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Re: [TowerTalk] Crimp on Coax connectors

To: towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Crimp on Coax connectors
From: jimlux <jimlux@earthlink.net>
Date: Fri, 6 Sep 2019 09:29:52 -0700
List-post: <mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
The important thing about crimp connectors is that they don't suffer from the brittleness of the solder, particularly under temperature cycling or vibration.

Solder work hardens. Copper work hardens. etc.

A properly made crimp connection is a gas tight connection between the conductor and the connector that (if the connector was properly designed) has just the right amount of elastic deformation, so that under temperature swings and vibration that the gas-tightness persists.

Solder is weak (6000-7000 psi)and has a CTE of about 25 ppm/C (thats for eutectic Pb/Sn... the low lead or lead free solders are all over the place)

Copper CTE is about 16-17 ppm/C
Brass is about 18-19  (what 083-1SP plugs are made of)
SS is 14-19 (depending on alloy)
Aluminum is 21-24

So soldering a connector is putting a mechanically weak material with a high CTE between two things with low CTE, which is asking for trouble.

Likewise with vibration - depending on the relative "stretchyness" of the materials and their strengths, you're putting the mechanical loads on the weakest materials (think two lengths of piano wire with a cotton string in series)

Then there's the whole "creep" phenomenon (gradual inelastic deformation over time under strain) - NIST says secondary creep is the dominant deformation mode at temps above half the melting point (absolute temp). Eutectic solder melts at 456K (183C), so 1/2 Tm is 228K (-45C). As they say: "That is, standard SnPb solder readily creeps at, and well below, room temperature"

https://www.metallurgy.nist.gov/solder/clech/Sn-Pb_Creep.htm

These kinds of things really come up when soldering big parts with lots of pins on boards, but they're equally applicable to connectors.

Basically, "solder isn't structural" and you shouldn't be using it for such.

(this doesn't include hard solder/silver solder, which is more like brazing)


You don't see many soldered connectors in automotive applications, for instance.

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