Radio Light Dimming Wire

[N_WOF]

Hello,

It was the orange wire, so thanks for that

It works fine, now...

Paul

[Smego2]

the conact corrodes,the plastic goes brittle,they fall apart,the cables fall out,seriously try not to use them,they are only ok for a temp repair,seriously u wont find a mechanic/technition/auto electrician that would ever recomend them,they will work fine for a while,but not that long

Rubbish most high street accesory fitters use them, as for corrosion they will ong corrode if they are inj an area when you would get corrotion anyway, the plastic doesn't go brittle in normal use and they do if use proplely provide a strong mechanical and elecrtical (low heat) conection.
I personnally don't like them but they are safe and good for the amature sparky!

Sorry to argue... ;-)

[darkdezigns]

Rubbish most high street accesory fitters use them, as for corrosion they will ong corrode if they are inj an area when you would get corrotion anyway, the plastic doesn't go brittle in normal use and they do if use proplely provide a strong mechanical and elecrtical (low heat) conection.
I personnally don't like them but they are safe and good for the amature sparky!

Sorry to argue... ;-)

np carry on lol,put it this way,i have done literally thousands of callouts over the years(we cover aa,rac,brittania,csma,police) and ive had loads of probs with them,had some where wires fallout,live to earth on body(bloke actually got shock off his car)ones put near a windscreen inside rusting,ones put near the heater and falling apart,favourite for them are alarm installers,chop into fuel pump wiring etc under the bonnet,all good till it falls apart

[darkdezigns]

Hello,

It was the orange wire, so thanks for that

It works fine, now...

Paul

gawd i really do have the memory of an elephant lol

[rainmaker02]

Rubbish most high street accesory fitters use them, as for corrosion they will ong corrode if they are inj an area when you would get corrotion anyway, the plastic doesn't go brittle in normal use and they do if use proplely provide a strong mechanical and elecrtical (low heat) conection.
I personnally don't like them but they are safe and good for the amature sparky!

Sorry to argue... ;-)

Most high street accessory fitters use them because they are just that - high street accessory fitters. Ask anyone who makes their living installing alarms, trackers, satnav or phone kits and they'll all tell you the same, bin them.
If you've had an installer fit an alarm, phone kit, etc and they've used scotchloks I would be having a VERY good look at the way the installed the rest of the kit in your car.
There is an industry standard (FSC 1362 if you're interested) that all will gladly adhere to and IDCs (Insulation Displacement Connectors - aka Scotchloks) are most definitely NOT in there.
Curiously though, Nokia still include them in their phone kits but nobody worth their salt would use them for anything except occupying a small area in the corner of the wheelie bin.

[Brummie]

Had to repair a loom because of scotch locks. Some monkey had used them on a second hand car I had and cut through the cigarette lighter feed. I think I set a new world record disconnecting the battery to say nothing of the amount of rubber I left on the road stopping (before ABS) I had a short to earth that only a disconnect would stop.
Scotch locks? I hate them

[darkdezigns]

Most high street accessory fitters use them because they are just that - high street accessory fitters. Ask anyone who makes their living installing alarms, trackers, satnav or phone kits and they'll all tell you the same, bin them.
If you've had an installer fit an alarm, phone kit, etc and they've used scotchloks I would be having a VERY good look at the way the installed the rest of the kit in your car.
There is an industry standard (FSC 1362 if you're interested) that all will gladly adhere to and IDCs (Insulation Displacement Connectors - aka Scotchloks) are most definitely NOT in there.
Curiously though, Nokia still include them in their phone kits but nobody worth their salt would use them for anything except occupying a small area in the corner of the wheelie bin.

