Spade Connectors for PID's?

Hi All-

Anyone know the part number/specs for the spade connectors used with Auber PID's? Everyone says to use the "narrow" ones.....but I don't want to order the wrong size and Lowe's/HD has a lackluster electronics section...usually only one choice for parts like these.

14-16 gauge will work fine. Just put my PID together yesterday.

Sweet brotha, thanks!

When I wired mine I used the 14/16 ga narrow ones available at HD. They worked fine, but they are actually slightly too wide. I had to back the terminal screw out all the way, so that the spade could go in at a slight angle. They sit down flat when tightened, and it barely takes any torque to get them down flat, so they should be fine. Just a word of warning, they may seem slightly too big but they work out. FWIW I used the 18-22 ga ones for the RTDs and they had the same problem.

Another question.....my SSR's have pins that receive the control signals. What kind of terminal connectors for these? Looks like you would push some kind of crimped sleeve over them?

ScubaSteve said:

Another question.....my SSR's have pins that receive the control signals. What kind of terminal connectors for these? Looks like you would push some kind of crimped sleeve over them?

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Does your SSR look somewhat like this?

Yup....it's an SSRD too. I saw that you went with the standard SSR's because of the connectivity...but I'd rather not do that since I already bought these. Do you know what to use to hook these up?

ScubaSteve said:

Yup....it's an SSRD too. I saw that you went with the standard SSR's because of the connectivity...but I'd rather not do that since I already bought these. Do you know what to use to hook these up?

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Man, I wish I knew you were going to use SSRDs, I would've just gave you mine!

I didn't get any connectors for them, so I can't tell you for sure which to use. I can find out for you, though.

TB

Dude, I woulda gladly taken them! But, I got a good deal on mine.....used; so if they're DOA I might just PM you I am WAY over budget on my build!

if you're talking about the 4 pins towards the bottom of the photo I'd bet these would work. You can email a photo of your SSR to the guys at http://www.oscsys.com/ and make sure but I think these are the right ones.

scubasteve,

in case the link below doesn't work, search lowes.com for part number 136071. they're the electrical equivalent of quick disconnects. i use them on the contactors i got from auber.

connector

they also make them with a sheath over the connector:

connector with sheath

p.d.

I love this forum! PaleDragon.....I was thinking about giving those a try....I have some of those since I bought a mix pack of connectors.....I guess I'll take tin snips and carefully cut half of the connector off. As for insulation, I guess I could use electrical tape.

EuBrew, you might be onto something....I'll tuck those away just in case. I'm so broke right now I need to use what I have unless it's unsafe/unsightly. Thanks guys!

scubasteve,

insulation isn't necessary, it's more to make it "touch" safe.

there shouldn't be any snipping necessary. unlike most things, this kind of disconnect is nearly universal as far as i've seen. can you post pictures of what you'd need to cut?

p.d.

Oh, I was just going to cut half of the fitting off, leaving one "tube"...then slide that over the pin. I wanted to insulate a bit just to prevent crossed signals and misfire of the SSRD.

You shouldnt have to cut anything. A trick to get forks to fit if they are a little wide is to you a pair of pliers to bend the prongs down a bit on either side. So if you look down the barrel the prongs make a 'V' type shape. Usually makes them narrow enough to fit between the terminals and they will flatten out to shape as you tighten them.


I would get blade connectors that have the insulation go all the way over the blade. Some times they don't fit very tight though. To fix that you a pair of pliers and lightly squeeze the round part on either side of the female connector. When you go to put them on they will be significantly harder to push on, they will be less likely to slip off too .

FYI You can usually find everything you need at an auto parts store in the electrical section too.

Code, I think we got our wires crossed (pun intended). I was talking about cutting the flat (non-fork) fittings PaleDragon linked to....the ones with the "tubes" on either side, so I could fit them over the pins on my SSR's. I think the spade connectors should work for the PID's.....if not I'll bend 'em like you suggest!

