Crimping 0/2 Cable

[btrayfors]

BlueStocking hit the nail on the head. Use a really good cutter to cut the cable and strip the insulation off. The Sears $19.95 cutting tool mentioned earlier in numerous threads is indispensable....I have four of them.

And, use a purpose-made crimper of high quality. Forget the hammer variety and other workarounds, unless you're really in a pickle. Then, the Nicopress tools work pretty well, though take a long time and are a pain in the butt if you have lots of crimps to do.

I use Greenlee crimpers....the big one covers AWG8 to 4/0 cable, with rotating dies. The smaller one covers AWG8 to 1/0 cable. I tend to use the big one, since it makes light work of the crimping process, and the results are always very professional. These cost $200-350 each on the street.

I'm very happy to help anyone I can, but I don't lend these out.

Bill

[Mark Zarley]

Love my hammer crimper, crimp cables of all sizes. Need to mention 1 thing that no one has mentioned for a good crimp job, remember to use plenty of di-electric grease on the strands of the wire before inserting into the lug .

[Roy M]

I now own a really nice crimper for up to 4/0 lugs. Before that, I used the hammer type with excellent results. One thing, though, remember the formula Force = Mass times Accelleration. In other words, use the biggest hammer, on a concrete slab, to make the "see-saw" crimper work to full advantage, and give it a good whack.

[donradcliffe]

Buy the cable and fittings from Genuinedealz.com, and they will crimp and heatshrink the ends for $1 apiece. Their cable is the good tinned stuff and priced about a third of what the chandleries charge.

[Microship]

I agree with Don - I just did that for my mobile lab, and it saved a bundle in time and money (and I even own a hydraulic crimper). They get my vote too.

[Sailorman Ed]

Another strong vote for Genuinedealz.com. I was very pleased at the result and very fair cost. I made up a spreadsheet, wire size, color and terminal size - they turned out great! They even sent me the left over shrink tubing.

[CarlF]

And another happy Genuindealz camper. They also now have a web site if you don't like Ebay

http://shop.genuinedealz.com/

Carl

[ArmyChief]

Hydraulic Wire Crimping Tool

I have one of these, nice crimper. The dies are misleading though. It states it comes with a 0 gauge die, but really it works with 6 gauge wire.

You'll need to goto Home Depot or Lowes and get a die set for the larger cable.

Doug

[captainKJ]

Could always try a tool rental company