Crimping pliers for automotive wire lugs. Crimping pliers - what is it, their varieties and application. Features of crimping pliers

Every house, apartment or garage has an electrical connection, where it often becomes necessary to repair old wiring or install new ones. When laying electrical wiring, it is required, and to do it reliably, this is the key to the correct operation of electrical appliances and safety. The best way to do this is with electrical cable crimps.

If the wires are loosely connected, for example, by twisting or soldering, the junction heats up, which most often leads to a fire. Such an unreliable connection does not provide proper throughput and causes instability electrical network, which leads to the failure of electrical equipment.

These shortcomings are deprived of the connection method using crimping (crimping) of wire lugs. To do this, use a special tool - crimpers (crimps), which provide tight and high-quality contact.

    What is pressing for:
  • Strictly speaking, wire crimping is about the same as in other areas of activity.
  • Creating the tightest possible connection by applying mechanical force.
  • Creation (if possible) of an inextricable connection that can withstand significant physical loads on the break.
  • The ability to ensure the continuity of the flow (we have current) under the most difficult operating conditions.
  • Installation speed without loss of connection quality.

We will proceed from this, because we often need the crimping of cable lugs, although we do not know anything about this. Although it seems simple:

Here we put the cable into such a little thing with a handle, we will properly squeeze the sides of the entrance, and it will be possible to screw this thing anywhere. By the way, such sleeves for crimping wires are sold anywhere, so you can buy them very inexpensively. Like a tool, because the lugs for wires for crimping with your own hands and pliers cannot be crimped.

So, for a one-time job, this will not be the most budget solution. Especially if you do not understand how crimping wires compares favorably with other cable methods.

First of all, wire crimping only applies to multicore cables. This should be borne in mind, since a reliable connection of one core, even with the most powerful mechanical loads, cannot be obtained.

The second is very important point. The number of cores matters, but the diameter of the cable does not. That is why the thinnest cables are crimped, the crimping forces of which are minimal.

And third. Crimping cable lugs is not possible without a special tool that is designed to perform this procedure.

And most importantly. What do we get as a result of pressing? We actually get cold welding» with the help of mechanical force of all cores of a crimped cable with a lug, without the use of soldering or other temperature effects.

This is the meaning of crimping wires - creating a strong connection quickly and without using the reliable switching method familiar to an electrician.

We just press the cable into the ferrule so hard that the connection becomes permanent. Well, the speed of installation, of course, is a significant factor for connections in electrical wiring. Even in crimping, there are limits to the applied force, so do not push the cable and lug too hard. Everything needs a measure.

Soldering a stranded wire is not the easiest operation, because you need to expose all the wires, make sure that they are clean in terms of contact, and only then proceed to soldering. Any core in a stranded wire has insulation, and this often creates difficulties in establishing reliable contact.

Just crimping the cable lugs solves all these problems, because with the help of mechanical force (compression), not only the insulation of individual cores is destroyed, but also a strong connection of the entire cable is created for better contact.

The problem is that the size of these sleeves is small, and the markings are incomprehensible to those who are not specialists. But before that, let's define the difference between a sleeve and a cable crimping lug.

These are typical sleeves:

With its help, you can "lengthen" the cable, both the same section and different.

And this is a typical tip:

And just in both photos it is clearly seen that there is practically no place for full marking, unlike such sleeves and tips:

Therefore, there can be only one recommendation - well-marked products will cost more, while unmarked ones are no worse. You just need to consult with the seller, as a rule, they are well versed in this issue.

    Another moment, which is not even in the marking, is the moment of tightening the sleeve or tip during crimping. And they are completely different different types tips such as:
  1. ring tips (NKI);
  2. fork tips (NVI);
  3. pin round tips (NShKI);
  4. flat (plug) connectors (RPI-P, RPI-M, RSHI-P, RSHI-M, etc.);
  5. piercing type couplers (OV).

Here it is necessary to return to the tool that provides crimping of wires, because each tool has dimensions for standard form sponges, and the force itself is accurately measured by diameters. So, if you didn’t make a mistake with the diameter, you won’t be able to apply excessive force.

And, despite the fact that the lugs for wires for crimping are different, with the same diameter and force, and the standard of the tool will be the same. It is a pity that this parameter is not reflected in the marking. Apparently because usually such work is done by professionals, not home electricians.

But it is precisely the standards that allow home electricians to stock up on universal crimping pliers and, without any problems, crimp cable lugs for their own purposes. It is quite simple to master this procedure, and technologically it is the same for crimping an RG-45 connector and a tip for a three-phase machine.

When crimping a multi-core cable, special lubricants are indispensable. Therefore, use sleeves and tips that already have this lubricant inside. In any case, this is a one-time operation. It will not work to remove the sleeve or tip in order to rearrange it to another place.

As a result, having mastered the installation of sleeves and tips, you will be able to quickly restore the desired connection, carry out repairs without problems, as well as a connection that, in fact, will not need repair for many years.

