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Old 01-16-2012, 08:19 PM   #10
Capn Craig
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Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 519
RE: Winter Project I: Charging System Upgrade

FWIW, I'm no expert either, but I have used welding cable for years.* I pulled the wiring out of my old boat after 20 years and it was as good as new.* Welding wire is far more flexible and easy to route.* Think of the envirnment that the weld wire is made to survive, places and things it is drug over, hot sparks being showered on it.* It is good stuff.* That said, it is not tinned.* So what? I think it's not too hard to work around that short coming.* I first flux the inside of the lug as well as the wire, then crimp, then solder.* I flux and flow solder over the outside of the lug.* Then seal the whole thing with adhesive lined heat shrink.* Red for positive, black for ground.* How is this to corrode?* Nothing can come between the wire and the lug, since it is solid with solder.* The adhesive lined heat shrink seals the whole thing too.* It is in a dry place, not underwater.* The bolted connections get a good coat of Vasoline or dielectric grease too.* Very effective and cheap to boot.* The Positive wire isn't red, so what?* I'm not going to cut into the middle of a wire.* The ends where the connections are made are color coded.
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