In article ,
Mike Harrison writes:
On Thu, 13 Aug 2009 13:53:36 +0100, "Graham." wrote:

Can anyone point me to a recourse about soldering power cables?
I'm not planning doing any myself, but clearly it must involve
more than twisting the wires together and applying the lead-free
equivalent of 60/40.

No need for lead-free - leaded stuff is easier and lower temp to reduce melting of insulation.
Main think is to use an iron (not blowlamp!) that can pump enough heat into the joint quickly
enough.

Soldering isn't commonly used in the field -- it's not
a skill that many installation electricians have nowadays.

I have done it a few times. I've used a normal junction
box to make the connections as you normally would.
Then solder the terminals/conductors, so they're being
held by both the normal screw terminals (which you can't
any longer turn) and the solder. Normal thermosetting
plastic junction boxes will survive soldering temperatures
for plenty long enough to solder the terminals (although
they won't for hours on end, e.g. overheating terminals).

Don't do this unless you are already very competent at
soldering. You'll need a reasonably large iron (I used
a 50W temp controlled). You need to solder quickly to
avoid damaging the insulation, and you need to layout
the conductors in the JB so there's no stresses/forces
on the insulation (e.g. wires not pressing on each other
or anything else, and no tight bends).

Really, unless you are already very competent at soldering
and have exactly the right kit, use crimps. They'll give
better results in less skilled hands, providing you use a
proper ratchet crimper and correct sized crimps.

--
Andrew Gabriel
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