Affordable crimp tools for small connectors (Dupont, etc.)

[elnoob]

BTW I’ve found another crimping tool called SN-2 on AliExpress - a seller claims that it’s specially for DuPont connectors:
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002629846509.html

You can find "Dupont" in the title of nearly all of small connector crimpers. And 99% of them are not actually compatible. That's what this thread is about.

That’s for sure!
At the moment, I’m choosing between TZ-4228B and the one from Lidl - don't know which one is better.

[tooki]

Hard to say. Maybe eliocor could do some tests using a known type of wire (I’d suggest 24AWG/0.25mm² stranded, with standard PVC insulation of around 1.5-1.8mm insulation diameter), now that he’s had the Lidl tool for a while and has more experience using it?

[eliocor]

after the 6th of January I will be able to make such tests (even with a SN-4228B lent by a friend).
Any suggestion on how much (mm) the wire must be stripped?

[tooki]

Harwin M20 (which seems to be the closest to no-name Chinese) says 3.5mm ±0.5mm (so 3.0-4.0mm)
Amphenol Mini-PV says 3.81-4.31mm.

I set my strippers to 4mm and call it a day.

[AndyOoo]

Found what seems to be a new crimp tool SN-2054 on AliExpress .

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006272524168.html

The die has a slot with the correct shape for DuPont Connectors.

Only seems to be sold by one seller and I haven't been able to find the die sold on its own.

 

[elnoob]

after the 6th of January I will be able to make such tests (even with a SN-4228B lent by a friend).
Any suggestion on how much (mm) the wire must be stripped?

Hi!
How tests are going? Which tool is the winner? 

[throbscottle]

Joined the forum just so I can reply to this thread!

Been banging my head for a while trying to find suitable crimpers for "DuPont" terminals, since I got fed up with my 2 tool method (a bad tool to get the closure shape, followed by a very bad tool to get the pressure!) of a few years use. So thanks to you lot and I'm very glad you've covered the subject so well.

I was pretty close to ordering an IWISS SN-025, but started looking at the CINLIN ones since I've got a 4-side ferrule crimper by them I'm pretty happy with and their kits make a better match with my other terminals. Couldn't decide if they would be any good, or just shiny (extra cautious because of just how bad my existing tools are).

Anyway, I've just ordered the Precivia PR-3254 kit off Amazon - handy because you get the kit and I was considering using JST for a while now, so that's a neat introduction to those. Oh and of course rainbow ribbon cable is soooo pretty! (make a change from the salvaged grey IBM stuff I've been using!).

So I just wanted to say thanks for all the posts on here, you have resolved my a big chunk of my problem! (And I will update with photos when I've given it a go)

[throbscottle]

Results - I have been able to crimp all the open barrel terminals I own except the larger ring ones which I didn't try. The large spade connector is actually too big for the tool but still went in with some encouragement. It made ridges on the back though. See photos:

I feel encouraged to get a set of jaws for the larger terminals to replace the ones in my really bad crimper!

[tooki]

Thanks for trying, but can you take some better pictures? Those have such extreme anti-noise processing that it’s impossible to make out any detail whatsoever. Most likely you need to use a LOT more light.

Also, take a photo of the uncrimped DuPont contacts you are using. I can’t tell for sure due to the aforementioned lack of detail, but I suspect you may be crimping down the anti-rotation ears.

[throbscottle]

Ok here you go. Been busy with a 9 day work week. Uhg.

The 2 pairs of terminals are the Dupont and JST ones that came with the tool, attached to the ribbon cable that also came with the tool, which I stripped with my thumbnail sat on the sofa with it just unpacked, so it's not the best! Straight in the tool, no adjustment, not careful with the alignment - so they're not bad, considering.

The other terminals were all done with the middle hole. The big spade is actually too big for the tool so there was a bit of judicious pre-bending with skinny pliers on that one. Still came out ok! (But thicker wire would have been a problem)

I took some pictures to show the "very bad tool" (labelled "bad tool") mentioned in my first post. You can see it has squashed the conductor crimp down to the sides of the actual wire, so it grips the edges but the bit in the middle is un-crimped. It's made flanges on the back where it's pulled the wings down. I used to solder these until I got another tool which wouldn't close enough but at least formed the crimp correctly, so I'd use that first then put it through the very bad tool.

