Summary

This tutorial will show you how to crimp metal crimps onto the ends of your wires, and how to insert them into the plastic insulating houses, to make secure and convenient connections to the pins of your SIM-board modules.

You will need...

• wire
• crimping tool, some crimps and crimp houses
• wire strippers
• pair of pliers

Step 1: Strip your wire ends

Using your wire strippers, strip about 3 to 4mm off the end of a piece of wire. It is important not to strip too much sheath off the wire.

Using your thumb and index finder, place the wire into the metal crimp as shown. Position the wire so that the stripped end is contained within the inner "ears" of the crimp, and the unstripped part of the wire is contained within the outer big "ears" of the crimp. Ensure that the stripped end of the wire does not encroach beyond the far end of the inner ears, otherwise the wire will prevent proper insertion onto to the pins of the modules. See picture to the right for an example.

Step 2: Bend the outer ears gently

Using your pliers, gently pinch the outer ears of the crimp together onto the plastic sheath of the wire. This serves to help hold the wire gently in place for the crimping process.

Step 3: Insert the crimp into the crimping tool

Hold the crimping tool in your right hand and gently squeeze it until one notch has clicked into place.

Then, holding the crimp and wire in your left hand, insert the crimp with the ears pointing upwards into the outer-most groove of the crimping tool. Insert the crimp far enough into the groove so that the outer ears are flush with the metal side of the tool (the crimp will protrude a fair distance out the other side).

When the crimp is in the proper position, squeeze on the handle of the tool all the way down so that the crimp is forced into the groove and mates with the wire. Continue squeezing the handle of the tool to release the tool from its grip on the wire and slide the crimped wire out.

 

Step 4: Insert the crimped wire into a plastic housing

You can now connect your crimped wire to a pin on any SIM-board USB module.

However, in order to protect against crimped wires contacting each other when connected to the modules, it is wise to insert the crimped wires into their special "houses" to insulate them from each other.

To do this, insert the crimped wire into one of the large holes in the end of a plastic housing, ensuring that the (now flattened) ears would be pointing upwards and with the plastic house orientated so that the cutouts in one side of the house are also showing.

Using your pliers, gently grip the end of the crimped wire and force it into the housing slowly, pushing it all the way until you hear a slight "click" of the plastic catch locking the crimp into place within the housing.

Step 5: The finished crimped wire

Your crimped wire assembly should now look like this (see picture, right). Notice the position of the crimp metal within the housing catch. Be careful to make sure you insert the crimped wire fully into the housing, otherwise the wire may not make proper contact with the pins or the crimp may even slide out of the housing under pressure of application.