Butt Connectors or Solder?

I use bell caps, all of my installs are clean, wires tie wrapped, and like atwageman said, use quality crimpers..and you will be good to go....

In the Emergency Vehicle business, it is critical to ensure that connections are done correctly.  Having a bad connection can cause a death of an officer due to lighting malfunction in a high-speed chase, a radio going dead in a officer down situation, the shotgun lock not operating when the button is pressed, etc...

I use BOTH crimping and soldering.  With audio equipments like intercom systems in firetrucks where 2-way radio are infused with other equipments, etc... I use solder mainly for two reasons...  the wires are too small for butt connections and they make good consistent, clean audio than butt connections.  I don't use standard heat shrink tubing, I use glue lined heat shrink tubing.

With crimp connections, I use mostly molex connections to enable servicing of equipments, harnesses, etc.  The rest I use standard terminals.  Nowhere do I make connections that also serve to support the wire.  I use proper sized wire ties, loom, wiring, and serviceability in the equipment with service loops.

I ground sensitive equipment direct to the battery and have a common ground point, I fuse as close as possible to the power source. 

I never use wire nuts (Nuts!), caps, crimp-overs, or T taps.

Sean - EVConcepts

That is interesting, I was in the military, but I did not know that. I didn't work on F-16s though, so I wouldn't have known anyways!

I agree because CAT-5 and punch-down terminations are gas tight and perfectly reliable. I've done about enough of those to memorize A & B connection color codes and then forget it all over agian.

I just prefer to solder in cars because there is pretty much nothing that can go wrong with it. I'm sure that veteran installers can make perfect crimps like it is nobody's business. I've seen enough 'bad crimps' in my time from both novice and pro installs to be convinced that crimping should be banned from mobile electronics altogether....unless it is soldered too.

I'll throw a crimp in there here or there, but I've been soldering all of my systems since the beginning and I don't plan on stopping now.

I learned soldering in high school and one more class in college, I actually learned more in 3 weeks, than my entire time in HS.

One interesting fact is that NASA requires all of thier connections to be soldered. Since none of thier problems have been from connection problems, I assume this is a good thing. Go NASA!

I prefer to use solder when I have the time..But most of the time in my shop the kiddies want their boom boom and they want it NOW...If you have a good set of crimpers and buy good butts, and dont just slap the wire into the connector it shouldnt (under normal circumstances) Falter...Solder and Shrink tube are definatly better...

I just butt them and then Form the harness into a nice tight wad straight wad O Wires then about 2 Zip Ties and I'm done...

I have done this for about 5 - 6 Yrs now and have never had a single connection (To My Knowlege) Falter....

Making the World A Louder Place