For every inhabitant, a striking example of improper wiring is the stair switchboard, many apartment owners have melted wires in the switchboard, there are twists.

Crimping wire lugs can save citizens from the possibility of heating and igniting electrical wiring as a result of poor-quality wire contact, lack of cable lugs.

When there is good contact between the cable or wire being connected and the connection device, the transition resistance is minimized, and with an increase in current load on the contact group, they can heat up in case of poor contact.

Sleeves and tips are intended to remove or minimize contact resistance, in other words, exclude poor-quality contact, under a bolt or screw.

High-quality contact in the connection, contact resistance:

For crimping (crimping for lugs) of wires and cables, special products are used - lugs and sleeves. Tips can be stranded wires and single-core wire, they are subdivided according to the purpose and type of wire for which they are used (copper or aluminum).

    For crimping the copper conductors of the cable, lugs made of seamless copper tube, which is flattened on one side and has a hole for a screw connection. This type of tips happens:
  • with different diameters for a wire and a mounting hole that does not have a protective coating;
  • for crimping electrolytic tinned with different holes for fastening.
    The marking of this type of tips is as follows:
  1. uncoated, TM - X - Y, where X is the cross section of the wire, Y is the size of the hole for fastening;
  2. coated, TML-X-U.

There is another type of lugs with a control window, these are tinned copper products for terminating cable and wire cores. A feature of this type is the ability of the termination performer to control the correctness of crimping through the control window.

This type of product is marked as TML (o), it is noteworthy that they can be installed on the ends of cables using solder and soldering, which almost completely removes the value of the transition resistance.

Quite often in electrical engineering there is a connection aluminum wire with a copper cable, in this case it is recommended to use aluminum-copper lugs for high-quality connection of the aluminum wire and the shield copper bus.

Decreasing overall dimensions devices and devices, pin products have become popular tips for ending. They are used in electrical equipment and circuit breakers in protection devices. With the reduction of clamping fasteners, the pin is the most optimal solution for good contact. This species is marked as NSHP.

Wire crimp - types

    When choosing a tool for crimping wires - a crimp (or in other words a crimper), you must consider the type of lugs. Depending on the purpose, they are:
  • cylindrical shape;
  • forklifts;
  • loop;
  • connecting;
  • knife.

In addition, the crimping range is important, which shows the maximum and minimum cable cross-section. When working with wires with a diameter of 0.25 to 16 mm, use manual press tongs. They are suitable for laying and repairing computer networks, telephone lines and other low-voltage systems.

The crimping of car battery wires, cable lugs with a diameter of not more than 120 mm and the installation of substations are performed using a hydraulically driven tool.

For large volumes, it is advisable to use electric pliers, which can operate in automatic or semi-automatic mode.

    In addition to the drive and type of lugs, when choosing a tool for crimping, you should pay attention to other characteristics, among which are:
  1. Additional insulation. Usually, plastic is used to make tick handles, but some models also have rubber inserts. It does not conduct electricity and reduces the risk of electric shock.
  2. Blade on the working part of the tool. It allows you to cut the cable and do without additional equipment.
  3. If it is necessary to carry out crimping of sleeves of different sizes in in large numbers, then it is better to choose pliers with rotary dies or an adjustable punch.
  4. Due to the design features, they can be used to work with wires of different sections. Crimping of tips of small diameter is carried out using pliers with curly jaws.

For crimping insulated and bare lugs, in order to fix them at the ends of wires of various sections, manual press tongs, called crimpers, are used. Crimpers are professional tools for electrical installation, and are produced by many manufacturers of hand tools.

With the help of pressing tongs, you can crimp the tips various types: ring, fork, pin, plug, sleeve and flat connectors, connector sleeves and other types of lugs.

The jaws of the mites are called the matrix; on it there are recesses of a special shape under different diameters crimped wires, flexible stranded and single-wire rigid, and, accordingly, for various tips.

Insulated lugs are suitable for stranded wires, bare lugs are suitable for single-wire rigid ones.

Tips as such are a convenient means of reliably connecting sockets, circuit breakers, RCDs, lamps, switches, chandeliers, meters and many other devices.

For crimping conductors of a significant cross section, more than 16 square millimeters, hydraulic presses are used, but for the needs of professional electrical installation, manual press tongs and crimpers are also suitable.

Press tongs (crimpers) are different. There are specialized crimpers, for example, for crimping only 4P4C and 4P2C telephone jacks, as well as multifunctional ones, combining, for example, a stripper - a stripping tool. There are crimpers for fiber optic connectors, for D-sub connectors, etc.

A typical crimping crimper has comfortable plastic handles and a steel body and jaws. Such a device allows you to crimp the tip with one hand.

Particularly convenient are crimpers with a ratchet mechanism that blocks the opening until the end of the crimping of the tip is completed, so that undercrimping does not occur. If the crimping needs to be interrupted due to, for example, an error in the wire or ferrule diameter, the ratchet can be released manually.

