Hi!
I'm starting to do more and more custom PCB projects, and one thing I still haven't chosen as my go-to is the connectors. For perfboard projects, I love using the 2.54mm Nylon crimp connectors, because you can solder them easily and the cable-side connectors themselves are extremely easy to crimp. Their only problem is that they're rather bulky and are through-hole. Some of the connectors I've been considering are the small JST ones since they're easily acquirable and should be okay for crimping, I remember crimping those connectors a few years back, and there is of course the whole range of Molex Micro/Mini Fit connectors, which I used at work, but the pliers needed for them are, let's just say not budget-friendly. One thing I love about them though, is that there are a lot of different sizes and pin counts.
So my question would be, what are some of your go-to connectors for PCBs, whether that's for powering your PCB, sensor signals, communication, motors and so on. I would also love to go with the Molex ones if possible if you have any ideas of any pliers that are okay for crimping them without breaking the bank? I'm just not at the point with the projects where I can justify spending that much on crimping pliers.
Milos