Best Molex Tool and/or Kit

Zud

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So my birthday is fast approaching and the wife needs ideas for me. I will need a crimper and supplies to make Molex connections and repairs. What is the best one to get or kit it they sell that way too. :)
 
Here you go....I bought these from Digi-Key KK-156 & WM-50.

KK-100 kit, digikey # WM9803-ND just $30.30

KK-156 kit, Digikey # WM9804-ND just $26.46

WM-50 kit, Digikey # WM9801-ND just $26.32

WM-72 kit, Digikey # WM9802-ND just $30.76
 
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Here you go....I bought these from Digi-Key KK-156 & WM-50.

KK-100 kit, digikey # WM9803-ND just $30.30

KK-156 kit, Digikey # WM9804-ND just $26.46

WM-50 kit, Digikey # WM9801-ND just $26.32

WM-72 kit, Digikey # WM9802-ND just $30.76

Very small needle nose pliers for around $5. Works great. Unless you do this all the time for a living the costs for these specialized tools seem excessive.
 
Who needs crimpers? Get some helping hands, and some pine-tip needlenose to crimp it shut. Then spend the money on molex pin removers for the various sizes...
 
I use the $15 1494 crimper tool thats included in some of those Digikey kits, and from Bob. (Digikey sells it seperately but I think I'd buy a KK kit with the tool). It works great.

I have all the part #s at home but if you want to build your own kit...

1494 Crimper Tool
100 ea .093 female/male
100 ea .62 female/male
100 ea .084 female/male

.156 trifurcon pins (had to get these from bob - used for jamma/edge connectors)
.156 standard KK female pins (for monitor plugs)

Then get a few male/female 9 position .084 housings (for midway coin doors)
3,5, and 6 position .156 female KK housings for monitor plugs
Few 2 position male/female .093 housings for monitor power plugs


Then go to radio shack, get the Molex pin removal tool for .093 and they also sell a lot of .093 housings w/pins.

All told this is easily less than $100 (maybe even less than $50 I don't remember), and this kit has served me extremely well. The only things I may still splurge on if I can find them is a .84 and .062 removal tools. I've only encountered one .062 I had to fix. 99% of this is available at Digikey, the rest I found at Jammaboards.com (.156 housings are very cheap there) and Bob for the trifurcon pins.
 
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Check out this .084 kit!! Wow!!

http://www.mobilehomerepair.com/FurnaceElec.html (scroll to the bottom)


My regular price on all those connectors in that kit is $15 purchased individually. So minus the price of the case(a few bucks) its priced pretty high.
Look at the 50-84-1150 15-Circuit Male Molex Plug they have priced at $6!! I sell those at .56
Do I need to start putting some kits together to sell?
 
I have a .156 crimper that was $20 or so from Pinballresource. It works great, and I have used it ALOT!!!

The most common connectors are all .156 (edge connectors, power stand up pins, male/female molex housings).

If you get any crimper, get this one. It also works really, really good as a crimping tool for terminal connectors like quick disconnects. It gives a good pinch in the middle for a more secure crimp.

As for extractors, save your money. Most machines have open back housings you can simpy use a small screwdriver on. For PITA housings like on old Gottlieb games, you just use a real small jewelers screwdriver that is slightly ground down to give 2 flat edges. It will work 10x better than the crappy $10 extractor tools.
 
My regular price on all those connectors in that kit is $15 purchased individually. So minus the price of the case(a few bucks) its priced pretty high.
Look at the 50-84-1150 15-Circuit Male Molex Plug they have priced at $6!! I sell those at .56
Do I need to start putting some kits together to sell?

I would buy one. I would want a kit with more than 2 of each though. Maybe 20 of the most used ones, and 5 or so of the ones not used as much. Probably 100 of each type of pin.
 
I would buy one. I would want a kit with more than 2 of each though. Maybe 20 of the most used ones, and 5 or so of the ones not used as much. Probably 100 of each type of pin.

Send me a list of what specific connectors you want and I will price it. I have 12,000 molex parts in stock right now.
I have a pretty good selection of .100, .156, .084. I havent stocked .093 yet other than the pins.
 
This is the crimper tool I use, I had the number wrong (HT-1921 is proper)

pic2.jpg


Riptor - the list I provided is a really nice selection that I built up over repairing my games, I think it has a little bit of everything, and I think it would make a nice starter kit if you include the HT-1921 crimper, a pair of wire strippers, and a pair of xcelite snips. The wire strippers I use are the ones that radio shack used to sell (maybe still sells) and they are awesome.

I'd also get extractors for all 3 sizes (.093, .062, and .084 (084 is expensive)). Having the proper tools makes this stuff SOOO much nicer to deal with!

PS - it was 1am when I posted and I had to run back to work due to a power failure (and tired as hell), I was just referring to how nice that kit was, not the price :)

Last but not least - if it helps anyone, keep in mind when crimping molex pins, you don't need all the force in the world. Just enough to close up the tabs, you really don't need anything more than the force needed to hold a coffee cup. When I was just starting out I was cranking them down and bending up the pins bad.
 
I would buy one. I would want a kit with more than 2 of each though. Maybe 20 of the most used ones, and 5 or so of the ones not used as much. Probably 100 of each type of pin.

I would buy one too, i have no molex's but i bought the crimper tool from bob roberts. hope its a good one its in the mail right now.
 
The open barrel crimper is the best and only crimping tool that you need.

http://www.action-electronics.com/molex.htm#Tool

If anyone ever finds these at some other retailer (or is going to order one and is willing to order and ship an extra one to me), please let me know because Action Electronics don't ship internationally. In fact, when I click on the "International" link at the top of the page, it makes my browser window shake and jump in an interesting way - they're just making sure I get the message, I guess.
 
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