Crimps often located on the jaws are marked different colors, for example, a crimp for a wire with a cross section of 0.25 to 1.5 sq. mm is marked in red, from 1.5 to 2.5 sq. mm in blue, from 4 to 6 sq. mm in yellow.

This is necessary so as not to get confused and not make a mistake with the diameter of the wire and with the tip. By the way, the insulated tips themselves also have colored cuffs of the corresponding colors.

The pressing process is quite simple. For example, you need to crimp the wire PuGV 1x4.0 sq. mm. To do this, take the necessary tip, for example, we need an annular one, and we chose NKI 6.0-4, which is suitable for wires with a cross section of 4 to 6 sq. mm.

First, the insulation is removed from the wire for the length of the tubular part of the tip to get the contact part, the wire strands are twisted a little, the tip is put on so that the wire protrudes slightly (about 1 mm) beyond the cuff, and the insulation rests against the metal.

The tip is installed in a matrix of press tongs, in our case - in yellow, and the crimp is carried out, holding the wire. There is an indentation along the profile of the tip into the wire. Then check the strength of the obtained crimping.

With the help of press tongs, you can crimp various connectors, crimp a variety of wires, and select any necessary lugs.

Among the extensive range of crimpers on the market today, every professional installer will easily select a tool for his profile. It can be a simple crimper or crimper stripper, multifunctional, or for only one type of connector, such as RJ45.

Crimping pliers for automotive terminals

Crimping pliers for auto wire terminals are an auto tool, thanks to which the wires inside the sleeve are well spliced ​​and the cable is connected to the lug. The use of this tool in a car workshop significantly increases the speed and quality of work on repairing the electrical wiring of your car or your client.

Moreover, this tool is not limited to professional equipment, and therefore can be used for private car repairs in the garage.

Crimping pliers automotive terminals are divided into 2 varieties: diaphragmatic or functioning like ordinary pliers. The latter squeeze parts from 2 sides.

They have special holes on the jaws that allow you to correctly guide and adjust the repaired parts. These tools are considered universal, since they can be used to get to problem areas with different sides and projections.

Diaphragm crimping pliers adjust elements on 4 or 6 sides. More precise instrumentation properties depend on aperture functions. This mechanism provides a very tight cable crimp.

In addition, due to the features of the equipment, it can adapt to the sleeves different sizes which ensures its versatility.

But diaphragm crimping pliers have a certain disadvantage. They can only be used if the wires are inserted into the sleeve from one side. Otherwise, the pliers will be on the wire due to the structural features of their head.

Hydraulic hand press designed for crimping cable lugs and sleeves with a hexagon, with a cross section of up to 70 mm². Copper lugs and sleeves must not exceed a cross-sectional area of ​​50 mm².

    When purchasing a hydraulic hand press, you must consider:
  • Does the design have a pressure relief valve. Such products are more reliable, they prevent overloading the press from pressure.
  • Type of pressing head, which can be open or closed.
    When working with a press with a closed head, it is necessary:
  1. pre-open the stopper;
  2. pull out the matrix;
  3. put the wires and tip;
  4. close the device.

And only after that you can start crimping the cable. For wires of small cross sections, the process is much simpler. If the press has an open type C-head, the wires can be pressed quickly anywhere.

    Working section diameter. Models are divided into subgroups that work with cables:
  • Up to 70 mm².
  • Up to 120 mm².
  • Up to 300 mm².
  • Up to 400 mm².

With an increase in the power of the press, its mass increases. Some manufacturers reduce weight by using light aluminum alloys for the housing. All hydraulic presses are designed for crimping copper and aluminum wires.

Complete with a press there are replaceable dies for crimping. Most modern models, are equipped with rotating heads and fast travel device.

Inside the device, on the one hand, there is a working piston with a cuff - a spring is mounted to return it to its original position. On the other side, a pressure cylinder and a plunger are installed.

The main components of a manual handpiece press

    On the image:
  1. Pos. 1 - axis.
  2. Pos. 2 - head.
  3. Pos. 3 - matrix half-forms.
  4. Pos. 4 - screw.
  5. Pos. 5 and 6 - handles.
    When swinging the lever located on the press body:
  • The pump plunger reciprocates.
  • The cylinder is pressurized.
  • Oil under pressure begins to flow into the working cylinder, moving the working piston.
  • The piston, acting on the matrix, creates the right pressure on the tip.
  • The design has a two-way plunger.
  • At idle, the circuit that provides rapid injection of fluid into the working cylinder is open. At the end of idling, the second circuit begins to open, developing maximum effort.
  • The return spring, with the shut-off valve open, which connects the working cavity of the cylinder and the oil cylinder through the channels, returns the piston to its original position.
  • The press for crimping cable lugs is equipped with a safety valve, which, when the pressure in the system is exceeded, begins to bypass a certain volume of oil back into the oil bottle.

Handpiece manufacturing

What if you don’t have special crimping tools at hand or just don’t want to buy them if you only need to crimp one or two tips?

