Boat Wiring

I am getting ready to install an inverter/charger in the boat. Can you folks give me any advice about where I might get the best price for marine wiring?
Thanks JD

https://www.genuinedealz.com/ or Marine Wire, Boat Wiring & Marine Electrical - BestBoatWire.com

It looks like they’re the same company but one has free shipping.

Call Berkshire wire in Western MA for a local distributor

​ http://www.bestboatwire.com

Sister co to http://genuinedealz.com , best for already terminated custom lengths

Maybe also try ​EPM (East Penn Marine)

I've had good luck with Greg's Marine Wire Supply. Sometimes they don't have the the sizes or lengths I want, so I try bestboatwire.com. Greg's is often featured on Amazon for slightly less or possibly free shipping, so look in both places. I won't swear that either is the cheapest or the best, but I've had good luck with both and haven't felt taken. BTW - Despite the name, I have nothing to do with Greg's.

Berkshire, Pacer, EPM, of course Ancor are the makers I look for. Not Cobra.

Do you know what Greg sells?

Looks like "Lawrence Marine Products"

Manufacturer: Kalas Wire Manufacturing

No idea if as good

I go to Bestboatwire or DelCity. Best prices and quality stuff.

Buy the good stuff, not Chinesium. Also, get tinned if its to go in the engine room.

Xsbank said:

Buy the good stuff, not Chinesium. Also, get tinned if its to go in the engine room.

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Tinned goes without saying, IMO everywhere not just engine room.

As to quality, the specific brands I recommended are known good.

As to Kalas, no idea.

Anchor used to claim their wires were 10% oversized.

As voltage drop is important , using Anchor might be worth a bit extra.

Going one size larger 10 instead of 12 has no downside besides cost.

And remember terminal ends must be made both mechanically as well as electrically.

Simplest is Anchor wire , terminal ends and crimpers.

The addition of a star washer on terminal ends helps to maintain good contact after long use , esp if a heavy current circuit.

Ancor not Anchor.

The other brands I listed are just as good quality, no reason to limit yourself to the one maker, pay the premium for their marketing efforts.

Funny tho, many marine manufacturers dont bother with tinned wire in their power cords or pigtails.

Kinda makes you wonder......

After a thread awhile back on batteries, I did a lot of research on tinned wire. Most of what I found was tinning was not needed or was even detrimental. I've always tinned, but I'm now going the other way. Heat shrink is better against corrosion than tinning. When you tin, you effectively turn a stranded wire in to a solid wire that is way more subject to failure in a vibrating environment. I'm going to dig deeper in to this.

No one is talking about the installer doing any tinning, as in soldering.

It's just a higher standard of marine wire to resist corrosion, AKA UL1426.

Sugardog said:

After a thread awhile back on batteries, I did a lot of research on tinned wire. Most of what I found was tinning was not needed or was even detrimental. I've always tinned, but I'm now going the other way. Heat shrink is better against corrosion than tinning. When you tin, you effectively turn a stranded wire in to a solid wire that is way more subject to failure in a vibrating environment. I'm going to dig deeper in to this.

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Tinned boat wire such as made by Ancor or Pacer has every individual strand tinned, so the strands continue to let the cable flex just like untinned wire.

Never solder tin the wire. As noted above it makes it a solid connection with no flexibility and can break from vibration.

And to the virtues of tinned wire on a boat: I have cut many crimp connections on old boats with untinned wire and stripped the wire back to put on another crimp. The wire was green and in some cases had severe corrosion on it for a foot or more back after the insulation was removed. Tinned wire avoids this completely.

David

Here is a place that has not been mentioned yet. I found this on Ship Shape TV. They will rebuild your entire wiring harnesses or just sell you a piece of wire.


https://www.pacergroup.net/

If you haven't seen the Compass Marine article on wire terninals and crimpers this is worthwhile before your project.
https://marinehowto.com/marine-wire-termination/

Yes Pacer was mentioned above at least as a trusted brand, better value usually than Ancor, many authorities state just as good.