Might be off base here, but I would solder those. It's the control signal for the SSR, so it's going to be low current (30 mA) and you could use some 18 or 20 ga wire. Pre-tin the wire and the posts, should be easy. That's how I soldered up the RTD disconnects. Should eliminate the cutting/shaping issues, and you know you'll have a good solid connection.

I thought about that, but didn't want to heat damage the SSR's.....

Spade connectors come in wire size, then screw size. Figure out what size the screws are (I'm waiting for a call back from Auber,) and it's easy. HD/Lowes is probably only going to have one size. You either have to order from McMaster (search 'Lug Terminal') or an electrical supply house-they may just sell you the few you need, so you don't have to buy a whole box.

I got on mcmaster and bought the narrowest style (#6 stud I think) rated for 20 ga wire....they oughta work! Thanks guys!

I think you guys are still getting your wires crossed, except trigger who suggested soldering to the pins. ScubaSteve is talking about connecting to the pins in the lower half of the picture, not the spade connectors at the top of the connectors. Given the amount of heat that a ssr gives off anyway, I would not worry about soldering a narrow gauge wire on.

On those trigger pins I used pin connectors with leads off salvaged computer and other electronic PC boards for my SSRD's. Even used model radio control connectors they worked. Come in 2,3,4, 5 and 6 pin female connectors.

For the spade fittings any automotive parts store will have mixed or single size packet crimp-on female insulated connectors.
Standard colors for size of wire crimped, yellow 12-10, blue 16-14, red 22-18 gauge STRANDED WIRE NOT SOLID. In .250" or .187" wide spade.
Merry Christmas all.

jmer1234 said:

I think you guys are still getting your wires crossed, except trigger who suggested soldering to the pins. ScubaSteve is talking about connecting to the pins in the lower half of the picture, not the spade connectors at the top of the connectors. Given the amount of heat that a ssr gives off anyway, I would not worry about soldering a narrow gauge wire on.

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I haven't done it myself, so I didn't want to push the issue. Especially since it isn't my $$ on the line if it burns up the SSR. That being said, if it were my part I would solder it by letting the iron get all the way hot, pretinning the posts with the minimum amount of heat necessary, letting it cool completely while pretinning the wires. Then go one at a time, getting the post just hot enough to get a solid connection and allowing the device to cool completely after each one. You could also mount the heat sink for a some help in protecting the SSR. I've soldered the pinouts on 555's and several opamps in the lab before and didn't burn one up, but again, I HAVEN'T done an SSR. Please take this with a grain of salt, as it is just internet advice.

trigger said:

I haven't done it myself, so I didn't want to push the issue. Especially since it isn't my $$ on the line if it burns up the SSR. That being said, if it were my part I would solder it by letting the iron get all the way hot, pretinning the posts with the minimum amount of heat necessary, letting it cool completely while pretinning the wires. Then go one at a time, getting the post just hot enough to get a solid connection and allowing the device to cool completely after each one. You could also mount the heat sink for a some help in protecting the SSR. I've soldered the pinouts on 555's and several opamps in the lab before and didn't burn one up, but again, I HAVEN'T done an SSR. Please take this with a grain of salt, as it is just internet advice.

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OR you could just use the connector pictured below, I can't verify 100% without seeing the actual part but I'd be willing to bet these would work and you wouldn't need to solder if you were close enough to whatever you're connecting to with crimp connectors.



They're only a buck fifty so you're not out much, shipping would be cheap. Just my 2c if you're concerned about soldering to the pins I would check into these.

Yeah, there's gotta be something a bit easier than soldering...I've worked with a lot of computer type stuff that was pretty much plug/play.....

As an IT Pro I can say yes, off the shelf, purpose built components are plug-n-play. Unfortunately, we are not doing off the shelf, purpose built here. I did see that McMaster-Carr has pin terminals. You can probably also get these at Radio Shack.