Did I get the wrong crimper? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: eeguy
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 03:08:46 pm
content: Hi, I bought a Titan 11477 Ratcheting Wire Terminal Crimper to make some wires for electronic circuits and LIPO batteries. The product arrived but it looks so big. I wonder if I got the wrong crimper. I asked the manufacturer few days ago but they have no comment. Is it compatible with the following connector pins?https://www.newark.com/titan/11477/crimp-tool-type-hand/dp/86T11271.https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/molex/0039000089/WM3115CT-ND/31319742. Connection pins forhttps://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/molex/0050579402/WM2900-ND/115029Is this a good crimper when making cables with AWG described?

author: MarkF
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 04:17:45 pm
content: The crimper you linked to is more for insulated wire ends.This tool from Adafruit is what you want for those wire ends.https://www.adafruit.com/product/1213

author: eeguy
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 04:46:55 pm
content: Thanks. Can it still get the job done? If not, I will need to return it for a refund.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 04:50:15 pm
content: Quote from: eeguy on July 26, 2020, 04:46:55 pmOf course not. It's an entirely different type of crimper. You cannot simply crimp any connector with a first random crimper you see. This crimper is solely for insulated connectors. Die and connector insulation are both color coded to match the size/wire cross section.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 04:59:14 pm
content: Connectors are so different that it reminded me this:

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 06:10:50 pm
content: Quote from: MarkF on July 26, 2020, 04:17:45 pmAnd in fact, that Adafruit one will not work well, either. (It’s a standard SN-28B, which is actually intended for 2.8mm spade connectors, yet mysteriously is sold all over the internet as being for DuPont, which it’s really bad at.)Take a look at this thread, where i go into this topic in great detail::https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/affordable-crimp-tools-for-small-connectors-(dupont-etc-)/Quote from: eeguy on July 26, 2020, 04:46:55 pmNo, it’s not even in the same universe of compatibility. If you need something fast, see if Newark has a crimper for thin open barrel D-SUB contacts, or Molex KK254 (aka mini KK, KK100), whose crimp area is nearly identical to that of the Molex SL contacts you’re using. I suggest you read the thread I linked above, btw.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 06:39:54 pm
content: Of what Newark has in stock, I’d probably get this:https://www.newark.com/multicomp/ht-225d/ratchet-crimping-tool-d-sub-contacts/dp/01P3570Bearing in mind that they can be had cheaper elsewhere if you’re not in a hurry.This non ratcheting one for Molex KK would probably do the job too:https://www.newark.com/gc-electronics/w-ht-1921-p/crimp-tool/dp/31F1049And this one looks promising, too:https://www.newark.com/greenlee-communications/pa1176/hand-crimp-tool-28-14awg-terminal/dp/65AC3895I’d probably go for that, actually. But know that none of the tools will be exactly right. For that you have to spend a LOT more money.

author: Electabuzz
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 08:52:16 pm
content: Quote from: eeguy on July 26, 2020, 03:08:46 pmSomething is off here, that's a Molex SL housing and the contact pin is for Molex Mini-Fit. Those won't be compatible.You should first figure out the right housing and appropiate contacts before jumping on a crimper. Otherwise you'd get the right crimper for use with the wrong contact and find out the hard way.

author: coppice
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 08:58:31 pm
content: Quote from: MarkF on July 26, 2020, 04:17:45 pmAny time you see a crimper with those yellow, blue and red dots along the side, its probably for the types of wire terminators in your picture. The three common sizes are normally made in colours to match the dots.

author: daveismissing
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 09:36:30 pm
content: I would recommend staying away from anything minifit, I find them a real pain.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2020, 10:19:02 pm
content: Quote from: Electabuzz on July 26, 2020, 08:52:16 pmI didn’t even notice that discrepancy!!! My comments are all under the assumption that the OP wants the SL.I think it’s clear the OP needs to take a step back and look at some connectors in real life, to get an idea for just how different they can be. (And that pictures are NOT an adequate guide to choosing them, as pictures rarely convey scale, and many connectors that are radically different in size look very similar in photos.)

