[Elecraft] Crimped connectors

[Jeremiah McCarthy]

Only to make a point, not an argument...I worked for 30 years at Grumman and we built most of the Navy's aircraft, which are subject to a highly corrosive environment...All connections, thousands of them, were crimped using "Stakons", the trade name for those little red, blue, and yellow terminal lugs...AMP was the manufacturer of both the tools and the terminals...Soldering was grounds for a "crab", or rejection of the connection...Solder can wick up the wire under the insulation causing a rigid condition subject to vibration fatigue...Also, the heat from soldering distorts  the red, blue, or yellow insulation sleeve on the terminal lug compromising it's integrity...Of course there were a few connectors that had pins that had to be soldered, but not many...The pins in most of the connectors by Cannon, Amphenol, Deutch, etc. were crimped... 

Rivet and skin corrosion on the outside of the aircraft is much more of a problem than corrosion of crimped wire connections...

Jerry, wa2dkg