Re: What to use as crimp tool?

Can you, without knowing the specifics of lug, wire gauge, crimper and any user settings (some crimpers have them), and inspection tools, give any real help? I tried and i couldn't manage much useful for MooseFET. Perhaps with that information one of us could.

Holy-Cow Two weeks of 8 hour days to solve the same problem as I've solved just by directing that they be soldered! That is a lot of time to require of the assembler every time a new person is hired into the job. It would also just about rule out sending the work out.

What sounds like a simple way to connect a wire to a lug has become a complex issue.

point

Ooops I hit send before I added:

While I'm commiting heresy, I should also point out that I figured out the right way to solder the PCB mounted "quick disconnect" tabs.

Layout the board with holes big enough that the pin and the sholder go through. You make a SMT pad that joins the two holes together. The tab can then be soldered into the holes and across its entire width. The result seems to be strong enough to withstand having the quick disconnect slipped on and off. It still isn't strong enough to risk not putting the strain relief straight up from the connection.

Is it not likely that it was the *design* or specification of the crimp & cable that was the problem?

That is, while soldering fixed the problem for you, that does not necessarily generalise to anyone elses crimp and cable combinations.

The parts you're using (through-hole) were not intended for reflow.

Their mechanical integrity, by design, is dependant on staking of the tines, with wave or spot-solder for electrical contact.

An smd version will have a large surface area in contact with the planar surface, but still requires staking of tines or rivets for mechanical integrity.

RL

Check out this web site for some views of crimp cross-sections.

Al

Yes, that is what the maker intended. They, however, would break off in the vibration test when installed per the maker's intent. We were shaking with a 3 times the truck shipping test. The failure was by breaking of the tab with the crack starting at the inside corner of the leg:

--------- ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! --- ! ! ! ! ! ! ! .! ! ! ! . ! ! - . - . . Here

They weren't failing at the joint. See my ASCII art.

This design was sort of a "pre-SMD" design. It had great big parts in it.

It wasn't a single case. It was multiple makers and multiple designs. (IIRC 4 makers) The one thing they all had in common was that they wer crimp lugs on stranded wire.

I agree. Just don't evere let me catch you not soldering them.

There are newer versions of this part that include more detail that hits the board surface at right angles to the female quick connect - Amp1217126 and Zierick 6140/6141 are two varieties. These might also be more friendly in smd reflow, or your current manual soldering methods.

I'm guessing that this type of failure occured with the terminal loaded - ie with a male-terminated wire attached? This is the biggest variable in vibration testing. Strain relief, bundling or terminal reorientation might aleviate this stress, if the damage isn't being initiated by a defective staking tool or proceedure.

In early vibration or HAST testing it's often possible to identify either assembly or design features that are better suited to an application. The control of wire harnessing and strain relief are often the most difficult to enforce, but it's not impossible once desired features are identified.

RL

Information filed for later reference. Thankyou.

It usually only requires the threat of "how would you like to explain it to the customer?" to get people to be careful. People really hate having the finger pointed at them.

point

Given typical new hires today you may have to do noticeable training to bring them up to the level where my schooling had a foothold to gain ground from. I had been building kits since i was 8, at 14 i did my first fully meets design goals design (including RIAA mag phono, tape loop, line inputs, three band tone controls, PWB manufacture, 1 W per channel headphone amp, PS, enclosure, knobs... I still have it). The schooling was not lost on me, but i can no longer unpack the information to create training. Crimping never was as simple as many people try to present it.

produce a

point

In the past, to be called a "technician" you had to know something about electronics. To be called an "assembler" you had to know how to solder etc and know the names of the parts.

Today, a "technician" plugs the board into the test box and presses a button and looks to see if the red or green light lights in order to know which box to put the board into.

I only read resumes because I like science fiction. I've given up on the idea that "trouble shoot to the component level" on a resume means anything about the skill level of the person.

You started earlier than me. I was 12 when I asked my father how a radio worked.

The first non-copied from a book circuit I did was an AM transmitter. It worked well enough for what I wanted. It got the signal from the turntable into the AM radio a few feet away.