to be.

wire solder,,,,,silver,,,,,,,,, melts way below copper ,,all one needs to do is use the right size solder at the right temp ,,, and its a no brain'r, it takes practice but it will out last a crimp on by years.



The hot air system described is a art .

I am not sure I believe that. On a solder connector if the wire gets hot it also expands and if it gets hot enough it melts the solder. Bingo! With a crimp you have a mechanical connection.

Trust me it is NOT a no brainer. I have been military certified on high reliability soldering, hot air soldering, silver soldering, silver induction brazing, silver torch brazing, and gold soldering. Not all solder is the same. The alloys are very different and the end item (at least in the aircraft industry) manufacturer specifies the solder they want used with their products.

As far as crimping, almost all wire used in the Air Force is silver plated copper. This is all aircraft wiring and all the ground support equipment that supports those aircraft. They are almost always crimped.

Now, they are not crimped with a pair of linesman pliers like the average home handyman would use. The proper crimpers are calibrated for each pin or terminal and wire size you are crimping. The crimpers are sent to the PMEL lab (Precision Measuring Equipment Lab) every 6 months or a year to be calibrated. Just like calipers or micrometers. Proper crimping is essential.

You said you are a Ham. What is your call sign? I am KB0ES. EX WD8MMY, WD0FVE.

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I have been a tech for a few years now ,, its about time for me to move up ,, 10 meter seems to be dead here ,, I have been out of the click for too long,, I all ways enjoyed the exp, I have a old kenwood 520s and since 10 is dead around here it just sets around.

Did a little voice over IP but it just isnt the same to me .

Sort of a waste of a license to me.

[Hobbyman2]

As far as crimping, almost all wire used in the Air Force is silver plated copper. This is all aircraft wiring and all the ground support equipment that supports those aircraft. They are almost always crimped.

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Is that like a silver tinned wire?


Neat ,I dont have a clue about military wire,,,they are a breed of their own.., is that so if they get hot thy will weld together before they come apart?

[Hobbyman2]

I learn some thing every time I come here.

[jsburger]

As far as crimping, almost all wire used in the Air Force is silver plated copper. This is all aircraft wiring and all the ground support equipment that supports those aircraft. They are almost always crimped.

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Is that like a silver tinned wire?


Neat ,I dont have a clue about military wire,,,they are a breed of their own.., is that so if they get hot thy will weld together before they come apart?

No, silver is a very efficient conductor of electricity. Much better than copper. Gold is even better. Gold does not oxidize and silver oxide is somewhat conductive. That is why the wire and connectors are used. All the strands of the wire are silver plated.

You mentioned the skin effect in an earlier post. That is much more pronounced at radio frequencies than it is at 60 cycle AC voltage or even 400 cycle aircraft voltage that has been the norm for ever in the aircraft industry. The F-22 aircraft generator is an AC generator with a DC converter built into the generator. The output of the generator is 270V DC and the aircraft bus is DC. A departure from the exclusive 400 cycle AC bus in the past. The F-35 has a DC bus also.

I was the first person in the Air Force to bring Air Force maintenance to the F-22 generator in around 2006 or 07. I worked with the Hamilton Sunstrand head engineer developing the repair process and writing the Air Force repair manual (Technical Order). It was me and him alone in the shop. Very very fun and educational. Any time there was an issue Rick pulled up the relevant print or wiring diagram on his lap top and we resolved the issue.

The very first F-22 generator I dissembled was done using the Hamilton Sunstrand commercial maintenance manual. We had the engineer and the tech writer at he bench making real time corrections to the manual. It took 4 or 5 days but every morning we had a meeting to go over the previous days corrections.

Sorry, enough.

[JPG]

No, silver is a very efficient conductor of electricity. Much better than copper. Gold is even better. Gold does not oxidize and silver oxide is somewhat conductive. That is why the wire and connectors are used. All the strands of the wire are silver plated.
. . .

Nope!

conductivity - resistance.jpg (248.63 KiB) Viewed 4392 times

[Hobbyman2]

Sorry for going off topic and keeping this thing going,,all this wont help our fellow SS owner but this is amazing.

I have to wonder,, you mentioned the factory crimp being so critical, now I am wondering if the crimp doesnt set in the silver plating to keep it from vibrating off or loose.

I have seen factory crimp machines used in commercial wire harness .

We use to service a factory here that made harness , they had their own insulation machine,,made all sorts of color wire,, man does that stuff have a wonder full smell.

JPG I think maybe when you figure in the cost and all the variables in the different resistance listed ,, maybe silver just fits the bill ?

Interesting info,, thanks again

[JPG]

Actually it is copper that 'fits the bill' for economical reasons.

[Ed in Tampa]

I purchased a retractable cord reel at a garage sale. It was rated at 10 amps. and after some use it is not sufficient. I replaced the power cord on my 510 with one that came from a Mk. VII (either 12/3 or 10/3)and now I will replace the cords for the reel with 12/3 and keep the run much shorter. I have three questions:

1) Do I use dielectric or silicone grease on the rubber rings? Pics 1 &2.
2) I installed a 3 outlet connection (unknown gauge). Pic 3. Can I replace the single outlet on the 12/3 with this?
3) I have a small 8 amp remote switch that will just plug in to one of these connections and a much larger 15 amp. Can I use the 8 amp?

Do not use the retractable reel. It is the weak link! Those fingers will not reliably carry the current the Shopsmith needs. Also the finger pressure must be exact, too light they will fail to carry the current, too heavy they will bounce spark and carbon up again reducing current carrying ability. Those reels are good for trouble lights and similar loads but will cause voltage drops that cause the amps to go up possibly destroying anything plugged into them.
Repeat do not use the reel in the circuit for the shopsmith!

[everettdavis]

If you accept the fact that the Shopsmith will pull 13 or more Amps when it is new, bearings perfect, belts and sheaves perfect, the current draw will increase slightly with wear, and the work load your materials demand, then introducing resistance in the contacts of the reel, or by using under-sized wire via extention cord, you draw more current through the circuit, which includes the windings of the motor, the switch, the power cord.... all of it.

Don't use an extension cord period if you can avoid it.

If you have to use one, get a 10/3 industrial one, and if it's not $45 for 25 ft. It is likely undersized.

I don't know how to make it more plain. It is that important.

Everett

[dusty]

If you accept the fact that the Shopsmith will pull 13 or more Amps when it is new, bearings perfect, belts and sheaves perfect, the current draw will increase slightly with wear, and the work load your materials demand, then introducing resistance in the contacts of the reel, or by using under-sized wire via extention cord, you draw more current through the circuit, which includes the windings of the motor, the switch, the power cord.... all of it.

Don't use an extension cord period if you can avoid it.

If you have to use one, get a 10/3 industrial one, and if it's not $45 for 25 ft. It is likely undersized.

I don't know how to make it more plain. It is that important.

Everett

I wholeheartedly agree with you Everett even though a Mark V draws much less than 13amps except for a very short period of time during start up.