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  • Author Author: shabaz
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Making 0.1" Jumper Cables - Crimp Tools Tested

shabaz

 

Introduction

Making your own jumper cables is quite high on the list of unproductive things to do : ) since they are available ready-made in pinpin, socket socket and pin and socketpin and socket versions. Sometimes I'll just use solid core wire if it is going into board sockets. However, sometimes a custom length or connector is needed on the other end, or even just a different color wire to differentiate signals easily, and then the ready-made cables are less useful.

The photo here shows home-made cables that were made from insulated wire containing 14 strands of bare copper, each 0.14 mm diameter. I stripped a multi-conductor cable to get these wires. I used the same wire in the tests in this blog post.

image

 

This blog post is light on the words, it is mostly self-explanatory in video and/or photos.

Here's a 16-minute video:

 

 

What Crimp Pins and Sockets?

Pins and sockets are available from eBay, but they are slightly shapeless. I do not think they are worth it, when better gold-plated sockets are available from Farnell at under 3 pence (in quantities of 300 –enough for several years of prototyping!). Pins (tin plated) are slightly cheaper – just over 2 pence in quantities of 100.

Here are some good options:

2226TG Crimp Sockets2226TG Crimp Sockets with gold plated contacts

EI series 170376-1 Crimp PinEI series 170376-1 Crimp Pin with tin plated contacts – 0.70 mm square pin and 18 mm length overall

C-Grid SL series 16-02-0107 Crimp PinC-Grid SL series 16-02-0107 Crimp Pin with tin plated contacts – 0.64 mm square pin and 22 mm length overall

 

 

Crimp Tools

Three options that will support the above pins and sockets are:

Engineer PA-09

Multicomp HT-225DMulticomp HT-225D

AMP 90202-2

 

The AMP tool is a production tool and it is overkill for prototyping. However, it is an old obsolete tool so sometimes available from eBay in used condition (I paid £15 or $20 for mine). It is intended for specific crimps, but it turns out it works with the crimp codes listed above.

 

Crimp Tools Tested

 

image

 

Engineer PA-09

This tool is suitable for a large range of crimps, in particular JST ranges such as PH (popular with hobby LiPo batteries) as well as JST SH, ZH, XH, RCY, Molex KK, Micro-Fit, C-Grid. There is a chart of supported crimp types.

It is a thin tool and it therefore needs two passes – the first to perform the bare wire crimp and the second to perform the insulation crimp.

There are four possible positions for different sized crimp pins or sockets. There’s no ratchet action, so judgement is needed on how much force to apply when crimping. I judged both wrong in the video (crimp position and the force), and the crimped result detached easier than it should have. For the photos below, I used the correct position (the position marked 1.4 mm on the tool) however the crimp could be pulled apart with pliers (that's an extreme test of course).

A benefit of the tool is that it is easy to examine the wire depth when crimping, because the insulation is visible, and the tool itself can be used as an insulation stop – the video shows this. I think this tool is convenient for the very small crimps, but maybe not the best tool for 0.1" crimps. After doing the test in the video, I subsequently tried the correct position and exerted as much force as I could by hand during the crimp action. I had to prise the crimp away using a screwdriver, because it got stuck in the tool. I then tried pulling the wire using pliers, and the strands again came out of the crimp : ( This did not occur with the ratcheting tools below.

 

Multicomp HT-225DHT-225D

This tool is suitable for a smaller range of crimps than the PA-09 (the tool has only two positions), in particular 0.1” header crimps pins and sockets, and D-Sub crimps.

A single pass will perform the wire crimp and the insulation grip. That, plus the ratchet action speeds up and simplifies crimping. However, it is harder to set the wire depth. The only One way* I’ve found is to do it visually, by making sure the wire is stripped to the correct length, and then look to see the wire end just begin to egress from the other side of the tool, before crimping down. This works ok, but a physical stop would be better. A speedup method with pin sockets would be to insert one pin into the socket before crimping. The wire would be pushed in until it hit the socket. It relies on the wire being stripped to a precise length though.

The result with the HT-225DHT-225D was very strong - with a pulling force (using pliers) the wire would snap but the crimp would not pull apart.

