Episode request: electodynamic shaker with crimped vs. soldered wire terminals

[TimInCanada]

There's been a debate forever over the use of crimping vs. soldering of terminals on wires where there is vibration, for instance, in automotive wiring.  (And no shortage of Youtube videos by backyard mechanics showing the "proper" way to solder...)

Maybe the key claim of the crimping camp is that the end of a crimp doesn't create the same "hard point" for the wire strands as there is at the end of a solder joint.  This gives the strands a little more flexibility so they stand up to vibration fatigue better.

So, how about a shoot-out?  A test could be ring terminals put on the ends of several cm of wire, with the ring screwed firmly onto the platform of the electrodynamic shaker and the wire 'flapping in the breeze'.

Candidates could be:

• soldered to uninsulated terminal:
• crimped to uninsulated terminal
• crimped to standard insulated terminal:
• crimped to glue-lined heatshrink-insulated terminal:

Of course the wire will be stranded for applications with vibration.  Maybe a heavier wire like 12 AWG will make fatigue tests go faster.  (It might also be interesting to test a standard stranding against a fine stranding.)

I'll also suggest another test, one for butt splice connectors.  (e.g., ) The shaker platform might hold, say, 15 cm or more of wire with a butt splice in the middle.  The wire would be clamped on each end.  The previous set of cases plus one more, the "self soldering" or "solder seal" connector:

Comments on YT videos for these from people with short term experience tend to think they're wonderful, but those with long term experience talk about getting hard to diagnose intermittent continuity problems.  I wonder if the low melting point solder might be brittle and cause problems due to vibration?

Anyway, have fun,

Tim

[thm_w]

Do the self soldering ones have much flux in them? Maybe that results in dry joints.