Mkos1980

iTrader: (8)

i need to lenghthen my 4G wire 5 feet longer, but how can I attach the two together? I'm used to small wire but Dont know if they make super size connectors.

PhAnToMs

iTrader: (2)

what if u put another fuse holder in that would seem easy enough

Mkos1980

iTrader: (8)

Good Idea !!

junkyarddog

Fray the strands and mesh them together, give it a twist to keep it together. You may need something to hold them or perhaps a trusting friend...

You will need a propane torch and good length of 60/40 rosin core solder. Heat the copper and feed the solder in as quick as it will take it. the wires can't move too much or else the solder won't cool properly. Just watch for solder splatters and small fire from the insulation.



Just wrap it good with tape and zip-ties, drop it behind a panel never to be seen again!

Rage13

shrink tube, looks cleaner and more professional then tape

Jim85IROC

iTrader: (2)

You can buy 4 AWG crimp-style connectors, but I don't know where. My dad has a drawer full of them that I go to when I need one. Even with those, it's still basically necessary to solder them. I just like them because they make a stronger connection that isn't as prone to cracking.

DVL86

Just crimp them.

UCF1Slider

The BEST thing you could do would be to run a whole new wire (I highly suggest this) but if you don't feel like doing that then you can get a butt connector (basically a long hollow metal tube) and crimp one end of each piece of wire inside it. You'll want to either use some heatshrink tubing, or at the very least, electrical tape and wrap it around the whole connection.

-Kyle-

junkyarddog

Having worked with large industrial electric motors from power plants and pumping stations using thousands, sometimes millions of watts of power...

I can assure you there are no crimped connections on thier 4 gauge wire. Silver solder and copper crimps with shrink tube and/or cable boots.

Running a new wire is ideal, but if the connection is soldered and the gauge isn't compromised, I find it hard to believe that there would be any significant resistance.

I would not have used a fuse holder simply because it is one more thing to maintain and may not be accessable behind a panel or wherever it is. It would also be one more resistance point that is not needed.

This post is old, this guy must have done something by now?

NEEDAZ

Hay, JD, I didn't know that you worked on that nutty stuff. I have a freind that works for a company that does repair and calibration work on that insaine crap. Breaker test sets, highpots, meggers and HV HC HO power supplys. I helped him on one of the bigger supply. Transformer and oil cooler assembly as big as a tractor trailers box, whole thing in it's own building, control panel behind 3 inches of Lexan. Thing put out 60KVAC at 20A peak. That math is right 1200KW out. The shunt wasn't much more then a copper I beam, the whole building vibrated at 60Hz under load. That was the first and last time I helped him. "Wire is wire a long as it's the same gage" my a$$.

junkyarddog

Yup, I worked for Electric Motor & Contracting in Chesapeke, VA very briefly. The stuff I learned was unbelievable, but as cool as it was, it wasn't the career I had in mind.

They used the 3-phase surge test, hi-pot, meggar, core loss testor, infared thermal camera. In thier high bay, they can run huge motors using a megawatt or two.

They had a re-wind shop, machine shop, small motor shop, ovens, VPIs...all in the same place.

That stuff is cool and all, but I like my job with air conditioning, clean work space and I don't have to buy any of my own tools. The most dangerous thing I work with is an invisible 7 watt CO2 laser that can leave a nasty burn if you let it. The other ones aren't toys either, but it's only me and another tech, we can handle it.

Saigon_Bob

iTrader: (2)

lol invisible lasers would be my bane... i think id get burned quite often... i agree with the solder idea but make sure its high quality solder

junkyarddog

Invisible lasers are dangerous indeed. The pulsed YAG (1064nM) can be trouble too. CO2 is what's used to cut steel in factories and sometimes used in surgeries.

It's not dangerous, as with any lab equipment, you never go sticking your hands in there without knowing what's going on.

I've never heard of a low quality solder, they make it all reasonably well these days. Even if you get the lowest priced 60/40 rosin core, it will do the trick. I saw a compression fitting the other day that would be good for this too.

NEEDAZ

Solder is solder for the most part. There is some cheap stuff out there, but most of the time you find that in the cheap little kits you'll find on-line. The biggest part of getting a good connection with solder is using the right temp and keeping the work clean. To hot, to cold, or dirty and you may end up with a good connection now, that will crack in a couple of years. But solder, heat shrink, and if it's under the hood or under the car add a little silicone before the heat shrink tubing. You end up with a connection that would last years, even under water.