Re: Why I Crimp And Never Solder
LIC, I think the question is if you solder a crimped connection do you risk weakening the crimp. There is an article that says yes. Paul challenged the assertion. I said to myself "good question Paul, let's find out." So, I did some research. I found a couple of sites that talk about annealing and copper. I learned that indeed, copper strengthens when cold worked and weakens when heated. So, the question becomes, when you heat a crimped (cold worked) connection to 420F or over, have you weakened the crimp by undoing the cold working. On the face of it, it seems possible so the article, again on its face, does not seem to have been pulled out of someone's @ss as Paul speculated. <br /><br />As for the connector, if you go back and re-read the thread it will be clear why the subject came up. It had to do with the wording of the ABYC guidelines and was it possible to "properly" solder a connection and not have it be acceptable to the ABYC.<br /><br />I think it all comes back to what advice you give DIYers with limited wiring and soldering experience. People like you need no help. You know exactly what you're doing and there is little risk.
LIC, I think the question is if you solder a crimped connection do you risk weakening the crimp. There is an article that says yes. Paul challenged the assertion. I said to myself "good question Paul, let's find out." So, I did some research. I found a couple of sites that talk about annealing and copper. I learned that indeed, copper strengthens when cold worked and weakens when heated. So, the question becomes, when you heat a crimped (cold worked) connection to 420F or over, have you weakened the crimp by undoing the cold working. On the face of it, it seems possible so the article, again on its face, does not seem to have been pulled out of someone's @ss as Paul speculated. <br /><br />As for the connector, if you go back and re-read the thread it will be clear why the subject came up. It had to do with the wording of the ABYC guidelines and was it possible to "properly" solder a connection and not have it be acceptable to the ABYC.<br /><br />I think it all comes back to what advice you give DIYers with limited wiring and soldering experience. People like you need no help. You know exactly what you're doing and there is little risk.