To be honest the new Preciva one also makes slight flanges on the back, but only with the Dupont terminals, and does it slightly worse with the very cheap ones I already had. So I think it's down to the quality of the terminals rather than a problem with the tool. Anyway they come out nicely in all other respects.

I reached the attachment limit. See next post for "bad" tool pics

[throbscottle]

Right, here are the pics showing the truly awful tool I got years ago, and it's results.

[tooki]

Yeah, that’s subpar even for an SN-28B. But it’s really hard to condemn the tool when used for terminals it wasn’t designed for. We’d need to see it used for the 2.8mm spade terminals the SN-28B was designed for.

A little bit of flashing (the “flare” on the back) is OK. Too much is indicative of an overcrimped terminal. This is far more likely the tool, not the terminal.

Tools like this one, the iwiss SN-25B, and the Toozo mentioned above are all steps in the right direction, but I wish some Chinese toolmaker would just buy a real Harwin M20 crimp tool and clone it.

[Ian.M]

Looks like your SN-28B could do with aligning its jaws!  Slacken off the screws that hold them and try to move one jaw relative to the other to get an even gap on each side of the die when fully closed.  Its a bit of a compromise because of the three die positions. Tighten the screws again and see on the next crimp if the ridges are reduced or at least more even.

[watchmaker]

I just received my Preciva and used it on some Iwiss Dupont connectors.  I need experience.

Crimping these is not as easy as crimping 14g wire!  It is fussy.

After about 6 terminals, I am getting close.  My main issue is that the insulation ears of the connectors are too wide to fit into the die, I have the partially close them.  This does make it easier to hold the assembly in the crimper.  The connectors do fit into the housing at least.

[tooki]

I just received my Preciva and used it on some Iwiss Dupont connectors.  I need experience.

Which you’ll get. Buy a strip of 1000 terminals on AliExpress for a couple of bucks. Spend a meditative half hour at a time bending them off the strip (or cutting the strip into little bits to give you something to grip, as some people like to do). Then you have cheap material to practice with. I recommend 24AWG wire: inexpensive crimpers often don’t crimp tight enough for 26AWG or thinner wire, and 22AWG or thicker usually has insulation so thick that insertion becomes difficult. (Luxury option: get 22AWG or 24AWG wire with thin mPPE insulation, which is easier to insert.)

Get a feel for the right length of insulation to strip, which is about 4mm. The exact optimal length varies slightly by contact manufacturer, but whatever it is, you only have a tolerance of 0.5-1mm, so you need to strip accurately.

Crimping these is not as easy as crimping 14g wire!  It is fussy.

Definitely! The smaller, the fussier. The tiniest I’ve crimped so far is a 1.2mm pitch Hirose DF57H, which supports only AWG 28-30 for hand crimping. Now those are fussy little bastards… (And that’s fussy with the $$$$ original tool. I can’t even imagine trying to do those on a Chinese tool…)

After about 6 terminals, I am getting close.  My main issue is that the insulation ears of the connectors are too wide to fit into the die, I have the partially close them.

Yeah, not only do the dies of practically all tools except the originals lack the wide “ramps”* to feed wide insulation wings into the die, but it’s common for the insulation wings to get splayed even wider than they’re supposed to when vendors roll up lengths of contact strips.

*see attached photo I nicked from Matt Millman’s site, showing the dies of an original DuPont tool. You can see how the jaws begin with a very shallow angle at the bottom, and then make a sharp transition to nearly vertical, almost parallel jaw shape with the half-circle at the top. Genuine Mini-PV contacts have extremely wide insulation wings, much wider than Chinese DuPont, so this shape is essential for them.

… I have the partially close them.  This does make it easier to hold the assembly in the crimper.  The connectors do fit into the housing at least.

If you get your wire stripping length well-controlled, with some practice you should be able to hold the contact in the tool with one ratchet click, then insert the wire to the right depth.