Many faced with this problem resort to wrong ways, which further only worsen the contact, not providing a reliable connection.

They begin to flatten the tip with hammers, simply squeeze it in a bench vise, crush it with pliers, and press it in with a chisel. All these methods are not correct and do not bring the desired result. After such amateur performance, poor contact is obtained with its further heating during operation.

True, some manage to compress the tip with a hydraulic press so that the wire quietly crawls out of it, it is worth pulling with a little effort.

There are other ways to crimp power wires with tips using improvised tools that can be found in almost everyone in a garage or at home.

The easiest and fastest way is to press in with a center punch.

    For this you will need:
  1. ordinary hammer;
  2. the tip itself, no matter what type and manufacturer;
  3. vice or sledgehammer;
  4. a center punch or, in extreme cases, a 200mm nail can be used once.
    The process is very simple and uncomplicated:
  • insert the tip into the wire;
  • put it on a hard surface - an anvil, vise, wide side of a sledgehammer;
  • and with uniform blows of the hammer on the center punch make point dents on the tip. First on one side, then on the other.

In this case, it is not necessary, as many do, to pre-flatten the tip with a hammer. In the process of strikes, this will happen anyway.
The number of cores, that is, holes from impact on the metal, depends on the length of the tip.

At the same time, on the reverse side of the tip, the crimping points should not be symmetrical with those on the front, but shifted by a couple of millimeters.

The most important thing is not to make a hole through the tip and control the impact force. Therefore, if you use a 200mm nail for this, you should first of all blunt it.

As a result, you will get sufficient contact, which, of course, cannot be compared with crimping with a professional PGR-70 tool, but in the absence of super-rated loads, it will last a long time. The most important thing in this method is to choose the right wires and tips. The declared cross section is very often less than the actual one.

For reliable contact, the wire must fit snugly inside the sleeve without any slack. Therefore, this moment is always checked manually, you should not blindly trust the numbers on the cable sheath and on the tip blade.

There are other simple ways to connect ferrules to wires without using a press. For radio amateurs who do not have problems with solders and other devices, ordinary soldering is suitable.

This is not exactly a crimp, but it is still a connection method without the use of a special crimping tool.

  1. The wire is tinned, the tip inside too. At the same time, in its upper part, where the blade is, a small hole must be drilled in the sleeve.
  2. The stripped end of the cable is brought in, after which the entire structure (cable + tip) is wrapped with fiberglass tape.
  3. Heated gas burner and molten tin begins to pour into the hole from above.
  4. With constant heating with a burner, it will easily penetrate between the wire strands and the walls of the sleeve. The fiberglass will prevent the tin from flowing out.

Some do it even easier. They put tin inside the tip, heat the whole thing with a burner or even on gas stove and then insert the tinned cable there.

In order not to damage the insulation at the end of the wire, you can use a building hair dryer to warm up:

If you do not have soldering accessories, and you consider crimping with a dot using a center punch not reliable enough, then the third method remains.

Pick up a long enough threaded screw so that it overlaps the pressed part of the sleeve. The diameter of the screw should not be large, so as not to push through and crush the tip itself.

Position this screw along the tip. Then you compress the entire structure in a vice. As a result, you should get something like this form of pressing.

If one screw is not enough, a second one is superimposed over the depressed one and compressed again. You can initially use 2 screws, only installed on different sides of the sleeve. The main thing is not to overdo it and not break the sleeve.

To prevent the screw from moving, it can be fixed with electrical tape. In general, summing up, we can say that these three methods have the right to life, and many only connect the power cable wires and lugs in this way.

Crimping tools for lugs are devices that simplify the mechanical compression of connectors, wire contacts. With the help of presses, crimpers, crimping pliers, they install electrical connection online, troubleshoot. We offer devices for the following types of crimping:


    hexagonal;

    wedge-shaped;

    trapezoidal.

Design and advantages of press machines

Crimping tools are made from hardened steel. They have a small weight, compact size, simple principle of operation. The devices consist of a ratchet mechanism, matrices, devices for unlocking and adjusting the crimp level, ergonomic handles. They are widely used in manufacturing repair centers, at home thanks to the functional features:


    provide uniform crimping of cable cores and end sleeves;

    create the maximum possible area of ​​the contact association;

    suitable for clamping insulated lugs of various sections, telecommunication connectors.


They differ in crimping methods: oval, square or four matrices. There are also universal devices with interchangeable nozzles.

Sale of crimping tools online at AVS-electro

You can buy crimping tools in our online store. The catalog contains models of mechanisms with removable matrices and fixed nozzles. Products manufactured by ABB, DKC, IEK, Legrand, Schneider Electric and other brands comply with international standards and are safe to use.


