Snow rip ends in melted battery connectors.

[Hatredy]

Can I get some tips on replacing the connectors so I don't start a fire? Can you do this if the battery is charged? The batteries only ran for about 5 minutes before the connectors got wet and stopped. They have enough damage that I couldn't storage charge them. I was going to take it to the hobby shop and have them solder new ones because my solder gun isn't up to it. They want the same amount I paid for the batteries though, so I bought a better solder gun instead. From the videos I've watched, you just have to make sure the wires never touch.

 

[Tex Koder]

Can I get some tips on replacing the connectors so I don't start a fire? Can you do this if the battery is charged? The batteries only ran for about 5 minutes before the connectors got wet and stopped. They have enough damage that I couldn't storage charge them. I was going to take it to the hobby shop and have them solder new ones because my solder gun isn't up to it. They want the same amount I paid for the batteries though, so I bought a better solder gun instead. From the videos I've watched, you just have to make sure the wires never touch.

You have photos of damage?

EC5 connector?

Yes ,you can do this.
Cut/Work on ONE wire at time.

A soldering gun that's 100watts with a broad tip will do quick work on those gauge wires and connectors.

I use a 2x4 block with some specific holes drilled in to hold the connector while I work, the wood doesn't suck the heat away from the area that your working on. ( Drill some 1/4" holes in a scrap piece of 2x4" wood to use as a secure holder of the connector pins while soldering the cables.)

 

[RedOctobyr]

I agree with Tex. This is doable, but there is some skill to soldering well. What connectors are you using? And what soldering gun did you get? To make a good connection, you want a wide tip, a decent soldering iron (my soldering station is 70W), 60/40 solder (or 63/37 is even better), and I use rosin flux. There are loads of YouTube videos, etc, with info on soldering.

Definitely just do 1 battery wire at a time, as he said. Like, if EC5s, leave the next wire & electrical connector still buried in the plastic housing, while working on the first connector. If you let the bare wires touch each other, or the bare electrical connectors touch each other, you can cause a fire.

Personally, I discharge the batteries fairly low, before working on their connectors. Like maybe 3.6V/cell or so, perhaps a bit lower. Just something to reduce the available stored energy in the battery, since that's what will try to cause a fire, if something goes wrong. Definitely don't have them fully-charged, at a MINIMUM have them at storage voltage, but lower is safer.

 

[Moirae]

Do not cut both wires at the sametime. You'd be surprised how many people do this without thinking.

 

[KevinC]

this exactly.....be careful.

 

[Hatredy]

I originally soldered a QS8 connector for the ESC and it was a pain because I only had a 60-watt gun. I bought the CHICAGO ELECTRIC WELDING 100 Watt Soldering Gun Kit from harbor freight for $40. Unfortunately, I am using TRX connectors for the battery because I already had the EZ Peak dual charger I bought for a 4x4 Slash. Now I know I should have just used QS8 all around and bought an adapter for charging.

 

[RedOctobyr]

Do not cut both wires at the sametime. You'd be surprised how many people do this without thinking.

I try to be careful about things. But when new to the hobby, I did this once, without thinking. Thankfully, it was a micro battery, like 1S 150mAh, so there just a small, momentary spark. But if it had been any kind of significant battery, it could have been Bad.

I originally soldered a QS8 connector for the ESC and it was a pain because I only had a 60-watt gun. I bought the CHICAGO ELECTRIC WELDING 100 Watt Soldering Gun Kit from harbor freight for $40. Unfortunately, I am using TRX connectors for the battery because I already had the EZ Peak dual charger I bought for a 4x4 Slash. Now I know I should have just used QS8 all around and bought an adapter for charging.

I really like my soldering station, including the actual temperature control, and setpoint. But that's a good point, an inexpensive soldering gun could provide a lot of heat, cheap. Especially if you can get a wide tip, to help transfer that heat. And usually, you want to be fast with the heat. Get it, get it up to temperature, and get out. This avoids slowly heating up everything around the joint, or having solder want to wick up the wire strands, etc.

I don't have a soldering gun. But I wonder about something like a micro butane torch, etc, as another option for providing a bunch of heat, without breaking the bank.