Re: Battery lugs
 

Cranking these screw lugs down as tight as you can is why they are loosening. Burndy recommends a tightening torque of 45 inch-pounds.

Over-tightening 'springs' the housing, encouraging it to deform and let the wire go.

A little purple loctite doesn't hurt though

Re: Battery lugs
 

This looks like a nice solution: <http://www.crosstheroadelectronics.c...ery_Cable.html>.

Re: Battery lugs
 

That DOES look nice. Potentially more flexible, and a bit cheaper than AndyMark. I think we'll order one or two for testing. Thanks Allen! Good luck this season.

Re: Battery lugs
 

Two things. WildStang uses the crimp on connectors and while lacking a tool, a vise is an alternative. Place the connector in the corner of the jaw at a 45 degree angle with only about half of the connector in the jaw. Compress enough to hold the wire in place. Remove the connecter and then rotate 180 degrees and repeat. The result is a compressed terminal that show a nice "X". We follow that with solder to insure low resistance. As pointed out, only a minimum of solder. Add the solder from the mounting side of the connector and watch for solder at the wire end. You see no solder flowing if you do this right.
As to the screw type terminals, the greatest failing is too little stripped wire. These terminals work best when enough wire is protruding from the mounting side of the connector. When the screw is tightened, the wire should be a larger diameter outside the connector on both sides of the crimping body. Installers trying to make a nice looking terminal will not push the wire through the terminal and when tightened wire will eventually be pushed out the back of terminal like a banana from a peel.

Re: Battery lugs
 

Quick Question Al, how does 111 go about insulating these connections? I like Heat shrink, but it gets tricky with a 90 degree connection!

Re: Battery lugs
 

A long time ago, a very nice local supplier offered to give us some samples of silk screened heatshrink with our name on them. They ended up giving us like 50 of each color 3/4" x 3". We bend the flat part of the terminal, terminate the wire and then add the heatshrink over the wire end. Once terminated on the battery, we then slip the heatshrink over everything and shrink it. No metal shows with this method.
As I have posted a number of times before, a #10 external tooth lockwasher between the battery terminal and the wire terminal prevents the terminals from slipping and therefore prevents the hardware from loosening. We still have batteries from 2006 (practice only) that have tight terminations using this method. Internal tooth will likely work as well, but I like the added surface area and greater bite provided by the external tooth. A loose connection translates into high resistance and high temperature while also providing a nice intermittent to reset the Crio or radio..

Re: Battery lugs
 

Great advice from several posters in this thread, especially Don and Al.

I have used several methods to crimp terminals on 6 AWG wire for FRC robots. Most recently, I have been using this ratcheting crimp tool from MCM. I like it because it gives a secure crimp, and fits in my tool box.

After crimping, I like to sleeve the finished crimp using 3/16" heat shrink tubing, McMaster p/n 7132K75 (black) or 7132K752 (red).

Re: Battery lugs
 

This is the mechanical lug they are giving in the kit now. This is a terrible choice for a fine stranded conductor like they are giving us now.



In my day job I've replaced a lot of them that were used on fine stranded conductors like in SO cord and DLO cable (diesel locomotive cable) because the screw either did't catch a lot of the strands or cut through them.

We used to get this style in the kit.



Much better choice on a fine stranded conductor. The V grooved bottom and pressure plate equal a much better connection.

The crimps are the best way to go. In a pinch if you don't have a proper crimper or vise you can crimp the code connectors they give us with a pair of lineman's pliers with a crimp die behind the pivot point, if you are strong enough that is, not the way you want to do a lot of crimps either cause your hand is going to hurt after. ::ouch::

If you are going to solder after try your hardest not to let solder work its way to far up the conductor past the lug at after repeated bending it could break there.

Re: Battery lugs
 

If you intend to use these, your local Home Depot or hardware store may have copper sleeves that can be lipped over the wire to make a better termination. When First forced us to use these in the past, we soldered them after termination and then insulated, of course. As JDL hinted, these are not designed nor intended for fine stranded wire.