Various household and not only appliances require connection to the electrical wiring available in the building. And often for this you have to carry out special preparation of wires. To make this task easier, experts often use such handy tool like crimping pliers. Not all home craftsmen are aware of this, so it will be useful for them to find out what this type of press is, what types it is, and how to handle it during repair and installation work.

general information

As man created new types of technology, new types of cable connections for various purposes, power and conductivity appeared. In order to connect the equipment in accordance with the current requirements and regulations, it is necessary to prepare the contacts of the leading cores in a special way. To do this, you need to properly crimp their tips.. This is exactly what special crimping pliers were created for.

This is one of the indispensable tools that many radio amateurs, auto mechanics and electricians must have in their arsenal. With the help of such pliers, it is possible to crimp the contacts not only of ordinary cables, but also of specific connectors for non-standard connectors. Despite the fact that in recent years the range of tools for conducting electrical works has significantly expanded, pliers for crimping tips are still one of the most popular tools for performing such an operation. This is largely facilitated by the low cost of their production, availability and high efficiency.

Such ticks have quite simple design, thanks to which it is possible, even without special electrical knowledge, to crimp the tips. Such a press is a very reliable device with which you can crimp cables quite well. This guarantees a strong connection between all the conductor mi and directly connecting structure.

To date, a fairly large number of models of crimping tools are on sale, which may differ not only functionality but also cost. The latter may depend on several factors:

  • press manufacturer;
  • construction type;
  • quality and material of the final product.

Tip Description

Most cable lugs are marked with four letters - NShVI. In the deciphered version, this abbreviation will sound like "insulated pin sleeve tip." To put it in a more understandable language, this is a common sleeve for a flexible stranded wire. Its main purpose- protection of the end of the cable, which is used for fastening in a screw clamp terminal. After removing the insulation, a lug is put on the end of the cable, and then it is crimped with a special device. Most often, press pliers are used for this.

The metal part of the tip is most often made of electrolytic copper. It has insulation only on the back side. The thickness of the insulator is noticeable larger diameter metal part of the tip. It looks like a cuff. The tip is attached to insulating coating wires. Crimped it metal part , which fixes inside the cable core. When creating a connection between the handpiece and the screw clamp, the entire metal part is hidden in the socket of the device. Only the safe dielectric part of the cable is visible from the outside.

Tool types

If you go to any store that sells electrical products, you can be amazed great variety the crimping pliers offered there. Such a wide range due, among other things, to the fact that each manufacturer uses its own standard in the manufacture. This explains why such tools can have different functionality.

For example, in stores you can find highly specialized pliers designed for crimping wires only a certain kind, and a tool for a wider purpose, with which you can crimp cables when connecting and repairing not only household appliances, but also production equipment. Every consumer should know about this and take this moment into account when he goes to buy a press for crimping tips.

With the help of crimping pliers, you can create a high-quality and safe connection of an electrical and mechanical nature. It is this feature that is one of the main features of the classification of the instrument in question. It should be said what is the crimping pliers represent a class of pressing equipment. In most cases, they are used when working with low current systems to ensure reliable fixation of contacts.

Crimping pliers can be classified into several types depending on the purpose.

For stripping the sheath and insulation of the cable

By using this type pliers can quickly and fairly accurately cut off a certain section of the insulation on the wire, while maintaining the integrity of the core itself. Modern crimping pliers often have the ability to adjust to a certain diameter so that you can easily remove the insulation from the core without risk of damaging it. This setting can be done in two ways:

  • manually;
  • automatically.

When trying to manually select suitable diameter there is a risk of error and damage to the wire. Therefore, it is best to make such a setting automatically. Then you can be sure that the removal of the braid will be done without negative consequences to cut the cord. It is this type of preparation for crimping that is used when working with distribution and junction boxes. Special attention must be drawn to the cutting edge, which must be sharp. Then the outer insulation will be removed in one step without the risk of "chewing" the wire into the tool.

For end sleeve press

For this type of operation, several types of hydraulic presses are offered for sale, which may differ in the shape of their sockets and the shape of the tool. There are models in which the sockets are made with plastic flanges, but some can be made without them. They can have a trapezoidal shape or be designed for crimping square-shaped cores.

Pliers whose sockets are equipped with plastic flanges should be selected when stranded wire lugs are to be crimped. With this task, they will perfectly cope thanks to square shape, which can ensure reliable fixation of all cores. Pliers of this type are ideal for mounting, as well as centering cables of any type of section. If you need to perform a more accurate and reliable crimping of contacts, it is necessary to choose pliers with an emphasis on the diameter of the cable.

For insulated cable lugs

If the wiring has insulated contacts, then a hydraulic press for crimping oval-shaped cable lugs should be selected. According to the standard, their matrix has three forms for the press, each of which corresponds to a certain color: red, blue and yellow. And for each of these colors, there is a tip, sleeves and other connectors for sale that are designed to be used with it.

About to crimp insulated wiring using a terminal press of this type, care must be taken to ensure that the butt edge is correctly positioned. It should be strictly in the middle of the upper profile of the pincers. Compliance with this condition is of great importance, since when placing the edge on the side, the reliability and tightness of fixing the electrical core will suffer.

