Can I splice this Mag Ballast with weird wire?

Can I splice copper wire with silver strand wire in mag-ballast?
[HR][/HR] So can I?

I've got an old solid metal magmatic ballast, like 40+ lb's. The light socket is attached right to the damn thing. This thing is old and out of someones garage I Imagine. Well I got an ArgroGrow bulb Mh/With red Spectrum. I don't want this heavy old POS in my New tent, Idk if it will even hold it.

So I took the Socket off the ballast (Just two screws) cut the wire and took the wire to Home Depot. This "retired electrician" Sold me regular copper wire and said it would work with the light. The pic below is my wire (with out that red its just the fiberglass stuff around silver threaded wire) Its heat resistant. Well he sold me solid copper wire with the normal rubber coating I told him it didn't seem right.

Any way, I got silicone tape (up to 400 degrees). I would like to strip the copper wire, wrap it in the tape then splice it with the insulated silver strand wire stuff.

Will this work :-/ ...

FYI: Last grow was my first grow. I grew Afghan Kush Ryder Auto.
With bubble buckets using GH nutes,,lucas.
I used this big ass ballast and the same bulb.
I had a closet then tho. SMALL Closet.
I burnt the fuck out of them..couple 100F days.
I got 1.5 OZ. Not good So I hope to do better on this grow.

BUMP
Please

Yes it will work, but do yourself a favour and do not just twist/tape your connections. A marette(wire nut) is the proper way to make electrical connections inside an electrical box such as your ballst. If you have the room a terminal strip would be a more sound and rigid connection as marettes tend to back off and loosen from the near constant vibrations of the ballast.

A terminal strip is strip of screw posts connected in pairs. wrap the wire under a screw from the left to right(same direction you turn while tightening) around the threaded portion of the screw and tighten it. Then take the wire you wish to use to extend the wire you just placed, on the corresponding terminal. You should have a total of 3 connections consisting of 6 wires, ballast hot to extension wire hot, ballast neutral to extension wire neutral, and ground to ground.

Hope this helps