FYI, in your last photo, the wire was inserted too far. The insulation should not touch the conductor wings — there must be a gap. Otherwise you cannot tell if insulation has become entrapped in the conductor crimp itself.

[watchmaker]

Thank you for the feedback Tooki.  I did not know about the insulation length.  It seems "wrong" to make such a short piece of conductor, but it is what it is.

Also, thank you for the heads up about the dies not being wide enough for the ears.  It is good to know that issue with the insulation ears is not just me.

I have carbide sub MM endmils and may modify the die.  But before I do that, I have to get to a point where closing the ears to hold the wire in place before crimping is no longer necessary.

PS: A lot of individual skills have to be mastered in this line.  While I hope people considered me kind and generous, I think somewhere along the way I lost the appreciation that neophyte watchmakers have to learn how to manipulate tweezers and not flip parts. It is interesting to be back to square one.

[tooki]

Thank you for the feedback Tooki.  I did not know about the insulation length.  It seems "wrong" to make such a short piece of conductor, but it is what it is.

How do you figure? That’s not a particularly short strip length, neither for soldering into a PCB nor for many types of crimp contacts. These are small connectors used with small wire, so it stands to reason the strip length is proportional. Modern connector designs (for the same sizes of wires and same or similar connector pitch) actually use much shorter strip lengths with much tighter tolerances. JST XH, for example, needs a 2.0±0.3mm strip length if memory serves me correctly. (What’s not obvious/intuitive about this: this can mean needing to get better wire strippers. Typical automatic wire strippers like a Stripax tend to leave a somewhat ragged insulation end. No big deal for many applications, but for small contacts like DuPont it can begin to be problematic, and for really small-tolerance ones like XH, the raggedness of the insulation strip can easily exceed your entire tolerance.)

Because of how DuPont contacts are retained in the housing, an excessively long “brush” of wires sticking out of the conductor crimp will interfere with the contact retention latch.

In contrast, on contacts like JST XH or Molex KK, excess brush just tucks under the contact spring harmlessly.

Also, thank you for the heads up about the dies not being wide enough for the ears.  It is good to know that issue with the insulation ears is not just me.

I have carbide sub MM endmils and may modify the die.  But before I do that, I have to get to a point where closing the ears to hold the wire in place before crimping is no longer necessary.

PS: A lot of individual skills have to be mastered in this line.  While I hope people considered me kind and generous, I think somewhere along the way I lost the appreciation that neophyte watchmakers have to learn how to manipulate tweezers and not flip parts. It is interesting to be back to square one.

If you have a machine shop, I’d first spend time making a contact locator and wire stop than modifying the dies (other than smoothing the inside of the dies, which makes them work better). A simple locator for female contacts is made by milling (or accurately 3D printing) a piece of metal or plastic into which you press a male header pin. The locator bolts onto the crimp tool by using a longer bolt on the lower jaw.

(Of all the crimp tool designs I’ve used so far, my favorite, hands down, is the WEZAG design with an insulation stop rather than a wire stop per se. It ensures the contact is in the right place, even without a locator, and allows for some slop in strip length while absolutely ensuring the insulation ends right in the gap between the insulation wings and conductor wings. But I don’t know how one could retrofit this system onto an existing tool, since it requires a spring-loaded sheet metal piece between the dies for the conductor crimp and insulation crimp.)

[watchmaker]

Remember, I am coming from terminal strips, 10 watt resistors and tubes.  Make a secure physical connection by wrapping the wire completely around the lug, squeeze w/ needle nose, and THEN solder.  It was also the day when we thought we could afford to be profligate.

There is a lot for me to learn and get used to.

[shabaz]

Just to add one more to the list in case it's not been mentioned: the AMP 90202-2 is frequently available at low-cost used on eBay. I got mine for about 15 GBP.
It works well for hobby purposes with 2226TG sockets (I've not tried any other sockets with it) which are used for 0.1" header pins. I think it would not be usable with any of the JST connectors. The photo shows it with thick wire, but I have also used it with thin (perhaps 28-30 AWG) stranded wire (which can be folded over if desired. The tool has separate settings for think and thick insulation, and for thin and thick conductors. Afterwards for single wires, I just heat-shrink it (unless it's going into a SIL or DIL plastic shell).