Such pliers are designed to work with a cable without insulation, as well as open-type conductors made of brass. In the design of such a tool, a special rod is provided. Crimping is carried out strictly in the center, while the rod must be planted directly on the separation seam. A slightly different design has pliers for crimping open lugs made of brass.

They have two types of clamps, among which one is for wire, and the second is for insulation. To perform the most reliable crimping of open contacts, it is recommended to attach a locator to them . This is a very handy device., with which you can ensure the exact position of the contacts. If the task is to crimp the terminals, then it is best to do this with special tongs for pressing plugs.

Principle of use

Understanding the principle of operation of pliers for crimping insulated lugs in wiring is not so difficult. To do this, it is enough to know the nuances of the workflow itself, during which it may be necessary to use them. In addition to the wire whose contacts need to be crimped, you will need a crimping tool and a connecting element that is attached to the end of the contacts.

During the installation and repair of various home appliances often have to work with wires. And for their quality performance, often reliable and secure connections are required. It is impossible to solve such a problem without a specialized tool. Most often, crimping pliers are used for this. Today, such a tool is on sale in a wide range, so you can choose the most suitable option taking into account the task facing the specialist.

However, the choice of pliers for crimping cable lugs is not simple task as it might seem at first. Even though you can find universal pliers in stores to perform such work, it is still recommended to choose a highly specialized tool that can guarantee the highest quality crimping of contacts. Accordingly, the crimping of the tips itself should be performed by a specialist, since for the quality of such work, it is necessary to have experience and knowledge.

For creating mechanical connections wires with lugs and cables use special tools. Depending on the material and its cross section, tools are used for crimping tips, which come in several types. They allow you to provide maximum area contact and uniform pressing of the cable core and shank.

general information

During connection various kinds technical devices and electronics have to work with wires. For such a procedure, a special tool is most often used - crimping pliers for tips. They are selected depending on the type of wire. Now appeared various types new cables. They differ from each other:

  • power parameters;
  • conductivity.

To prepare the contact of the leading wires it is necessary to correctly crimp the connecting ends. For this purpose, press tongs are usually used as crimps for electric cable lugs. Most often with this special tool electricians, radio amateurs and auto mechanics work.

This type of tool can be used for simple cables. It is also used in the processing of unusual non-standard connectors, for example, a network cable for a computer.

Due to its characteristics, ferrule crimping pliers have become a very popular tool. It's inexpensive and effective remedy for work.

The simple design of the equipment makes it possible to easily and quickly perform the pressing of the tips. The principle of the press tongs device allows you to quickly and efficiently crimp the cable. This helps to carry out the highest quality connection between the connecting structure and the rest of the conductors. The price of an electrical installation tool will depend on the manufacturer, quality, material used and type of device.

Tool types

Now many manufacturers produce crimping equipment. The finished tool must have a narrow direction for pressing a certain type of wire. They also produce pliers of a universal type, designed for production and domestic needs.

At home, the crimping tool should be as suitable as possible for operations with stranded wires in the mains. It is used with:

  • switches;
  • sockets;
  • energy saving meters;
  • various lighting fixtures.

A high-quality, reliable and safe connection of an electrical and mechanical nature can be provided by properly selected electrical installation tools for crimping wire lugs. This type of tool is a pressing type of equipment. Most often, crimping pliers for crimping wire lugs are used when it is necessary to secure a contact in low current systems. Depending on the purpose, such equipment is divided into several types:

  • press tongs;
  • hydraulic hand press;
  • mechanical press;
  • electromechanical press.

Crimping can be done with mechanical or hand tools. It is made by indentation, solid or combined compression. In the inner part of the press, on one side, there is a working piston with a cuff. With the help of a built-in spring, it returns to its previous position. On the other side there is a plunger and a pressure cylinder.

Excess pressure is built up in the cylinder itself, after which oil enters it. It moves the working piston and it acts on the matrix, creating required pressure in the tip area. This design is equipped with a two-way plunger.

The working cylinder will be open when, at idle, the circuit quickly creates fluid injection in it. Another circuit opens slightly, developing maximum effort at the very end of idling. When the support valve is closed, a return spring connected by an oil cylinder and the working cavity brings the piston to its previous position.

The crimping press is also equipped with a safety valve. At elevated level pressure in the system, excess oil is returned back to the oil bottle.

Principle of operation

Pressing tongs allow you to accurately and quickly remove the desired length of insulation on the wiring without damaging the core itself. They are adjusted to the required diameter manually or automatically.

During manual tuning there is a possibility of damage to the wiring. If you do this in automatic mode, then when removing the braid, the section of the cord does not touch. This type of equipment is most often used in working with lighting and distribution boxes.

To perform a slice in one step, you must cutting edge always remained sharp. This will allow you to qualitatively remove the outer insulation of the wire.

First you need to remove the outer insulation at the ends of the connected wires. In a cleaned form, they are threaded into a sleeve. Its diameter can be different, it depends on the sum of the sections. The sleeve itself must be of a suitable metal. After that, press tongs are used for crimping.

