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New kits from Amazon

Bob-23

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I had not seen these kits until I saw the above video. I shall be ordering a set. As of yesterday the one in the video was out of stock but there are many other similar ones.

These crimping pliers are great! I prefer the bare non-insulated butt connectors: you can see better how they fit.

With these pliers and these connectors you can do 'cold soldering': take a bare butt connector and put a cable into one side of the connector and another cable or resistor/diode/led into the other side, and press it with the pliers - the opening of the pliers is wide enough to allow that. I make a lot of connections, which I once used to solder, that way. The connections are very solid. I can highly recommend.
1619609118774.png
 

jhaider

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Good to see more people adopting obvious best practices!

These ones are really inexpensive, though they could at least change the color scheme from the Knipex tool they knocked off. For an audio hobbiest there may not be a difference between this class of tool and a European “pro” one (Knipex/Rennsteig, Pressmaster under various branding, Wezag under various branding seem to be the major players). I like my fancy tools though :)

Those round containers of ferrules are great too! Are they available in the US? Amazon.de will occasionally decide this kind of thing needs to leave their warehouses and price for cents on the euro. A multi-size “tin” of Knipex or Panduit brand ferrules might be on clearance for 3EUR. (For good tools generally, Amazon.de was the place to shop for a while.) But their shipping to the US is no longer cheap so I’ve pretty much stopped looking.
 
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Bob-23

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OP
gene_stl

gene_stl

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Bob-23

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Any thoughts on the hexagonal style vs the four sided?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XBLGPCY/

As long as longevity of the pliers doesn't suffer from the (a bit) more complicated construction, the more modern 'hexagonal style' may be regarded as an upgrade - at least theoretically (and maybe 'micro-esthetically'), and sometimes the 'rounder' form might fit better into something (but sometimes might the squared one).

With regard to the strength of the connection I'd say it's a bit like an amp with sinad -160 dB compared to an amp with sinad -140 dB or so - no practical difference: both of them sound completely the same.

I've got a squared one, and the connections are bombproof, can't be stronger.

EDIT: With regard to 'cold soldering' : the question is if the opening of the hexagonal pliers is as big as the opening of the squared ones. It shouldn't be smaller!

The opening of the squared one: 6 mm x 6 mm max.
 
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tomchr

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Any thoughts on the hexagonal style vs the four sided?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XBLGPCY/
I would think that a hexagonal crimp would give you a smaller mating surface, which is probably not what you want.

I find it pretty laughable that the guy in the video is wearing latex gloves. But maybe that's just me. :)

I think I'll get one of those kits. Thanks to OP for posting.

Tom
 
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gene_stl

gene_stl

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I would think the decision to pick a hex vs quad crimper would be based on the hole that the ferruled wire was going into. There are some that are probably designed for solid wire that might have more contact area with the hex. Of course any REAL tool collector would have to have both.;):p:cool:
(this was the first I saw of the hex , thank you for posting it.)

I met the guy from the video on a lawn care forum. All the lawn mower mechanics wear gloves in their videos. I don't wear rubber gloves without a good reason (even as an RN) because when I take them off there is water in them from my hands. I don't know why. There is nothing in an engine that I would not prefer on my hands to that.
 
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tomchr

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I ordered the square crimper. I'll let you know how it goes.

Tom
 

Harmonie

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Here they are:

https://www.amazon.com/Insulated-Co...sulated+butt+connectors&qid=1619683874&sr=8-4

The smallest size in these boxes is usually 0.5 mm² - additionally, I've got some smaller diameters for very thin cables. These, in many cases, can be dealt with in such a manner much better than with soldering 'cause it's hard avoiding damaging these very thin cables when soldering them..

Good luck!

I have these too and the price you see is still ... in DM !! :p
From 0,5 to 4mm²

1619811953996.png


But honestly @gene_stl 's solution, seems the best one IMHO and I'll be ending buying a pair even if I don't know what I'll do with it in the neear future, but it"s handy to have it !
 

Bob-23

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I have these too and the price you see is still ... in DM !! :p
From 0,5 to 4mm²

View attachment 127228

But honestly @gene_stl 's solution, seems the best one IMHO and I'll be ending buying a pair even if I don't know what I'll do with it in the neear future, but it"s handy to have it !

Il était une fois, quand il y avait de tels produits fabriqués en europe, et Solingen était une des meilleurs adresses pour des produits de metaux de haute qualité.... mais ne rêvons pas...
Je vous souhaite un bon weekend!

The advantage of the non-insulated ferrules is: a cable is well-crimped, if the ferrule is put over the stripped cable in such a manner that it ends exactly at the insulation. With non-insulated ferrules you can more easily control for that perfect fit because it's not covered. I've got insulated ferrules, too, but I never use them.
 
