Still working on the Tung Hwa Senator refurb

[Barking Sands]

Just got some kind of blurb today showing me some Wirefy "Solder Seal" connectors. No need to crimp and you end up with a waterproof shrink solder connection. And a video showed that one can shrink/solder using just a Bic lighter. Dang. Gotta get me some.

So what do you think is underneath the fiberglass layer in the bottom of our bilges? Too much volume in the keel for filing with resin and fiberglass. Cement? Lead shot? My prior owner screwed into it 3/8" when mounting the bilge pump and that seems to be okay, but I'd still like to know what's in there.

I really dont know for sure. I am assuming cement. And I assume its capped with the fiberglass in some way. If that is the case then of course that chamber would be captive as far as I can tell. And I have heard more than once where people figured out they had fluid in that area and that it would occasionally gurgle out a screw hole or crack and be quite foul. Just not somethng I want to deal with. So I try not to put holes in the keel floor.

It would be nice to know if it was lead or cement though.

I have some of those solder seal connectors. They do work but I reserve them for tiny wires for the most part since crimps are so difficult with very small wire. The regular old Wirefy shrink crimps and shrink tube are great though.

 

[Bmarler]

Just got some kind of blurb today showing me some Wirefy "Solder Seal" connectors. No need to crimp and you end up with a waterproof shrink solder connection. And a video showed that one can shrink/solder using just a Bic lighter. Dang. Gotta get me some.

So what do you think is underneath the fiberglass layer in the bottom of our bilges? Too much volume in the keel for filing with resin and fiberglass. Cement? Lead shot? My prior owner screwed into it 3/8" when mounting the bilge pump and that seems to be okay, but I'd still like to know what's in there.

A bic lighter is a poor instrument for those connectors. You’re better off with a heat gun or gas fired heat gun with a deflector on the end that directs the heat all the way around the joint. Even then, it will take some practice to make good connections. Not saying to steer clear, just temper your expectations. Not sure where they fall in the world of abyc either. They aren’t just solder because of the heat shrink, but might be a gray area.

 

[slowgoesit]

A bic lighter is a poor instrument for those connectors. You’re better off with a heat gun or gas fired heat gun with a deflector on the end that directs the heat all the way around the joint. Even then, it will take some practice to make good connections. Not saying to steer clear, just temper your expectations. Not sure where they fall in the world of abyc either. They aren’t just solder because of the heat shrink, but might be a gray area.

I purchased a bunch of those connectors as well. My concern is that if they "fuse" at such a low temperature, what happens if the resistance is high enough to heat up the wire? (which is shouldn't do if you used the correct sized wiring in the first place, but let's just suppose, shall we?) Will the material that melts, do just that in this case? Can't be good . . . . .

 

[Bmarler]

I purchased a bunch of those connectors as well. My concern is that if they "fuse" at such a low temperature, what happens if the resistance is high enough to heat up the wire? (which is shouldn't do if you used the correct sized wiring in the first place, but let's just suppose, shall we?) Will the material that melts, do just that in this case? Can't be good . . . . .

A concern I had as well. I would only consider using them in low amperage situations. There’s no way I’d use them on my 120 volt systems, or primary dc systems. Control wires would be ok.
I wonder about the re-melting of the solder. Would the heat shrink contain it and let it re-harden? The circuit should remain intact with the wire ends in a liquid solder bath.

 

[Barking Sands]

A concern I had as well. I would only consider using them in low amperage situations. There’s no way I’d use them on my 120 volt systems, or primary dc systems. Control wires would be ok.
I wonder about the re-melting of the solder. Would the heat shrink contain it and let it re-harden? The circuit should remain intact with the wire ends in a liquid solder bath.

This is how I use them as well. Something like signal wires or the like.

 

[Barking Sands]

Wide view of the 1985 Tung Hwa forward bulkhead. Fuel system on the left and epoch 460ah X 2 batteries mounted to heavily fiber glassed and epoxy primed/painted boards. Batts have L brackets that are integral. My intent was to make the 97 lb batteries/mounts capable of taking a roll over. The Victron stuff is going on the right side. Had to remove tons of old equipment and rearrange stuff. The foil looking insulation is non conductive BTW. Not much room to work with on my little boat. Still have 5 or 6 components to mount and then cut, crimp and mount the 3/0 and 4/0 Ancor cable.