The sleeve must be insulated insulating material or heat shrink tubing. This procedure is quite simple if used correctly. suitable tool. hand model it is necessary to compress with sufficient force so that the crimping is of high quality.

Criterias of choice

There are several important characteristics to consider when choosing this type of equipment. Great importance has a compression range. It indicates the minimum and maximum cross-section of the cable, which can be compressed with manual press tongs.

For cables with a small cross section, a tool with a range of 0.5-6 mm2 is quite suitable. For thicker cables, it is better to choose equipment with parameters of 10-20 mm2.

Pay attention to the insulation of the tool handles. Usually they are made of plastic, however, some models of crimpers began to be covered with special rubberized inserts. Such material does not conduct electricity which is always important when working with cables manually. If the wire is energized, then it is not dangerous for a working person.

For quality connections various wires and cables with sources and consumers of electricity, metal crimp lugs and sleeves are used. Their fastening at the ends of wire products is carried out using a press tongs for crimping the tips.

Features of crimping pliers

The principle of operation of the tool is similar to the work of pliers. The difference between crimping pliers for ferrules is complex profile pressing jaws. Crimping pliers or crimpers have different sizes and shapes of the landing bed. Each type of tool is designed for crimping wires and cables with a certain cross section and number of cores.

Tools for crimping wire lugs and cable cores allow you to quickly and efficiently carry out switching connections between power units. The crimping process for cable lugs is quite simple. A sleeve is put on the bare end of the wire or stranded twist. She is led into the opening of ticks. With the force of the fingers, the levers of the tool are squeezed, and the crimper compresses the sleeve with the wire.

Main types of mites

Crimping pliers are divided into two types. The most common type is a design that works like pliers. That is, the sleeve is compressed on both sides. Other pliers are diaphragm crimpers.

pliant

The tip is crimped in the same way as pliers capture any part. Working surface matrices has cutouts into which the tip shank is threaded. This design is suitable for those fasteners that do not need special reliability.

To increase the crimping force, hydraulic ferrule crimping tools were invented. Thanks to this improvement, the pliers began to have greater application efficiency. The design uses cylinders with pistons filled with oil, which creates a large pressure of the dies on the tip sleeve.

Important! Some crimpers are equipped with several types of removable dies. The versatility of the tool eliminates the need for pliers for each size of conductor section.

The originality of the design of diaphragm crimps lies in the comprehensive coverage of the tip shank. The principle of operation is similar to the movement of the aperture blades of photographic lenses. The only drawback of such devices is the impossibility of inserting ticks into the connection of the two ends of the wires.

Note! A diaphragm tool is used as a press for metal tips of a pin or flat shape. The all-round clamp is much more effective than the pliers type of coverage of the wire products.

Application area

Crimping pliers for wire lugs of certain designs are used depending on the cross-sectional composition of cable products. The main areas of use of crimpers can be represented by the following list:

  • stranded wires and thin-walled lugs;
  • stranded wires and thick-walled lugs;
  • tips and electric cable large section;
  • sequential crimping of wires;
  • crimping computer cables.

Stranded wires and thin-walled lugs

Thin-walled lugs are used for wires of small cross section - from 0.5 to 3.5 mm2. Elements are marked NShVI. The abbreviation stands for:

  • H - tip;
  • Ш - pin;
  • B - sleeve;
  • And isolated.

NShVI lugs are used for crimping copper stranded wires with subsequent insertion into sockets of various electronic devices. The handles of the crimpers are compressed until the spring mechanism of the device is activated.

Note! Multi-stage matrices of clamps allow you to work simultaneously with wires with a cross section in the range indicated above. This eliminates the need for a large number of staple crimping hand tools.

Press tongs create a strong and reliable crimping of the tips. Without them, one would have to twist stranded cores or solder switchgear terminals. The use of pressed limit switches completely eliminates the problems associated with the breaking of thin veins, wire breaks, and the risk of a short circuit.

Stranded wires and thick-walled lugs

Thick wall shanks are used for crimping stranded power cables. Their limiting section reaches 16 mm2. Press tongs PK-16 are used only for stranded wires. The tool can compress the sleeve so hard that it will easily break a single core.

The cable crimping process takes place in several stages:

  1. At the end of the wire, mark the length of the sleeve.
  2. Special wire cutters remove the insulation from the marked area.
  3. Put on a piece of heat shrink tubing so that it does not go over the bare wire.
  4. The cleaned end of the cable is inserted into the sleeve. The entry of the wire should be tight, but without effort.
  5. The tip is crimped with pliers.
  6. Protruding veins bite.
  7. The heat shrink tube is heated with a hair dryer until it tightly wraps around the cable.

If the letter “U” is indicated in the marking of the tool, then this means the location of the ratchet mechanism inside the handles, which creates a large force on the jaws of the crimper. Pliers PK-16-U are more easily compressed during cable crimping.

