Glue for Electrical Connections?

rvich

rvich

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Anybody ever tried this stuff for the electrical connections on their bike?

http://www.henkel.com/fullproductlist-e ... 00000002KJ

I notice some of the conductive glues offered say right in their descriptions that they are brittle and may break when subjected to vibration. This has been an issue for many with the idea of soldering joints as well. I am however tempted to try this stuff inside of some shrink tube as one could still cut the joint apart with a razor. Just curious if there are reports on it.

Russ
 
Are you having problems with electrical joins becoming disconnected ?
You must have rough roads up there !

Nortons have those bullet connectors, and I don't recall one ever coming out if it was fully pushed home.
In fact, they can be quite tough to separate sometimes.
Whether they make electrical connection may be another matter.
Computer connections are gold plated so corrosion is not an issue - but they run on low voltages...
 
Rohan said:
Computer connections are gold plated so corrosion is not an issue - but they run on low voltages...
Click to expand...

There isn't much gold in computers these days and when there was some, it was measured in microns. Many computer connections are berrylium-copper which corrodes less than copper.

Jean
 
It is probably a moot point. While you can buy a container of electrical glue for four dollars, the conductive silicone doesn't seem to be ready for a consumer market. I have yet to find a source for it in small enough quantities to play with. Industrial sized orders are the norm. So, I guess I am ahead of the curve or just crazy. I will go back to my old method of making flexible joints in vibration prone areas. I use the grounding shield from Frostex heat tape inside shrink tubing. It works really well for anything you don't have to take apart often. I just salvage all the bits that get cut off from any heat tape installation, which happens here often enough that I have yards of it in supply.

Russ
 
Jeandr said:
There isn't much gold in computers these days and when there was some, it was measured in microns.
Click to expand...

This is true - I did say they were plated, not solid gold !
When I look in my camera, its battery connections are gold plated.
Ditto the SIM card in a phone, and the USB connectors.
Its the corrosion aspect that is important.

Stopping corrosion of bullet connectors in bikes is probably a useful task.
If the glue - or any other product - could prevent this, and still be possible to get the connectors apart, it could be a useful product.
 
rvich, that's a neat find for me. About the most compact connection would be just twist raw ends together with a short section of shrink wrap over to finish. Razor off the wrap and pry-unwind wires when needed maybe with a little heat to soften the grip. Peel will have lots and lots of connections most should never need parting so clutter and routing compactness attracts me more than just holding em together. Might use a dab on the coil blade connectors on factory Combat.
 
Rohan said:
Jeandr said:
There isn't much gold in computers these days and when there was some, it was measured in microns.
Click to expand...

This is true - I did say they were plated, not solid gold !
When I look in my camera, its battery connections are gold plated.
Ditto the SIM card in a phone, and the USB connectors.
Its the corrosion aspect that is important.

Stopping corrosion of bullet connectors in bikes is probably a useful task.
If the glue - or any other product - could prevent this, and still be possible to get the connectors apart, it could be a useful product.
Click to expand...

Battery connections are berryllium copper http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beryllium_copper it looks like gold, but there is no gold in these contacts. The only place there is any gold in computers these days, is inside the chips, the die on which the circuits are built are connected to the pins with gold wires, at least that is how it used to be done, I wouldn't be surprised one bit that newer chips (BGAs) use a different connection method due to the high cost of gold.

Most if not all consumer electronics are not built to last and that is the main reason they don't put any expensive metals in their products, On motorcycle, old motorcycles like our beloved Nortons, we would like to have permanent connections that do not corrode which is wishfull thinking, the best remedy against corrosion is to keep from riding in the rain, Keep connections dry and make sure they are made from the same metal, this way they will make a good connection for years.

Jean
 
I used to work for a large computer maker.
All the scrap parts were sold for the gold content, 50 cents per kilo I seem to recall. !!

Yep, thats definitely gold - apologies for the blurry pic.
Glue for Electrical Connections?


Beryllium copper gets a slight layer of tarnish to it - prevents further corrosion.
The shiny surface never goes from gold...

If you scratch the surface with something sharp, something that is gold plated will reveal the base metal underneath.
Usually plain old copper = rose coloured.

Beryllium copper does not look so gold-like.
e.g.
http://periodictable.com/Items/004.21/index.html
But we diverge.
 
rvich said:
You guys are supposed to be finding a source for conductive silicone!
Click to expand...

Maybe it is not needed... could be snake oil :wink:

Seriously, with good electrical connectors, McMaster-Carr has sone really good ones, new wires, heavier gauge than the originals, you shouldn't have any issues with the electrical system.

Jean
 
As I read the data sheet, the Loctite product mentioned in the first post requires curing in an oven at 150C for 30 minutes. We use something like this at work but it cures at room temperature. However the price on that is over $300 for a small tube (because of the silver content). I imagine the Loctite stuff is similarly priced.

I use dielectric grease on electrical connections now. This is an insulator but works by sealing out the air so there is no corrosion. There is enough electrical contact where it is squeezed out from the places where the metal contacts mate under pressure. I like the bullets (because they look right) and kept with them but have replaced every one of the rubber covered joint connectors. I bought a lifetime supply of single and double connectors and make the triples by soldering a single and double together and using the original rubber sleeve. (Thanks for that idea LAB!) I find the single connectors are usually OK but the double connectors in the headlight shell and under the tank are almost always cracked or broken already.
 

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