* Note - I've subsequently found an easier method! See this video:

 

AMP 90202-2

This tool has a number of nice features. It is intended only for 0.1” crimp pins and sockets (in particular AMP ones!) but it seems to work fine with the ones listed earlier.

Like the HT-225DHT-225D, it is ratchet action and crimps everything in one go. The tool is very light to operate, and has long levers. This is useful when you have have gripped a tool in a suboptimal grip or your hand is busy feeding the wire in – a single hand can be used to crimp with this tool. Or the long lever can be pressed against an arm or table to finish the crimp.

Just as with the HT-225DHT-225D, the result was strong - the wire would snap but the crimp would not come apart.

 

 

Crimp Socket Result Photos

The photo here shows the results. Click to enlarge!

image

 

Crimp Pin Result Photos

Click to enlarge:

image

 

Heat Shrink

To complete the jumper cables, I used 1.5 mm diameter 3:1 heat shrink sleeving1.5 mm diameter 3:1 heat shrink sleeving. A packet will be enough for around 70 jumper cables (with sleeving on both ends).

image

 

Summary

The results from all of the three tools are usable, but the AMP and HT-225DHT-225D are faster to use. However, the HT-225DHT-225D requires a bit more attention to ensure the wire is inserted at the correct depth into the pin. This was easier to do with the PA-09, and incredibly easy with the AMP tool. The PA-09 is the most versatile of the three tools since it can crimp a wider selection, but if (like me) you're crimping more 0.1" pins or sockets than the smaller JST crimps, then the HT-225DHT-225D will suit you more. It is easier getting a stronger crimp with the AMP and HT-225DHT-225D tools.

 

Thanks for reading!

Parents

  • Hi Shabaz,

     

    A useful post and the video makes the process for getting a good crimp very clear.  Thanks for the Farnell links on the sockets and pins - I forget where I bought the ones I had that worked well and the Ebay specials are difficult to use with my HT-225D.

    Frank

  • in reply to fmilburn

    Hi Frank,

     

    Thanks!

    I too keep forgetting the order codes - figured it was about time it was in a blog post so we can all keep a record of compatible ones!

    It's great seeing what techniques or tools people are using with which crimps. I had some old ebay crimps, but the ones I had were badly cut and stamped, I'd get sore fingers just removing them from the metal strip : (

     

    Incidentally, I was thinking more on how to speed up using the HT-225D, and just now realised (maybe I'm slow!) that if the insulation is thick enough, it will catch on the second part of the crimp pin/socket, i.e. the wire crimp portion of the crimp pin/socket, and so there's no need to eyeball when the wire is visible from the other side.

    With the wire I'm using, I was able to just now do this, by using a fingernail to push into the stripped end of the insulation, to make it slightly wider. Then, I could just feel when it was hitting the second part of the crimp. It made a great crimp, really quickly!

  • in reply to fmilburn

    Crimping with solid core or tinned wire - although it works - isn’t ideal. When there is vibration, the force on the crimp is higher. To get a snug fit you have to press the core until it’s mechanically weakened. Else the wire comes loose.

     

    There is no law that forbids it image unless you work for NASA.

  • in reply to Jan Cumps

    That is good to know.  I am glad it is not forbidden image.  I do have some 22 AWG stranded wire - will have to preferentially use it for crimping but it has gotten to the point that I pretty much solder everything anyway.

  • in reply to fmilburn

    For single core, there are other mechanical "crimp style" connection solutions . But they usually tightly wrap around the wire (and use the natural copper mechanical slide resistance to stay in place - sometimes assisted by tiny teeth that bite in the surface) instead of pinching the wire like the crimp utilities for stranded wires do.

  • in reply to Jan Cumps

    It just occurred to me that I am using the same pins and sockets of unknown specification for 22 and 24 AWG wire.  I seem to remember using them on 26 AWG wire also. That may be OK for my non-critical hobbyist use but isn’t the best either.

  • in reply to fmilburn

    Hi Frank,

     

    That's great that the phone wire worked, I thought it would have been too thin to fit in the crimp. The result looks very good!

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