Lugs and heavy gauge electrical cable

Crimping for large cross-section electrical cable lugs is done with a manual hydraulic press. Initially, the valve of the device is ajar, and the stem slowly moves to its original position. At the beginning of the piston stroke, the valve opens completely, which ensures that the dies are compressed with great force.

In house equipment large cables are rare. Mostly hydraulic pliers used to install lugs on high-voltage cables for fixing them in shields industrial facilities. Crimping hydraulic pliers for overall lugs are also used when laying and switching power cables in power panels of entrances of residential buildings, administrative buildings and civil buildings.

The hydraulic press is equipped with cassettes with interchangeable dies. The upper lever is equipped with a magnet, which, after compression, returns the handle to its original position. The levers are equipped with rubberized shells, which ensure the electrical safety of the device. Two cables are crimped with a double-sided sleeve during transfer electrical panel. These pliers for simultaneous crimping of two wires are also used when building copper conductors with a diameter of 6-12 mm2.

Consistent crimping of wires

This method is used when connecting pieces of wire into a single whole. This is especially important for sequential crimping of conductors with conductors of different metals. For example, when you need to make a bow between aluminum and copper wire, use a crimp sleeve.

The fact is that twisting from dissimilar metals will cause destructive processes from their direct contact with each other. The connecting sleeve becomes a kind of bridge between aluminum and copper.

Bare wires are inserted from both sides into the sleeve. After that, the sleeve is squeezed with tongs. The compressed sleeve does not allow air to enter the connection, which prevents the occurrence of oxidative processes in the metal of the wires.

Crimping computer cables

Often the question arises of crimping the Internet cable to connect it to a computer or combine several PCs local network. For this, a twisted pair cable is used. The wires are untwisted and distributed parallel to each other. At the same time, the strict color arrangement of the wires is observed.

RJ-45 plastic connectors are used as tips. Polymer tips are intended for insertion into the nests of hubs and network adapters. A twisted pair consists of eight wires. Interlaced in pairs, insulated cores minimize interference when electric currents pass through them.

Special crimpers are used to crimp the ends of cables. The RJ-45 connector is a plastic box with a hole for the cable on one side and contact terminals on the other side.

The process of installing connectors on network cables is as follows:

  • remove one centimeter of insulation, for this there is a special connector on the pliers;
  • twisted pairs are untwisted, aligned in a certain order;
  • wire cutters evenly cut the wires so that the bare ends of the wires are formed;
  • the wires are inserted into the RJ-45 connector, the cut wires with their cores should be tightly adjacent to the back side of the terminals;
  • the plastic connector is inserted into the opening of the pliers, then the tool handles are squeezed.

Twisted-pair wires should run from left to right in next order(view from above from the side of the entrance to the connector):

  1. White-orange.
  2. Orange.
  3. Green-white.
  4. Blue.
  5. Blue white.
  6. Green.
  7. White-brown.
  8. Brown.

How to work with crimping pliers

Independent mastery of crimping tongs may initially be accompanied by the creation of a poor-quality connection of the sleeve or tip with the wire. It often happens that a seemingly reliable crimp hides a bad contact. This can happen for two reasons.

If the shape of the terminals is not maintained

Mismatch between the size of the tip or sleeve with the opening between the jaws of the dies can cause a distortion of the squeezed element. Before proceeding with crimping, you should try on the tip to the opening in the tongs. It is also important that the bare end of the wire fits tightly into the holes of the shank or sleeve.

A bundle of wires or a single core should enter the connecting element with a slight stretch. If there are any doubts about the reliability of fastening, it is worth practicing on separate sections of the cable. After crimping by hand, you need to check the strength of the connection. At the slightest backlash, the crimp should be rejected and crimping should be resumed with another limit switch.

Excessive clamping can damage the strands inside the sleeve. The accompanying documentation of crimping pliers usually indicate the cross-sectional dimensions of the lugs directly for each opening of the pliers. Soft metal alloy connectors should be avoided. Over time, the tip may lose strength, and the contact will become unreliable.

Twisting stranded wires before crimping

The error can be made by the habit of twisting the strands, which is done before insulating or soldering hand connections. It is absolutely impossible to do so.

You can check the perniciousness of twisting in a simple way. It is worth squeezing the twisted stranded cables with pliers to make sure that the wires are deformed and damaged.

If, when removing the insulation from the installation section of the cable, twisted conductors are found, then they must be straightened. Only after that, the cores are inserted into the opening of the tip or sleeve.

Tip color coding

Color marking is used for NShVI tips. The color of the connector skirt corresponds to a certain wire section:

  • black - 1.5 mm2;
  • blue - 2.5 mm2;
  • gray - 4 mm2;
  • yellow - 6 mm2;
  • red - 10 mm2.

Table color coding tips NShVI

Crimping wires with pliers in terms of quality and speed of connections cannot be compared with manual twisting or soldering. For any connection, you can always choose desired model crimper.

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