Had to repair a loom because of scotch locks. Some monkey had used them on a second hand car I had and cut through the cigarette lighter feed. I think I set a new world record disconnecting the battery to say nothing of the amount of rubber I left on the road stopping (before ABS) I had a short to earth that only a disconnect would stop.
Scotch locks? I hate them

cheers guys

[wishbone]

Had to repair a loom because of scotch locks. Some monkey had used them on a second hand car I had and cut through the cigarette lighter feed. I think I set a new world record disconnecting the battery to say nothing of the amount of rubber I left on the road stopping (before ABS) I had a short to earth that only a disconnect would stop.
Scotch locks? I hate them

So the car had no fuse fitted for the cigarette lighter ? That's odd.

Rob.

[MattF]

the conact corrodes,the plastic goes brittle,they fall apart,the cables fall out,

Slight dramatisation there, unless you happen to always come across occasions where people have used inferior connectors. As to cables falling out, that merely implies they have used the wrong sized connector for the wire.

However, I would agree with not using them on multi-strand cables. Not for any of the reasons mentioned so far in this thread, but merely for the fact that those type of connection methods should be used for nothing more than solid core cable. They will never make a solid connection on a multi-strand cable. As to them being unreliable, that again is due to them being used outside of their intended use, not due to the connectors being intrinsically shonky.

[MattF]

So the car had no fuse fitted for the cigarette lighter ? That's odd.

Rob.

You're correct there. I'd have been worrying more about the monkey who had screwed the fuse replacement up rather than the use of the connector.

[darkdezigns]

Slight dramatisation there, unless you happen to always come across occasions where people have used inferior connectors. As to cables falling out, that merely implies they have used the wrong sized connector for the wire.

However, I would agree with not using them on multi-strand cables. Not for any of the reasons mentioned so far in this thread, but merely for the fact that those type of connection methods should be used for nothing more than solid core cable. They will never make a solid connection on a multi-strand cable. As to them being unreliable, that again is due to them being used outside of their intended use, not due to the connectors being intrinsically shonky.

i agree to an extent,it mostly comes down to ####s walking into halfords wanting to bodge wiring,and they have a choice,crimp connectors(oh we need a tool to fit them) or scotch locks(push in and thats it),as said above tho nokia kits comw with them,and these are stranded wires(as are most if not all wires used with aftermarket extras),i just think they are horrible things(remember i spend alot of time going to breakdowns lol)

[MattF]

i just think they are horrible things(remember i spend alot of time going to breakdowns lol)

For vehicular use, I totally agree. They are completely outside of their intended area(s). As with owt though, you could also throw the best connectors on earth at people, but if they're a muppet, they'll still balls it up somehow.

[rainmaker02]

Ah yes, the muppet factor. I can hear Simon Cowell formulating a new TV series as I type :-)

[wishbone]

you could also throw the best connectors on earth at people, but if they're a muppet, they'll still balls it up somehow.

So true. I've seen wires twisted together with sellotape and even elastoplast wrapped round the join. As I said above there's loads of crimped connectors out there that have been bodged with pliers etc..

In my surf the fog light was wired through a switch in the centre console being powered by the dash lighting circuit cable I'm not suprised it wasn't working. The cable from the switch to the wiring loom was stripped back, soldered and heat shrinked. There you have the 'perfect' connection according to the guys above, but I'd have settled for the 'shXXty' scotchlok as a source for a switched relay and a proper fused source power connection.... which is exactly what I did.

Rob.

[MattF]

So true. I've seen wires twisted together with sellotape and even elastoplast wrapped round the join. As I said above there's loads of crimped connectors out there that have been bodged with pliers etc..

Aye, some of the crap you see really does beggar belief on occasion.

In my surf the fog light was wired through a switch in the centre console being powered by the dash lighting circuit cable I'm not suprised it wasn't working. The cable from the switch to the wiring loom was stripped back, soldered and heat shrinked. There you have the 'perfect' connection according to the guys above, but I'd have settled for the 'shXXty' scotchlok as a source for a switched relay and a proper fused source power connection.... which is exactly what I did.

A good connection is of no use in the wrong place, is it. Whilst ever people without a clue insist on playing around with electrics, we'll always have the memorable additions.