[tooki]

Just to add one more to the list in case it's not been mentioned: the AMP 90202-2 is frequently available at low-cost used on eBay.

Great tip!! Looks like that’s an old high-end model for AMPMODU MOD IV, so I’m not surprised it works well — my MOD IV crimper is also the one I’ve had excellent results with. Yours is adjustable, so it should be possible to do even better with it by adjusting for the exact contacts you use.

[maralb]

Just to add one more to the list in case it's not been mentioned: the AMP 90202-2 is frequently available at low-cost used on eBay. I got mine for about 15 GBP.
It works well for hobby purposes with 2226TG sockets (I've not tried any other sockets with it) which are used for 0.1" header pins.

The link to the 2226TG terminals suggests another crimptool:

MULTICOMP PRO HT-225D which can be found at Amazon for about €27. Would that be a nice candidate for crimping Dupont terminals?

HT-225D

HT-225D Amazon

[shabaz]

Hi,
By chance I have tried that tool. The results are usable, but definitely not as good as the AMP tool.
If you can't get hold of the AMP tool on eBay for a decent price, then the HT-225D can work, but notice in the photo the slight differences. It's still a pretty strong crimp, but the proper tool shouldn't bite into the insulation like that as far as I'm aware, plus it's a little harder to use the HT-225D compared to the AMP tool which holds the crimp better.
Also, the HT-225D tool has no configurability for conductor or insulator thickness.
The other tool in the photo (PA-09) is no good for these size crimps. I find it impossible to make a tight crimp (even when using a lot of force!) whereas with the other two tools, the wire isn't going to come out, it will break first elsewhere.

[Okto47]

Am I too wary at private crimping ?
As I never accepted crimps without bellmouth or if not completely closed ( legs doesn’t support each other) or if not looking  gas tight .

About round isolation crimps , it’s not much work to rework that at jaw , isolation side is not that complex and the jaw thickness is easy to rework too. . (For many jaws exist a wire cut edm version at AliExpress ~9$ , could separate strand and isolation side which makes rework even easier but need to make good bellmouth too . A lot more work but still possible are the jaws for crimping machines from AliExpress. If you have the exact geometry and a good friend as tool maker that’s another option , but wire eroding and polishing is really a lot of work , way too expensive as official order ).

What does you say about 0.8mm pitch crimps without original tool ? Was too scary , never did them .
Wouldn’t it be better to solder them in a way that solder doesn’t soak up wider as isolation crimp and using heat resist isolation and not maximum current ?

[watchmaker]

I am also newto crimping.  With help from this thread, I am learning.

I wanted to repurpose a Siglent scope lead for use as permanent lead in my curve tracer. The conductor was less than 1/2 mm.

Using magnification, the Preciva and Iwiss Dupont connectors, I was able to crimp two leads, while also crimping the foam.  Of course, I shrink tubed it and hotglued where the lead exits the housing.

[maralb]

Hi,
By chance I have tried that tool. The results are usable, but definitely not as good as the AMP tool.
If you can't get hold of the AMP tool on eBay for a decent price, then the HT-225D can work, but notice in the photo the slight differences. It's still a pretty strong crimp, but the proper tool shouldn't bite into the insulation like that as far as I'm aware, plus it's a little harder to use the HT-225D compared to the AMP tool which holds the crimp better.
Also, the HT-225D tool has no configurability for conductor or insulator thickness.
The other tool in the photo (PA-09) is no good for these size crimps. I find it impossible to make a tight crimp (even when using a lot of force!) whereas with the other two tools, the wire isn't going to come out, it will break first elsewhere.

As it didn't break the bank, I bought a HT-225D from Amazon. I noticed the insulation crimp slot isn't rounded but has a slight nn shape. The crimping results with a Dupont terminal are not bad at all but the tabs from the terminal are cutting the wire insulation slightly due to the nn shaped slot.

I bought an AMP AMP 90202-2 crimp tool from Ebay as well. Waiting for that one to arrive. Hope I made a good choice; some of them offered at EBay have had a life so to say.....