Using Doll House Wire Tape

Trying to run power to my Dob's secondary dew heater. Saw that some people have used doll house wire tape to run on the spider so I bought some already. But it's tougher than just soldering two wires together so I've exhausted my electronics for dummies skill set.

The copper tape has some adhesive residue that I need to get off. What's the easiest way to get the tape clean? After brake cleaner, alcohol and sandpaper it still looks like it has a film on it.

Any hints on connecting regular wire to the tape? Is there a good way to make a physical connection so the solder joint will last? Should I strip and twist and solder like it's two round wires or keep the tape flat? I can use the spider bolt and end screw as one conductor but that still leaves two connections I need to make.

Do I need to add more adhesive or a layer of black duct tape to hold the wire tight on the spider? I'm sure it will hold now but I'm worried about it holding when it gets cold and wet.

Thanks

Dave Rutherford

Hi, David. I have used it with good results on my 13". IIRC, there was a clear, vinyl film over the top (non-adhesive) side that I was able to peel off. This left the two conductors bare. I left the adhesive side alone. Of the two copper strips, one had some kind of dark colored ink on it, the other was copper colored, presumably to manage polarity in a doll house. I used sandpaper to clean the top surfaces of both, at both ends, and then applied it to the side of a spider vane. I then soldered thin copper wires (single strand telephone wire) to each, using a 25 watt soldering pencil. They soldered on nicely, without damaging the adhesive side. I then connected the wires to an RCA jack on the outside of the telescope tube, and to the heater wires behind the secondary. Because there's no tension on the connections to the doll house wiring tape, there's no reason to think that they'll ever come loose.

I can take some pics tonight and post them tomorrow.

Hope this helps,
Doug

Thanks for the responses. I was using too big a wire on my practice run. I will also try extra flux on the tape. I couldn't tin the tape.

I used an ohm meter to check for resistance along the spider vane. Shouldn't short out from contacting the vane due to the paint but it seems moisture might be a potential problem. Maybe a insulating layer of tape like Jarad is using would help.

I'm not sure whether the best way to finish it is covering the wires with a length of black duct tape or spray paint flat black over everything. Just don't want the thing to be so thick from three layers of tape that I could have just run a wire on top of the spider.

David