Hi,
I'm about to start my first amp builds (Neurochrome and Purifi based ones) and I've been researching a lot about crimping. Here is what I come up with:
1. For 4.8 mm / 6.3 mm quick disconnects / faston connectors, I'm looking to buy a reliable but affordable crimp tool. I'd crimp these non-insulated and cover them in head-shrink afterwards.
2. For everything else (JST, Molex, etc.) I'll buy pre-crimped wires, as it wouldn't make sense for me to buy the expensive tools needed to crimp these.
What crimp tool should I buy? A cheap, noname Aliexpress / Banggood kind of racheting tool or a simple but high quality non-racheting one?
I know many people buy professional tools here, but I'm only planning to use this for 10, maybe 20 times in total. I'm happy to invest $20-30 in a tool, but not $200+.
For example this is what looks really nice to me, about 20 EUR in Europe.
Knipex 97 21 215 B Crimping Plier
The alternative would be some cheap racheting one like this:
4 in 1 ratchet crimper cable wire crimping plier electrical terminals plier tool kit Sale - Banggood.com
or this:
Paron(R) jx-d5 multifunctional ratchet crimping tool wire strippers terminals pliers kit Sale - Banggood.com
Then for the connectors, what should I look for? What brand, what material, locking mechanism, etc.? Is TE considered the best one?
Here is a filtered search I made at TME.eu about the ones I believe are fitting for me.
About the insulation, I'm thinking about using heat-shrink after crimping as I can make a more precise crimping this way.
What do you recommend?
I'm about to start my first amp builds (Neurochrome and Purifi based ones) and I've been researching a lot about crimping. Here is what I come up with:
1. For 4.8 mm / 6.3 mm quick disconnects / faston connectors, I'm looking to buy a reliable but affordable crimp tool. I'd crimp these non-insulated and cover them in head-shrink afterwards.
2. For everything else (JST, Molex, etc.) I'll buy pre-crimped wires, as it wouldn't make sense for me to buy the expensive tools needed to crimp these.
What crimp tool should I buy? A cheap, noname Aliexpress / Banggood kind of racheting tool or a simple but high quality non-racheting one?
I know many people buy professional tools here, but I'm only planning to use this for 10, maybe 20 times in total. I'm happy to invest $20-30 in a tool, but not $200+.
For example this is what looks really nice to me, about 20 EUR in Europe.
Knipex 97 21 215 B Crimping Plier
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
The alternative would be some cheap racheting one like this:
4 in 1 ratchet crimper cable wire crimping plier electrical terminals plier tool kit Sale - Banggood.com
or this:
Paron(R) jx-d5 multifunctional ratchet crimping tool wire strippers terminals pliers kit Sale - Banggood.com
Then for the connectors, what should I look for? What brand, what material, locking mechanism, etc.? Is TE considered the best one?
Here is a filtered search I made at TME.eu about the ones I believe are fitting for me.
About the insulation, I'm thinking about using heat-shrink after crimping as I can make a more precise crimping this way.
What do you recommend?
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I have an inexpensive one similar to the red one in your photo. It has served me well for over 40 years. The fancy ones work great, but I get good results with mine too. It works just fine for Molex pins as well.
About the red one. I never use the stripper part between the handles, I use a Paladin stripper. It was a $100 stripper, but worth it to me. But the other feature I never thought I would use but has come in handy is the screw cutters. That is the several threaded holes around the central pivot. You turn a machine screw into the proper hole, have the crimper in open position. Them close it to cut off the screw. I can shorten a screw that way.
About the red one. I never use the stripper part between the handles, I use a Paladin stripper. It was a $100 stripper, but worth it to me. But the other feature I never thought I would use but has come in handy is the screw cutters. That is the several threaded holes around the central pivot. You turn a machine screw into the proper hole, have the crimper in open position. Them close it to cut off the screw. I can shorten a screw that way.
The first one is for non-insulated connectors, but I'm not sure it is for Fastons.
The second and third ones are universal.
I use something like the second-third one for insulated fastons (it is very convenient for me to use insulated ones).
The second and third ones are universal.
I use something like the second-third one for insulated fastons (it is very convenient for me to use insulated ones).
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The ratchet crimpers are much preferred.
They are all made of brass alloy, platings can be different some gold.
Ratchet crimpers, gold plated connectors.
What you are looking for is a gas tight metal to metal crimp. A proper crim actually bonds the two metals. The hand crimp needs a lot of care and force to do that properly. Many people I know solder them after crimping with those tools. A ratchet crimper will give reliable gas tight connections. You can't fail the full cycle (the ratchet) and its why those are referred or required for specific applications. For 10 connections I would use the inexpensive one. Get one from a name brand. Some off brands are really poor and you will injure your hands on the sharp edges in the handles. The Knipex is probably pretty good. They are over $40 here in the US. There are some others on Amazon that look pretty decent. Certainly good enough for 10 connections.
You could also consider using the insulated QC connectors. Then cover those with heat shrink. That's what I use.
For crimper, I use a Molex ratcheting tool (Molex P/N: 0640160042; Digikey P/N: WM9990-ND; Mouser P/N: 538-64016-0042).
Tom
For crimper, I use a Molex ratcheting tool (Molex P/N: 0640160042; Digikey P/N: WM9990-ND; Mouser P/N: 538-64016-0042).
Tom
So you are basically saying that I should go with something like this:
For the tool, then I'd need to look for the red-blue-yellow marked ones right? From what I've seen, IWISS seems to be a recommended a higher quality Chinese brand. Still reasonable price but much better compared to the noname Aliexpress tools.
Like:
For the tool, then I'd need to look for the red-blue-yellow marked ones right? From what I've seen, IWISS seems to be a recommended a higher quality Chinese brand. Still reasonable price but much better compared to the noname Aliexpress tools.
Like:
That's the tool you want!
I'm not sure the connector you show is the right one for that tool. It might work, but I'd look for the kind shown in the "Crimping Effect" picture. They're common at auto part stores. If you then want to add insulation, just drape them with heat shrink.
Tom
I'm not sure the connector you show is the right one for that tool. It might work, but I'd look for the kind shown in the "Crimping Effect" picture. They're common at auto part stores. If you then want to add insulation, just drape them with heat shrink.
Tom