Originally Posted by
DiegoFrogs
Does anyone even have the correct tool for those little spade connectors that are used with the typical two-strand wires? I have a pretty typical cheap AWG-sized stripper/crimping tool, but end up carefully using a knife to strip the insulation and then generally mangle the crimp.
As a process engineer, I know it's not right or proper, like the candle I use to activate the heat-shrink ;-), but I've never seen a tool that works with wires with a gauge as small as these.
my short answer is: no.
my longer answer is: the correct crimper is usually specified by the manufacturer of the connector. These crimpers generally are rather expensive, since the crimping process requires a fairly tight tolerance on the degree of compression of the wire strands.
Personally, I just solder the SON spade connectors to the wires and then use heatshrink tubing to provide strain relief. As you note, it's not a well controlled process, but it is better than having a $200 crimper that you only use a dozen times.
Steve in Peoria