Crimpers and Connectors

[drew91101]

I picked up these a year ago and haven't had one fail yet. Amazon.com: Intellinet 100 Pack Cat5E RJ45 Modular Plugs Standard (790055): Electronics

 

[Fastb]

When in a pinch, and needing to crimp, I do a"home run" to Home Dept. Good quality, no complaints so far....
Too punny.....

 

[randytsuch]

So it seems like it's easier to make a good connector with the little inserts, although it is kind of a pain to pull the wires through the inserts to get it ready. I think it would be hard to line up the wires without the inserts, but have never tried it.

So you guys like with, or without the inserts?
The monoprice jacks they sell now have the inserts.

 

[tigerwillow1]

I would expect the EZ connectors to be a little bit easier to deal with because it's easier to hold the larger RJ45 than the little insert. The inserts have a bevel (countersunk hole) where the wires are inserted to make insertion easier, but the size of the bevel is constrained by the size of the insert. On the other hand, with the insert you have an unobstructed view of the wire going into the hole. To answer which is best would take reports from a few people who have used both. Having used only the inserts I can only say that yes, it's an intricate job, but you're able to easily verify the correct wire order before pulling the trigger on the crimper, and you don't have to do the tedious exact trimming of the wires as with the standard RJ45s.

 

[phydeaux]

I'm using the Mono Price connectors with the insert for Cat 6
More Time Consuming than the standard ones w/o the insert for Cat 5

But so far Zero failure rate using the inserts on the cat 6 (crossed wires etc) whereas with the plain ones on the Cat 5 My failure rate is 1 or 2 out of 10

And I use a Head band Magnifier for these old eyes.

I also learned to leave the ends "Extra" long to get the wires into the holes on the inserts. I can't do it the way experts on Youtube do that looks so simple.

Magnifier Head Strap With Lights

 

[tigerwillow1]

I also learned to leave the ends "Extra" long to get the wires into the holes on the inserts. I can't do it the way experts on Youtube do that looks so simple.

Agree with that. I've resigned myself to throwing away 2 to 3 inches of wire on each end to cut the time and aggravation way down.

 

[randytsuch]

Agree with that. I've resigned myself to throwing away 2 to 3 inches of wire on each end to cut the time and aggravation way down.

Same, in a spool of 500 or a 1000 feet, what's a few inches
I usually have a couple inches of exposed wire, I tried with an inch and it was a pain.

Based on a sample of one, inserts take a little longer, but eliminates making bad cables.

 

[Kawboy12R]

I strip them, line em up, insert them, pull them out, yank on the wires to get them a bit longer, squeeze hard on the housing, reinsert, then crimp. Would be nice if crimpers cut the housing about an eighth of an inch more than the ones I've used.

 

[hmjgriffon]

I line the wires up, push them into the ez connector and they pop out of the end, verify, crimp/cut done, is it the cheapest? No, but it's easy and they are perfect Everytime, you just have to decide what your time and aggravation is worth to you.

 

[tangent]

I line the wires up, push them into the ez connector and they pop out of the end, verify, crimp/cut done, is it the cheapest? No, but it's easy and they are perfect Everytime, you just have to decide what your time and aggravation is worth to you.

I don't own the ez crimper myself, but there's nothing easier or faster. They are also nicer to work with up on a ladder.

 

[c hris527]

I also have the Klein, Not failed me yet. For cat 6 i use these, a little pricey but you only want to do it once.
Platinum Tools 100010C EZ-RJ45 Cat 6+ Connectors, Clamshell, 50-Pieces - Crimpers - Amazon.com

 

[Lonster]

I use an Ideal brand ratcheting crimper that works great, but I had some connection issues with a couple and had to redo them. I don't know if the problem was the connector or just me not getting the wires in correctly. I didn't know there were different size connectors until I read this post. Some of my cable runs are 5e, some are 6. I bought the connectors years ago when 5e was the standard, so that could be why I had some issues.

I was talking to the IT manager where I work the other day and mentioned the problems with crimps and asked if he had any tips on getting it right. He said they no longer use crimp connectors just for this reason. Too much on the line if a crimp fails on our large, multi building network. Instead, they run the wire to punch down keystone blocks (the type that have a provision for a zip tie to hold the wire tight to the block), then make the final connection with good quality, factory made ethernet cables.

 

[fenderman]

Instead, they run the wire to punch down keystone blocks (the type that have a provision for a zip tie to hold the wire tight to the block), then make the final connection with good quality, factory made ethernet cables.

This presents a few problems. 1) its a mess to do and protect from the elements on the camera side unless you do it all in wall which requires a larger hole, or access on the back end. 2) it creates attenuation which on longer runs can be problematic. 3) it introduces another point of failure.
If the it department was having problems, then they simply dont know how to crimp...the best way to resolve this for a DIY person is to simply use the e-z tools, its pretty foolproof.

 

[c hris527]

I agree with the Fenderman, I do A lot of crimping and have never had any problems. Their is a technique to it. I know telecom guys who do it all day long and they lay cable by the miles on a yearly basis. Guys who do it just here and there are more prone to shoddy work and crappy connections. I have come in behind local network admins who's networks were slow, dropping out, corrupted data transfers just to find out they thought they knew how to make patch cables. One network printer and 1 work station were causing a network storm and this had gone on for months. I wiresharked the network and traced it back to these clients devices spewing garbage across the network. I tested the cables ...they were bad. He had pins crossed and swore up and down he tested them.

 

[Daybreak]

Howdy,
It depends how many, and what your time and troubles are worth. I have standardized on the ez-rj45 products. EZ-RJPRO™ HD Crimp Tool and EZ-RJ45 CAT6 Connector. It simply allows me to make great terminations. Walk away and I know it will work.

 

[tb10818]

No need for the EZ crimp if you plan on doing enough crimping. You'll learn after 100 or so cables (and testing your cables) how to do it fast and correctly. You'll save a bundle too by using standard connectors. And how in the world would you get cat6 into a Cat5e connector? Or get a good connection the other way around. Sounds like a bad idea...