Soldering cups is one thing. Soldering two wires together in free space is something completely different. You have to support them while you are soldering them. You have to keep the mechanical connection together. You have to keep wires from touching each other when not desirable. Each problem has its own solution, and heck you may come up with your own situations and problems that you will eventually overcome.
This section will hopefully help you to find a workable solution to several of them. Let us start with the most simple - an end-to-end wire-to-wire connection. Depending on the type of wire, this can be done a couple of ways: If you have solid wire, you will want to use the hook method. If you have stranded wire, you'll want to use the mesh method. For solid wire, the hook method simply involves stripping the wire back (how far depends entirely on the gauge of the wire), putting a hook on the ends of both wires, connecting the hooks, crimping them if necessary, then soldering them together. Insulation is then accomplished using either heat shrink, of if unavailable, electrical tape. A slight variation on the hook method allows you to connect several wires to one wire, stripping one wire in the middle, by putting hooks on several wires, wrapping those hooks around the center stripped wire, then soldering the whole bunch together. Insulating this kind of connection with heat shrink is impossible, and with electrical tape is cumbersome, but possible. I've been known to pot connections like this with expoxy. Use of a mold that has been lightly peppered with talc or a light coat of grease makes the finished epoxy mold pop off the connection fairly easily so you can re-use the mold. If you have stranded wire, you can strip the ends of the two wires, and push them together, put a slight twist on the whole mesh, solder, then heat shrink or electrical tape it. * Wire Wrap * Ground * Solder Trails * Circuit Board - On & Through * Flat Pack / Postage Stamp |
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