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Short story

Google Nest Cam cable

Google nest Cam cable

How would one solder, or in general patch, these two pieces of the same cable? Can I just separate the inner from the outer cable, solder and properly isolate one from the other?

Longer story

I bought a power cable for Google Nest camera but it won't fit my cable duct. I wanted to insert the probe through the duct, bind it to the front (charging part) of the cable

Charging end

While the end barely fits the duct, I tried pulling and the bond between cable and probe was too thick. I tried to bind the charging tip to the front of the probe and push, but eventually it could't make a tiny turn.

So after countless attempts I decided to cut it open to see if it was something like of a twisted pair, which is easier to solder. And found this.

usr-local-ΕΨΗΕΛΩΝ
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    Install a bigger cable duct and don't cut it (too late), or coaxial connectors as already answered. However, if your coax is (most likely) not a standard size, (or is, but won't admit what size it is) finding connectors to fit it will be a royal pain. – Ecnerwal Nov 19 '21 at 13:33
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    This doesn't appear to be a coax but rather a specialized bundle cable – Carl Witthoft Nov 19 '21 at 14:49
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    Just solder the connections & insulate them properly from each other. This is just a power cable, not a sensitive high-frequency signal cable, so you don't need any special procedures. – brhans Nov 19 '21 at 15:13
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    Are those photos of the inside of the cable in monochrome, or is the wire really silver in colour? If it's coloured silver then there is a chance that it is aluminium, which apparently needs a different flux than the ones for copper. – Andrew Morton Nov 19 '21 at 16:12
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    Normally, a low-voltage low-power DC device like this could be fed by any low voltage wire like phone or bell wire. You need to investigate a little as to why this thing is "coaxial" (not in the traditional sense, but there is clearly something coaxial about it), and why there are 4 pins on the connector, and why there are a whole load of white conductors. Etc etc .. you need to understand what this does and what it's for before you can fix it. OR you could just use some phone wire and see if it works. – jay613 Nov 19 '21 at 16:17
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    If those strands are the conductors and are solderable, then yes, you could solder them together. I found it easier to use heat shrink- low heat solder connector to make these connections. Just use a hair dryer to heat the solder. These type of connector provides waterproof, insulate, and a solder joint all at the same time by heating the connector. – Programmer66 Nov 19 '21 at 17:00

3 Answers3

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While this cable is technically "co-axial" because the two conductors share the same center, this is not RF signal cable that we commonly call coax, and it doesn't have the same restrictions.

This cable isn't sheilded and doesn't have any special electrical properties. Its just two conductors carrying power and can be soldered like any other two conductor speaker or power wire. The only reason it is coaxial is so the final cable is round and not flat like a typical "side by side" power cable - just for looks.

JPhi1618
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If you're thinking of soldering it, then buy some heat-shrink tubing in different sizes.

If you make a reasonably neat joint, you can slide some heat shrink over the join, and shrink it in place. But remember to slide the tubing onto the cable before you do the solder joint. For a coaxial cable, that means sliding piece of thin tube over the inner joint, and a longer piece over the outside of the cable, before doing any soldering.

Simon B
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  • "remember to slide the tubing onto the cable BEFORE you do the solder joint"... even with experience, I can't count the number of times I forgot that :D – Thomas Nov 20 '21 at 10:44
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There are coax cable ends you can buy and place on cable. Think you also need inexpensive crimper tool. Connect both ends with coax connector.

https://www.amazon.ca/Crimper-Moveland-Compression-Stripper-Connectors/dp/B07HJT7WVT/ref=sr_1_5?crid=13XQJPBX3VWEG&keywords=coax+cable+crimper+kit+tool&qid=1637328117&sprefix=coax%2Caps%2C217&sr=8-5

First one that came up, not a recommendation.

This answer is for simple TV type coax. For other types can maybe use telephone splices like this. https://www.amazon.com/Klein-Tools-VDV826-605-Connectors-19-26/dp/B008EAK2VK

or this. https://www.amazon.com/B-Connector-Telephone-Beanies-Splices-Voltage/dp/B07KCXBGQW

crip659
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  • Thanks. The crimper tool is worth almost as much as the cable. Still, your feedback is particularly welcome – usr-local-ΕΨΗΕΛΩΝ Nov 19 '21 at 13:31
  • A tv repair shop might do it for you for a few bucks. It usually not worth it to buy a kit just for one job. They also can tell if it is different type of cable that might need something else than a plain coax end. – crip659 Nov 19 '21 at 13:56
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    OP- that is NOT a standard coaxial cable type that has a solid wire center used with crimped terminals. The wire is similar to USB type power cable. I would not use the term coaxial as a description of the power cable. Your pictures of the exposed ends are not showing the conductors. Unless those strands are the conductors which would be very difficult to solder. – Programmer66 Nov 19 '21 at 14:56
  • @Programmer66 That was what I was worried about, it not being a standard coax(for TV) – crip659 Nov 19 '21 at 15:21