author: alsetalokin4017
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 04:50:11 am
content: I am astonished to learn that the SN-28B crimper is really bad at crimping DuPont pins and sockets. Since I just got one last week and have crimped maybe a hundred or so pins and sockets with it since, and they all (except the first two or three) came out essentially perfect. Once I figured out how properly to insert the stripped wire end into the pin held in the crimper, and how properly to locate the pin in the crimper in the first place, it all went copacetic. Much better than doing them with the stripper pliers, that's for sure!YMMV of course, but maybe it is just a matter of practice and observation.Since the crimper dies are removable in that tool, is it possible to buy crimper dies for it that are suitable for the red-blue-yellow sized insulated terminals as well? That would be nice, since the crimper frame seems pretty well built and there really should be no need to buy a new frame for every terminal type.ETA: I just read the other thread on crimpers, and now I know more about crimpers than I ever thought I would. I see why my "essentially perfect" DuPont crimps are not technically perfect. However they are far more perfect than anything I was able to achieve before, so I'm not going to complain. Thanks for the education !

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 06:48:29 am
content: Quote from: alsetalokin4017 on July 27, 2020, 04:50:11 amIf crimp looks OK outside, does not mean that it's properly enveloping the wire. Have seen many crimps which looked OK but I could pull the wire out of many of them by applying some force.

author: sleemanj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 07:22:10 am
content: I think the problem with the sn-28b and other similar ratcheters largely comes down to high variability in the quality of the die from one to the next.The Iwiss IWS-2820 is my pick for casual crimping of dupont, xh etc, manual but does a nice job. As reviewed by Andreashttps://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=emb_title&v=25qObkSUHng

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 01:15:23 pm
content: Quote from: sleemanj on July 27, 2020, 07:22:10 amWhile die quality variability is indeed a huge issue, seemy big threadfor why an SN-28B is inherently incapable ofcorrectlycrimping Dupont contacts.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 01:23:12 pm
content: Quote from: alsetalokin4017 on July 27, 2020, 04:50:11 amIn theory, yes. The problem I ran into with that was that lots of seemingly-identical crimper frames actually aren't, and so dies from another manufacturer won't fit, despite looking like it should work!So you might do OK and get dies that work great, or you might install them and then discover you can't close the handle because they're actually too tall, or you might not be able to install them at all, if the new dies are thicker than the old ones. At this point, I'd only bother if I could get the dies from the same vendor as the crimper and verify compatibility first, but alas, I was pretty much just shopping for the cheapest at the time, so all my cheap crimpers are from whatever corner of eBay or Ali I happened through that day. If I'd bought from a single vendor, it might have been better.Plus, changing dies all the time is a PITA.Quote from: alsetalokin4017 on July 27, 2020, 04:50:11 amFor sure! It's still better than manhandling them with needle-nose pliers or something. (Last night, I actually saw a negative review of some small crimp contacts on one website, because "they don't work without a crimp tool".No shit, sherlock…)

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 02:29:06 pm
content: Quote from: tooki on July 27, 2020, 01:23:12 pmLOL, rather than using pliers, it's better to just throw wires and connectors right into waste bin and spare yourself the effort. The result of such job belongs there anyway. Without soldering them afterwards, they simply do not provide anywhere close to decent contact and don't hold the wire in place as well.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 27, 2020, 07:35:59 pm
content: Quote from: wraper on July 27, 2020, 02:29:06 pmWell we all know that!You do realize that random product reviewer isn't me, and likely isn't reading this thread?

author: wizard69
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 28, 2020, 03:19:08 pm
content: I don't think you have anything right here. You need to figure out what connector body system you intend to use or match up with. Then you need to buy the correct terminals for the connector body. After all of that you need to select the right crimper for the contacts that work with the connector body. Depending upon the body system you might actually need more than one crimper / die set for the different contacts available.So no this crimper will not work and No don't send it back. The reason to avoid sending it back is that it is a crimper for standard Sta-Kon (http://www.tnb.com/pub/en/brands/sta-kon) type connectors used for ring, fork and other terminals. Work in electronics and you will eventually want to terminate a wire end with a ring terminal.