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Harmonie

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Il était une fois, quand il y avait de tels produits fabriqués en europe, et Solingen était une des meilleurs adresses pour des produits de metaux de haute qualité.... mais ne rêvons pas...
Je vous souhaite un bon weekend!

The advantage of the non-insulated ferrules is: a cable is well-crimped, if the ferrule is put over the stripped cable in such a manner that it ends exactly at the insulation. With non-insulated ferrules you can more easily control for that perfect fit because it's not covered. I've got insulated ferrules, too, but I never use them.

Yep, agree, very good brand. I still keep scissors from Solingen and I like the logo !
I don't really understand your comment as the above video's insulated ones cover the insulated part of the wire.
Anyhow, insulated or not, I like that square form after crimping.
I wonder if I we can use any ferrules with that gear?

1619905615208.png
 

Bob-23

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Yep, agree, very good brand. I still keep scissors from Solingen and I like the logo !
I don't really understand your comment as the above video's insulated ones cover the insulated part of the wire.
Anyhow, insulated or not, I like that square form after crimping.
I wonder if I we can use any ferrules with that gear?

View attachment 127530
Yes, the scissors and the knives, they came from Solingen... I remember the logo, long ago...

What I mean with regard to the non/insulation: I like to see if the metal (part) of the ferrule finishes exactly at the cable's insulation. If the ferrule is insulated you can't see that, because it's covered. (And the ferrules can't always be stripped over that easily, as in the video.) But, of course, the insulation gives a certain bend protection, even though the ferrule's insulation is relatively loose on the cable.

My preference for the non-insulated ones also has to do with that I use the pliers much more often for 'cold soldering' than for crimping the end of a cable - and 'cold soldering' can only be done with the non-insulated ferrules. In particular for that latter purpose, these pliers are wonderful: what a help for diy electronics!

No comparison, by the way, with the other (standard) type of crimping pliers: even the best ones among them produce much too often unreliable connections, in particular in moving parts/cables.
 
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jhaider

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I would think the decision to pick a hex vs quad crimper would be based on the hole that the ferruled wire was going into. There are some that are probably designed for solid wire that might have more contact area with the hex. Of course any REAL tool collector would have to have both.;):p:cool:

You mean all three? :)

There's also a trapezoidal ferrule crimp. I've found it works better than the others to cram thicker speaker wire in a speakON plug. Here's a comparison of the three shapes, applied to scraps of Mogami 2941 (2.5mm^2/14AWG) and the same (Knipex brand) ferrules.
Ferrule crimp shapes.jpeg


N.B. if you like the hexagonal style and aren't too price sensitive, that Wezag crimp tool with locator is a wonderful tool. Mine is Gedore brand, but in addition Wiha, Panduit, and probably a dozen other companies rebrand it. The locator is a really great feature, especially if one's on the klutzy side.

No comparison, by the way, with the other (standard) type of crimping pliers: even the best ones among them produce much too often unreliable connections, in particular in moving parts/cables.

What makes you think that? Rennsteig/Knipex, Pressmaster, and others make ferrule dies for their crimp systems. They work fine, though at least the R/K one doesn't have a small enough press for 26AWG Mogami balanced cable. It only goes down to 0.25mm^2.
Multi-crimp ferrule die.jpeg
 
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Bob-23

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You mean all three? :)

There's also a trapezoidal ferrule crimp. I've found it works better than the others to cram thicker speaker wire in a speakON plug. Here's a comparison of the three shapes, applied to scraps of Mogami 2941 (2.5mm^2/14AWG) and the same (Knipex brand) ferrules.
View attachment 127713

N.B. if you like the hexagonal style and aren't too price sensitive, that Wezag crimp tool with locator is a wonderful tool. Mine is Gedore brand, but in addition Wiha, Panduit, and probably a dozen other companies rebrand it. The locator is a really great feature, especially if one's on the klutzy side.



What makes you think that? Rennsteig/Knipex, Pressmaster, and others make ferrule dies for their crimp systems. They work fine, though at least the R/K one doesn't have a small enough press for 26AWG Mogami balanced cable. It only goes down to 0.25mm^2.
View attachment 127715
Well, I thought I've got quite a good one - but I maybe should give other ones (out of your collection ) a try. Thanks for the hint!
 

MickeyBoy

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I had not seen these kits until I saw the above video. I shall be ordering a set. As of yesterday the one in the video was out of stock but there are many other similar ones.

Thanks, Gene. Very interesting. I have always preferred soldered connections, but this technique is definitely less of a PITA. But is it superior? Longevity, dissimilar metals?? What is the latest CDC pronouncement? I hope the comments will help sort out the issues involved. Hunter
 
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