odd question... can you solder to this stuff? I’ve seen it used in dolls houses for the lighting, but they tend to drill through and put metal ferrules/eyelets in for a plug to go in to... Thinking along the lines of this.... here although it says it’s for guitars? I’ve seen some use this stuff as a power bus for DCC layouts (maybe even DC) but I just want to know if I can solder a wire to it. Thanks.
Yes you can. I used it many moons ago. The copper is thin ...... very thin...... so don't hang your cable from it. Lay rather than suspend. Check the rating out also. Cheers Toto
I have used it on my storage yard of 6 tracks as bus wiring to save having wires hanging down to tracks below. I laid it up & down the board about 3 times connecting across each lot so power went all over evenly distributed.
Probably good inside buildings to save having cables running through them as it would stick well underneath ceilings without being seen flopping about.
Hi Andy. Be aware that it's not so much the voltage with this thin tape, more a matter of how high a current demand if using it for 'busbars'. If you intend only using LED's, then as long as you're not connecting several dozen to it, you should be ok. Does it not state what the current carrying capacity of the tape is??? On my layout, I have had to split the street/building/yard lighting into two circuits fed by two separate transformer/rectifiers as there are around 50 LED's on each circuit, using 1.5mm mains lighting cable as red and black 'busbars', not tried the copper tape myself so no idea how long it might stay stuck under a board. Keith.
Litterally 4-5 grain of wheat bulbs off a 9v battery. Tracks already wired so I’m not so worried re loads.
I did a bit of research on this a few years back, it showed that most copper tape is about 0.07mm thick This means the Cross Sectional Area (CSA) is actually 0.84mm for 12mm wide, easily capable of handling over 5 Amps! That said, soldering onto it will weaken the glue in that spot, adhered to a rough surface and it may not stick well and it's longevity of staying on is unknown. To be honest, I just strip insulation off and use bare copper wire and superglue every 20-30mm!
Interesting points... I’ve already ordered some before your comment so I’ll at least have a go and report back... I also need a new soldering iron as the tip has about gone on my current one and no idea if I can get a spare for this particular model... what’s the best to get wattage wise - I can’t afford a variable one... likely to be max £15 And solder...?
Andy, read my Guide. Variable soldering irons are available for just £16! Just search Ebay! Get resin cored LEAD! 60/40
I can see no need for a variable temperature soldering iron if all you intend to solder is electrical/electronic joints, as you will not need to use different melting point solders. If however you are intending to build white metal models in the future, then a variable temperature iron is a good investment, but you will need either interchangeable bits or several different soldering irons if you intend soldering with different temperature solders as cross contamination between differing melting point solders is not what you want. As Timbersurf says, 60/40 Tin/Lead solder with a resin flux core is what you need for general purpose soldering to copper, brass etc. I'd suggest a 25 watt iron is the best all-round size for general soldering, if circuit board soldering is what you intend, then a 15 watt one should suffice, but it would struggle with larger wiring joints, hence my 25 watt suggestion. Antex or Weller are undoubtedly the best, sometimes Antex do Ebay clearances at very decent prices, I've picked up 80 watt and 100 watt versions direct from them not too long ago for £15 or less, so check on Ebay. Keith.
