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Thread: Connecting stranded wire to screw terminals

  1. #1
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    Connecting stranded wire to screw terminals

    What's the secret to getting a neat looking connection when attaching stranded wire to screw terminals?

    I find that connecting stranded wire to screw terminals (like those on a lamp socket shown at http://www.lamppartsrepair.com/p/com...pair-tips.html) tends to flatten the bare wire and leave hairs of it sticking out. Should I twist the wire tightly and tin the end of it with solder? The wires shown on that webpage appear to have a tinned ends.

  2. #2
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    I bend the U or loop and solder the wires.

    John

  3. #3
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    Install ring terminals on the wire first.
    George

    Making sawdust regularly, occasionally a project is completed.

  4. #4
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    Strip a bit more than you would normally do, twist tightly, bend into hook around screw and pinch tightly around screw with needle nose before torquing the screw.

  5. #5
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    I sometimes tin the wire first. Usually do as Pat suggest. One trick is to leave the insulation on past the stripped section. This leaves a neat appearance after the excess is cut off with a good pair of dykes.

    Remember to wrap the wire around the screw clockwise.

    jtk
    Last edited by Jim Koepke; 03-01-2017 at 2:55 AM. Reason: capitalization
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  6. #6
    I prefer ring terminals or solder.
    Mike Null

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  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Remember to wrap the wire around the screw clockwise.

    jtk
    Very important. Also just as important to twist the strands clockwise before that.

  8. #8
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    Twist and tin them with solder. Wrap clockwise so it tightens with the screw.
    Shawn

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  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stephen Tashiro View Post
    ...Should I twist the wire tightly and tin the end of it with solder? The wires shown on that webpage appear to have a tinned ends.
    I usually twist tightly and tin part of the end with solder or use a crimped connector.

    Crimping connector on the wire is recommended where the wire is subject to flexing since fine stranded wire will eventually break at the point where the stranded meets the solder. This can be avoided by going easy on the solder and not allowing it to extend out past the head of the screw. Or, simply constrain the wire movement.

    Crimping avoids the issue. I like the slotted crimp connectors (can't remember the name) that slip under the screw head instead of the ring connectors for those devices where the screw is made to not be easily removable (so it can't be lost).

    JKJ
    Last edited by John K Jordan; 02-28-2017 at 9:45 PM. Reason: Clarity

  10. #10
    I usually do this with an auto stripper. The stripper will remove 1/2" of insulation. So instead of starting at 1/2" in from the end of the wire you start in at 1". When you use the stripper it will strip the insulation for 1/2" and leave 1/2" of wire with insulation at the end of the wire. You clip the empty 1/2" of insulation off. This will keep the wire from fraying out when you apply screw pressure to it. Just make a "U" loop with the wire and slip it onto the terminal and tighten it. Leave the insulation on the end of the wire.

  11. #11
    if you tighten screws like I do, NOTHING will keep the strands from fraying out

    But if I'm being picky, I'll cut lots of insulation off, twist tight, and once around the screw I'll cinch it up and hold it tight with needlenose pliers while tightening the screw, then cut off the excess wire with dikes.

    But usually I'm not so picky...
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  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Zellers View Post
    Very important. Also just as important to twist the strands clockwise before that.

    This statement is wrong. Twist the wires counter clockwise and then bend around the screw clockwise and tighten. electrician for 43 years.
    John T.

  13. #13
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    +1 for ring terminals.

  14. #14
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    Copper wire used in the marine industry is always stranded and tinned. Each strand is tinned, not after the strands are assembled into a wire. I was once told by a electronics person working on my boat to not solder the ends of the wires and then crimp them into a ring connector or secure in any other connector. The reason is that if the connection were to either loosen up from vibration or stress releave due to the solder softening from the circuit heating up, and then it cools down, arcing could start taking place making for more heating and loosening. Not good situation.

    The best way, according to him, is to use crimp connection if using a connector (ring, spade or whatever) and then solder the wire at the crimp after crimping to give protection against corrosion and also I suppose it gives some security to the crimped part of the connection although I don't think that is necessary if properly done.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by John Terefenko View Post
    This statement is wrong. Twist the wires counter clockwise and then bend around the screw clockwise and tighten. electrician for 43 years.
    Interesting. Could you explain why this is better than clockwise? It would seem to me that as one turns the screw, a clockwise twist of the wires would be compressed whereas a counterclockwise twist would want to unravel? I'm just a homeowner so likely there's something I don't understand.

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