Connector Crimping
Electrical connectors are a type of hardware that joins with a device to complete an electrical circuit and transmit electricity to a piece of equipment. This connection can be either wire to wire or wire to terminal. The process of joining the wires to each other or a terminal is called crimping. Crimping occurs when one piece of metal is deformed and compressed tightly with another piece of metal. The process does not necessitate soldering, but does involve specific steps and equipment.
Different Equipments Ued In Crimping
The first type of equipment you will need is a specialized crimping tool. These can look similar to pliers or ratchets. In general, ratchet crimping tools are recommended ahead of plier tools due to their ability to produce a more reliable crimp. Regardless of the crimper type you select, they are not a universal fit. There are an array of crimpers in different shapes and mechanical performance characteristics. The type of crimping tool you select will depend on the type and size of terminal you are operating on.
Other tools you will need include high-quality crimp terminals, stranded wire, heat shrink tubing, and wire strippers. The high-quality crimp terminals refer to the electrical connection in which you will insert the wire. Stranded wire is a metal wire comprising many smaller wires. This differs from solid core wire, which is a single large wire. The heat shrink tubing is a plastic tube used to insulate the connection between the electrical connector and the wire. The final piece of equipment, wire strippers, are a small tool that removes a portion of the insulation on the outside end of the wire, enabling it to be crimped.