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  • Author Author: dubbie
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My First Ever Crimping Experience

dubbie

For my Sand Based Cat Detector (Cat Detector Using Sand #2 : The Implementation ) I used a lead acid battery with spade connections. I have never properly used spade connections before (I usually use crocodile clips or solder directly) so I thought this would be a good time to start as I am working my way towards an outdoor mobile robot and robust and reliable connections are essential. Not really knowing much about making spade or crimping connections I decide that the best approach would be to buy some and just try it out. I have wanted to crimp for some time so rather than find out about it I just blundered in and bought something. I do not expect to do much crimping in the future so just looked online and bought the cheapest set I could find that seemed to do what I wanted.

 

 

I used deep learning to update my natural neural networks in my head, basically I just stuck some wire inside the crimpets (or connectors) and tried to make good connections with the wire using the crimping tool. Initially there was little success as the tool I obtained did not come with any instructions what-so-ever. The crimpets would not stay on the wire while I attempted to use the crimping tool and several crimpets were harmed in this process.

 

image

 

It took me several attempts to work out that the tool I had purchased did not do any folding of the little tabs on the crimpets. Once I had worked this out and folded over the ;little tabs using some pin nosed pliers I was able to make some good crimped connections. I'm not sure if it uses cold-welding or just mechanical interference to make a good physical and electrical connection, but they seem to work, so all is good.

 

Dubbie

  • Hi Dubbie,

     

    I do the same as Doug, i.e. add some solder (after crimping) if the specific crimp tool isn't suitable. However, I think maybe your tool might do both the bare wire crimping and the insulation gripping in one go. The tool looks weird though, as if it is upside down. I think it needs to be held as shown, with the text on it upside-down, and the cable insulation held and fed in from the side with the text on it, with the terminal positioned as shown in the diagram below (apologies for the very crude diagram, hopefully it's clear). Also, although ideally nothing should be folded before using the tool, perhaps (just looking at the photo of the crimped failures, you might need to slightly fold the insulation gripping tabs slightly inward first.

    image

    I have a low-cost tool for these too, not the same model, mine is assembled inverted to yours.

  • 'good' crimpers can be very expensive. My old AMP crimps for DB-xx pins is just a pain in you know what. you have to have the terminal with wire and then crimp it. 50%  of the time if fails for one reason or another. and they used to cost 200+. Next comes my aircraft pin crimp. This is a never-fail crimper. This crimper works by squeezing the pin with 4 teeth. you need a body 300usd+ and then the turret which is for the pin itself, add another 100usd+ for each. by the time you are all through you could spend 500 - 1000 bucks. its made by DMC and you can find it sometimes on eBay. imageimage

    ~~Cris

  • There is a lot of science behind good crimp connections. I suspect they rely on the wire bring more springy than the crimp terminal, so after a crimp there is always force on the joint

    Whenever I don't have a great tool for crimping, I solder the joint after crimping, to make sure there is full contact and so it won't loosen off.

  • Neat!

    Those battery terminals sure look a lot sturdier.

     

    I didn't know those tools just finished the crimp, now I'm curious what the "better one" looks like. Because I've been thinking about getting one for crimping spade lugs, the ones you can use with some banana plugs and smaller ones for screw terminals.