Deans Ultra

[jerico]

I have several of these connectors, and every once in a while I will get one that doen't make 100% contact without wiggleing it. Anyone else have this problem? Any susgestions on what I might be doing wrong?
Jerry

[rick.benjamin]

My first thought is too much heat for too long when soldering wires to them. The plastic softens and allows the spades to displace.

First, I "tin" the bare wires and clip them to final size to fit the ultra spades.

I solder with both male and female connected together, and I use a "helping hands" alligator clip jig to hold the ultra plug and wire in position. I work quickly to minimize time the iron heats the work. (alligator clip holding the metal spade acts as a heat sink)

Then I slide the "heat shrink" over the still-hot spade-wire union and insulate it.

After pulling the connectors apart, I apply a tiny bit of "no-ox-id" grease (WD40 is ok also) to the still warm spades. Re-connect them to distribute the lube. I haven't had any problems since using this method.

[RussellK]

I've never had a problem with genuine Dean's connectors, but I have seen the odd issue with the green 3rd party versions.

I've heard of people having problems soldering connectors, and I think it's possibly because they use a low-wattage iron that takes too long to heat up the connection. If it takes more than a few seconds before the solder flows, it means the iron isn't powerful enough, meaning the plastic will start to melt and the connector will move. As mentioned, plugging another connector in will help to hold things in place, but the bottom line is that your iron isn't big enough for the job. High wattage irons are pretty cheap - and come in handy if you need to do any plumbing work :)

[pic man]

yes ive found it semi common after extended use that the deans plugs DO lose connection, its a striaght pin with a spring loaded side, xtended use, like a year of light use, or4 5 mont of competition use did show fatige on those conectors, which is why i use the red n black ones, lil more expensive, but the plus side is no ( or less) fatige rate, no exposed contacts, higher heat tolerance, no need to solder the deans type spade conections ( which i found considerably more dificult then the red n black 2 piece)
simply put iron on silver contact part, fill with solder, keep heated push in pre stripped wire, let cool ,
no exposed wire to shrink wrap,
no heat issues as the heat NEVER touches the plastic till after soldering is finsihed,
no exposed ends,
lesser sensitiity to heat,
beter contact via SILVER conectors

ive never seen a reason to use deans plugs, these type offer blunt undeniable advances, kinda like comparing stock piranah white plastic conectors to deans, deans have beter heat curent limits, as do these red / black ones , and for complex wiring of charger boxes , these red / black ones are conectable on all sides, and in 5 years of using them i broke one, shamefully due to neglagence,, not shotty prouduct,
i used to buy like 100 pieces for 50 $ i think, actually making them cheeper posibly then deans,

if necesary i can take a picture of my charge box, to show u what i mean, mounting brackets are also avaible for these conectors which conect to the conector the same way as the red / black pieces conect to each other, alowing for mounting of power cables for chargers, permant charge boxes,

hands down, id pay 3 times as much for these type then deans

[pic man]

fyi they make a lil tool , extraction tool, for taking them apart, for like 12 - 15 $, save 12 $ by using an eye glass screw driver - type, but ocasionally you will bend the contact and render it inoperable, not really an issue after u use them a bit, u learn how not to disasemble them,

i guarentee using these conectors will solve the issue, or at very least make it a dam long time b4 u need to replace one, ive used mine for over 5 years, broke one, and as i said i broke it,, it didnt fatige

[Andy W]

I have Deans Ultra's that are now over 5 years old on my charge leads. The male connectors on these leads have probably seem more use than any other. The connector is still in great shape, makes perfect contact, and is as solid in connection as a brand new connector. They handle >100A power systems no problem.
..a

[jerico]

What are the red and black ones you are talking about?Brand? Name?
Jerry

[pic man]

ill put a picture of one up, to be honest its been so long since ive bought them, i dont rem,

also to be clear, not bashing deans, but in my experance with them, they did wear out, i musta used them more, figure i ran 4 hours a day, 18 packs to run off, 4 chargers, so u can see ,, i USED mine

picture in like 5 mins

[Dan Baldwin]

I'm sure he's talking about Anderson Power Poles http://www.parkflyermotors.com/secure/shop/item.asp?itemid=347&catid=47

Dan

[pic man]

thats the one dan, ive never had a problem with these,

[Dan Baldwin]

And Sermos connectors are (my understanding) the same thing
http://www.nesail.com/detail.php?productID=512

Dan

[Dan Baldwin]

I've been thinking about trying the Andersons just because my fingers are sore from unplugging the deans. One thing I'm a little concerned about is that you have to be careful to match colors since anything will plug into anything (not polarized). The absent minded could plug them in backwards.

Of course I'M not absent minded. Now what were we talking about?

Dan

[pic man]

after you retrofit your whole setup take time to connect the seprate red and black in a uniform way, 2 next to each other has the " polarized effect as they only go together one way, be carefull conecting to others stuff, take note if they line up or not , its not a major issue if you connect them in pairs

if you look closely you can see they only conect one way, 2 side to side and it wont gotogether thw wrong way

expect to pay around 1 $ if u look for distributors mebe less, ;)


distributor < hobby shop