Maker
Most folk just call me; Orange Joe
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@hermetic
if you are using milspec it’s because you need to... for whatever reason. That also usually means you have your crimper recalibrated regularly too, because that is also part of the spec
and how would you recalibrate this tool
looking at the dies in my crimps they close fully . how can you calibrate them unless they wear down which is hardly likely just being pressed together they will be the same every crimp in use . when the regs changed they were supposed to be calibrated every year has anyone ever carried it out and was it implemented .NO
and how would you recalibrate this tool, it doesn't seem to be adjustable in any way, and having another look at the tool on the RS site, it doesnt even look to be that well made! If it was hydraulic with a pressure guage, which should be well with the price being asked, the need for recalibration would be minimised. It is really all down to the size of the gap between, and the shape of the dies, once they are fully closed the crimp is done, and it doesn't really matter if you use a £1000 tool or a bench vise to close them
Compare the cost of Jet Fuel versus Heating Oil. They come out of the same tank at the refinery but one comes with more documentation than the other!
sure does make pidg crimps seem cheapOnce you buy the first 1k+ tool it make the £300 ones seem cheap... Don't have much choice when you need to crimp 32awg onto 1mm pitch connectors... I do recommend the PAD-02 by Engineer. Excellent generic crimp tool for non production use for a sensible price.
Even hydraulic needs checking. You do it the same way most things are calibrated... send it off and get a cert back.
when you spend several hours making up a connector you really don’t want to have to remove pins to redo them. Doubly so when you might have to rewrite the entire connector because there is no room for any slack or spare cable.
precision crimp connections are not like the automotive or electrical stuff, they are specific size cable and crimp force, designed to crimp 100% without over or under crushing the cable or connector which will lead to failure in the future
Proper ratchet crimps are adjustable, cheap ones generally notthis is a ratchet tool, the only purpose of the ratchet is to give the operator maximum force to close the dies, the correct pressure is applied when the dies bottom out, ie touch each other and will close no further. to charge £1000+ for a tool to achieve this very simple task is obscene profiteering, nothing more! it is NOT calibrated, the only requirement is that the dies close completely together.
every crimp i do i give them a good pull after having some come loose .they were a crap make the ones that did and i binned them allMy previous workplace made subsea control modules, the guys would do test crimps before starting wiring. These test crimps would be tested in a calibrated pull tester to ensure the crimps were achieving the correct "grip" on the cable. I'm not sure how much the crimpers cost.