Whether you’re a professional harness maker or a novice, crimping is something that is required almost every day. Through the technique of crimping, you can produce very durable and long-lasting joints.
Even if you’re not a professional, it is still a very helpful method to be acquainted with. Although there are many ways to crimp bike brake cable ends, most of them turn out to be very complicated, especially if it’s your first time.
So, we’ve come up with a very easy and simple method to learn how to crimp bike brake cable ends. You’ll be able to crimp these cable ends on your own in no time with the help of this discussion.
What Is Crimping?
Crimping requires a special tool (crimping tool) for installing a connector on a cable end.
Usually, cable connections tend to last long after crimping due to high-quality protection from any external source of debris or dirt. Even moisture and any kind of grime are prevented from entering the bike brake cable end because of crimping.
Why You Need to Crimp Bike Cable Ends
Since we’re talking about crimping bike cable ends, let’s discuss why you need to crimp bike cable ends.
Bike cables usually bear an internal wire and an external housing in their construction.
Both the internal cable and the external housing need each other to function properly. This is because an internal cable of a bike brake needs a correspondent force applied in the housing to be pulled.
As a result, the cable provides the force to one arm of the side brake, while the housing provides it to the opposite arm.
However, these cables are susceptible to unraveling and fraying over time due to the excess portion hanging at the end. It may result in occasional wear and tear if measures are not taken.
This is where a bike cable crimp comes into the picture. Crimping deals with installing a connector on the end of a cable and getting rid of a stranded wire.
On the whole, it provides durability and longevity to the cables and enhances their finishes. Depending on the brake cable end types, you can bring a major difference in their quality and performance through crimping.
How to Crimp Bike Brake Cable Ends?
Now that you know why crimping is important for you, let’s dive into the process of how you will do it. It is quite simple and less time consuming, but it is also very effective. Here’s a step-by-step process to help you with crimping cable ends-
Step 1: Selecting the Tools
To learn how to crimp on cable ends, at first, you need to take the necessary tools.
Usually, the two tools needed for crimping the ends of cables are bike cable end caps and good-quality wire strippers.
If you can’t get access to cable end caps, you can use heat shrink tubes, solder, and even nail polish. Sliding small pieces of tube to the cable end and heating until shrinkage will give you a suitable alternative to cable end caps.
You can also use nail polish as a form of glue and get the job done in no time.
Step 2: Selecting the Sleeving
In case you’re dealing with an un-insulated crimp, begin the step by inserting a small sleeving piece to provide good support. Take the sleeving more than twice the crimp barrel, and you’ll be good to go.
Step 3: Placing the Wire
Accurately measure how long you want your wire to be for stripping and then insert the wire into the crimp. Keep in mind that all the strands should be placed inside and avoid twisting them. If you end up twisting them, the strands will separate, and it will be of no use.
Step 4: Forming the Crimp
Now, place the crimp into the tool prior to the wire and maintain its position. Round out the tool until its release. Get the crimp out and observe it for a suitable position and insulation. You can check the outline of the crimp by tugging it slowly.
And you’re done! You can benefit a lot from this method and learn how to use crimp ends.
It is that easy and simple and takes absolutely no time at all. With a technique like this, you can make your cable ends last a long time without having to worry about any damage to them.
Conclusion
Bringing it to the verdict, it is clear that crimping is an essential and helpful technique when you’re working with cables. It is not uncommon for harness makers and even DIY enthusiasts to work with cable ends.
In such cases, getting acquainted with the process of crimping allows you to get your job done faster.
So, if you’re looking for ideas on crimping bike cable ends, our detailed discussion will definitely help you out.
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