Hydraulic cable crimping tongs....?

[ean_p]

does anyone use one of the cheapo ebay hydraulic crimpers and are the of any use........?

 

[Pete7]

Yes, for the money brilliant bit of kit. Yellow 8T ones from memory though I think they came from Amazon about £26.

Two things to be aware of, for larger cables 25+mm use dies which are one size down to get a really good crimp. Finally don't crimp so tight that the dies meet or you risk deforming the tool if you crank it on a bit too much. There is supposed to be a tiny gap in the dies when fully crimped.

I have borrowed industrial crimpers before, but can't justify buying a pair of those.

Pete

 

[AngusMcDoon]

does anyone use one of the cheapo ebay hydraulic crimpers and are the of any use........?

I got some to make up my own battery cables. You don't need to make many to recover the cost of buying the crimper rather than paying an auto shop to make them for you. An additional advantage is that you can amuse your neighbours at Crimbo time by using them to crack Brazil nuts.

 

[bikedaft]

Also got some from amazon for 25-30 - great

 

[Martin_J]

I don't buy into the idea of one size down and don't crimp all the way, idea...

Is this perhaps because the tube terminals being used don't match the tooling... maybe the tube terminals have a thinner wall than the ones intended for the die have.

To be honest, a mechanical tool, with the correct die to match the terminal (which must also match the wire) should easily crimp 100mm sq in one squeeze.

It sounds a bit like guesswork if the lugs are of unknown origin (and maybe don't match the tool or even the wire), and you're then having to guess how much to compress.

The die, when properly matched to the tube terminal and the wire should close all the way. No guesswork involved.

 

[PaulRainbow]

I don't buy into the idea of one size down and don't crimp all the way, idea...

Is this perhaps because the tube terminals being used don't match the tooling... maybe the tube terminals have a thinner wall than the ones intended for the die have.

To be honest, a mechanical tool, with the correct die to match the terminal (which must also match the wire) should easily crimp 100mm sq in one squeeze.

It sounds a bit like guesswork if the lugs are of unknown origin (and maybe don't match the tool or even the wire), and you're then having to guess how much to compress.

The die, when properly matched to the tube terminal and the wire should close all the way. No guesswork involved.

I couldn't agree more

 

[Hoolie]

I bought a cheap crimper when I redid my wiring and also found I had to use one size down to prevent bottoming and to get the crimp secure. I can't see why adjusting the tool to match the components and the possibly mis-sized dies is a problem.

 

[LiftyK]

After only moderate dithering I bought one. I’ve been pleased with results and reliability.

 

[penfold]

I too have a set;

I don't buy into the idea of one size down and don't crimp all the way, idea...

Is this perhaps because the tube terminals being used don't match the tooling... maybe the tube terminals have a thinner wall than the ones intended for the die have.

To be honest, a mechanical tool, with the correct die to match the terminal (which must also match the wire) should easily crimp 100mm sq in one squeeze.

It sounds a bit like guesswork if the lugs are of unknown origin (and maybe don't match the tool or even the wire), and you're then having to guess how much to compress.

The die, when properly matched to the tube terminal and the wire should close all the way. No guesswork involved.

That is the main problem; I bought one and a box of cheap crimps and it's as you say, the lugs are a bit approximate. Proper lugs from a reputable supplier are a different matter.

 

[Pete7]

I don't buy into the idea of one size down and don't crimp all the way, idea...

Martin, you are of course quite right. The last hydraulic crimpers I used were supplied for crimping terminals on military helicopters. Lovely fit on the lugs and a great crimp every time. I dread to think what they cost, but out of my budget.

However, the cheap ones with caution will happily do 16 - 50mm, I haven't needed to try anything larger.

Pete

 

[Kelpie]

Also very happy with my eBay cheapie.
It came with dies for 10-300mm²
I've never seen a 300mm² cable.
Largest I've actually used was 70mm². A couple of times I have had to go down a size (or just drop a size on one die, which seems like a bodge but turned out ok). Probably more to do with the quality of the lugs than the tool.

 

[Trident]

The caveat it to heavily test afterwards - I have had to redo a lot of crimped terminals done using the cheap tools because as noted above the dies are pretty carp for sizing.

 

[ProDave]

Another here with the generic yellow 8t or 10t crimper from ebay or amazon. It does what it is supposed to. I bought mine to crimp the ends on the "rigging wire" balustrade on our deck and since used it for large electrical crimps.

It did stop working and needed topping up with oil, I never did figure out where the oil went but after topping up it works again.

 

[colind3782]

I've used my 10t one from ebay a lot recently and it does what it says on the tin. Wouldn't be without it now.

 

[Pasarell]

Another thumbs up for the yellow ones from e-bay. Bought 7 or 8 years ago for about £13 following a recommendation here. Paid for themselves many times over

 

[ean_p]

Thanks for all the replies guys....looks like I'm in the market for some crimpers.......
Has no one a bad word to say about these things....? call me a pessimist but when ever I check reviews I always look at the bad reviews to see if and how things have disappointed ( ignoring those were they expected it on Wednesday and it turned up Friday etc etc...)

 

[PaulRainbow]

Don't buy cheap and nasty terminals.

The company that sells these on Ebay are local to me and their terminals are good quality, at sensible prices.

Copper Tube Crimp Terminals 4mm 5mm 6mm 8mm 10mm 12mm 14mm 16mm 20mm Hole sizes | eBay