Publish Time: 2025-06-20 Origin: Site
Cable crimping is one of the most essential and often overlooked processes in the assembly of electrical wiring systems. Whether you’re manufacturing harnesses for aerospace, automotive, industrial automation, or consumer electronics, a secure and reliable crimp connection is critical to long-term product performance.
A properly executed crimp ensures electrical conductivity, mechanical strength, and resistance to environmental factors. In this guide, we’ll take a deeper dive into the fundamentals of crimping, explore different methods and profiles, and introduce the advantages of automated wire processing.
At its core, crimping is the act of mechanically compressing a terminal or connector onto the stripped end of a wire to form a solid electrical and mechanical connection. When done correctly, the crimp creates a gas-tight seal, preventing air and moisture from entering the joint and causing corrosion over time.
Prepare Materials & Tools
Gather the required components: stranded wire of correct gauge, crimp terminals, wire stripper, ratcheting crimping tool, and heat shrink tubing (if applicable).
Strip the Wire
Remove the insulation carefully, exposing 1–2 mm of conductor without damaging the wire strands.
Insert Wire into Terminal
Make sure all strands are fully inserted into the metal barrel of the crimp terminal.
Crimp the Connection
Place the terminal and wire into the appropriate crimping cavity. Activate the ratchet tool until it completes the cycle and releases.
Inspect the Joint
Give the wire a firm tug to verify mechanical strength. Visually check for proper wire alignment and intact insulation.
Apply Heat Shrink Tubing (Optional)
Slide the tubing over the joint, ensuring it doesn’t interfere with the terminal connection. Use a heat gun to shrink it securely in place for additional strain relief and environmental protection.
Selecting the correct wire is foundational for a reliable crimp.
Use Stranded Wire: Solid conductors are not recommended as they are more prone to cracking under mechanical stress.
Calculate Conductor Size: Use Circular Mil Area (CMA) to determine the necessary conductor size. Multiply the CMA of one strand by the total number of strands in the cable.
Correct sizing ensures that the terminal fits snugly and that the crimp provides consistent electrical contact under various operating conditions.
Terminals come in several forms, and your choice will depend on the electrical, mechanical, and environmental requirements of your application:
Pre-Insulated Terminals: Include a plastic sleeve to prevent accidental contact and improve strain relief.
Turned Pin Terminals: Precision-machined from solid rod material for applications requiring robust connectivity, such as PCB interfaces.
Plated Terminals: Offer protection against oxidation and corrosion, and provide low contact resistance—ideal for signal reliability.
Choosing the right terminal also involves considering mating requirements, current rating, and insulation type.
A high-quality crimp depends not only on the terminal but also on the tooling used. The crimping tool must match the terminal type and crimp profile.
Manual Crimp Tools: Suitable for small-scale or prototyping operations.
Ratchet Crimp Tools: Ensure consistent pressure and prevent incomplete crimps.
Manufacturer-Approved Tools: Always refer to terminal manufacturer specifications to select the appropriate crimping die and pressure settings.
Poor tool selection is a common cause of defective crimps and electrical failures.
Different crimp profiles suit different applications and materials. Choosing the right one ensures optimal current flow, mechanical retention, and durability.
Hexagonal Crimp
Most widely used profile for aluminum and copper cables. Ideal for battery lugs and heavy-duty connectors.
Indent Crimp
Produces a deep penetration into the conductor. Offers high resistance to pull-out and vibration—suitable for aerospace and rail.
Quad-Point Crimp
Offers four symmetrical compression points. Simple and efficient, often used for general-purpose copper wires.
Notch Crimp
Frequently used in control panel construction, this profile is excellent for small-gauge copper wires in industrial automation applications.
Each profile has its own set of standards and testing procedures, such as pull force testing and microsection analysis.
As production volumes increase, manual crimping becomes a bottleneck in efficiency, quality, and cost. That’s where automated wire processing systems come into play.
Increased Consistency: Reduces human error by applying uniform crimping pressure.
Higher Throughput: Significantly speeds up cable preparation, cutting, stripping, and crimping.
Enhanced Quality Control: In-line monitoring systems track crimp height, force, and terminal insertion accuracy.
Flexible Production: Quick tooling changeovers allow for high-mix, low-volume batch manufacturing.
At XSD Cable, our automation systems are built for precision, enabling us to meet the tightest tolerances and most demanding specifications.
Whether you're building rugged industrial harnesses or intricate medical device cables, a high-quality crimp is essential for long-term reliability. From selecting the right wire size and terminal to choosing the correct tool and profile, every detail counts.
At XSD Cable, we combine decades of crimping expertise with state-of-the-art automation to deliver superior wire assemblies that perform in mission-critical environments.
Contact us today to learn more about our cable crimping solutions or to request a quote for your next custom wire assembly project.
Since our establishment in 2013, XSD Cable has been one of the professional manufacturer in the field of wire and cable.