Also https://marinehowto.com/making-your-own-battery-cables/

And (old site) http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/terminating_small_wires

Thanks Bacchus, after reading his standards, I would get an A+.

While I understand the danger of overheating a soldered connection and turning the tinned wire into a solid wire , I usually do it.

My technique is very simple , after the wire terminal is crimped on (to make the mechanical connection) a large roofing soldering copper is heated with a propane torch..

A second or so will flash the solder in the terminal end and the wires , but even 1/4 inch out the wires are still flexible.

Good temperature and SPEED make this a practical solution , esp if you don't have a $75 proper crimper , that is claimed to cold flow the materials together.

Started doing this back when only aircraft mfg had the proper tools to crimp .

That's fine for those with high level skills and long experience soldering.

For those new to the game, IMO crimp-only is the way to go.

Yes you need proper tools, if you think $75 is a lot (really?) then just order what you need custom made from genuinedealz.com

I have lots of experience soldering wire connectors, and simply do this a lot.
As long as you don't wick too much solder down the strands, it is fine.
And your supposed to also crimp first, but I dont always do that!

Reason is if the connection is bad, resistance heat would get so high as to melt the solder and the wire will fall out of the connector, NEVER seen it happen.

And all depends where the wire is exposed as to if tinning helps or not.
Every try to solder older tinned wires? It is difficult.

You know not everything is life is going to be perfect. I have repaired connections where the OEM used non tinned wires, I simply clean the exposed copper ends in vinegar and also have used water based flux meant for soldering copper pipes, then I clean the wire in alcohol to remove the flux.

I do not have any further electrical problems with old wires. EXCEPT, some of the old rubber coated wires, the insulation hardens and dries out. Then you need to replace the wire.

john61ct said:

That's fine for those with high level skills and long experience soldering.

For those new to the game, IMO crimp-only is the way to go.

Yes you need proper tools, if you think $75 is a lot (really?) then just order what you need custom made from genuinedealz.com

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john61ct, what do you do on your boat? What kind of boat do you have?

I believe Exide Battery suggests crimp and solder for a low resistance terminal.....probably posted the link last year

That is because most people are not going to spring for the right crimping tool and their crimps are as bad as most people's soldering.

So the combo might be actually the best practice for the common man.....along the lines FF suggests.

A very thorough and balanced analysis from our own CMS

https://forums.sailboatowners.com/i...n-for-mainesail-soldering.126063/#post-782014

psneeld said:

I believe Exide Battery suggests crimp and solder for a low resistance terminal.....probably posted the link last year

That is because most people are not going to spring for the right crimping tool and their crimps are as bad as most people's soldering.

So the combo might be actually the best practice for the common man.....along the lines FF suggests.

Click to expand...

I am comfortable with my tools and abilities to crimp small wire, but definately not larger cables. For those, I measure and then have genuinedeals make me up the cables. They aren't that expensive, are done right, and delivered quickly.

Given the above, I don't solder any crimp connections. I'm not confident I wouldn't just screw it up.

I am sorry if the question looks stupid but is the wire is well crimped what is the goal to solder it? I would have thought that it would have been better to cover the crimp with shrinked plastic than to solder it?

L

Lou_tribal said:

I am sorry if the question looks stupid but is the wire is well crimped what is the goal to solder it? I would have thought that it would have been better to cover the crimp with shrinked plastic than to solder it?

L

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I think the rational is to increase the surface area of conductivity at the crimp and to protect the copper surface from oxidation.

Lou_tribal said:

I am sorry if the question looks stupid but is the wire is well crimped what is the goal to solder it? I would have thought that it would have been better to cover the crimp with shrinked plastic than to solder it?

L

Click to expand...

If the crimp is done properly, not just watertight but fused gastight, then adhesive lined heatshrink

then soldering has nothing of value to add at all

I like to use liquid electric tape on my crimpings, kinda like liquid plastic varnish, good or bad?

L