easy way to make rj-45 cable

[K. Soze]

Does anyone know a trick for making network cable? It's such a bitch to work with the short, twisted, colored wires. I struggle trying to get the wires to go in the connector in order. Does anyone know an easy way to attach the cable to a connector?

 

[pcmark]

Practice!!! I find it easiest to strip the wires longer than you need them,and straighten them out real good. Then put them in order and snip them to the right length and put the connector on. There is no easy way.

 

[BreakApart]

While you are learning don't try to skimp on the wire.

If you are having trouble try this:

1) Strip the outer jacket to expose 2 inches of wire.
2) Untwist all these wires so NO twist is visible(while you are learning it is ok to untwist the wire below the exposed area, when you get better you won't need to do this)
3) Get the wires into the correct order now...
4) Flex the wires back and forth and "pull" them straight as you squeeze them between your fingers(if they don't stay straight now they won't after you cut them, so MAKE sure they stay straight now, and in the correct order)
5) Now that they are straight AND in the correct order, you can cut them. This is really where the practice, practice, practice comes into play. Cut the wires so only 1 inch of wire remains, be sure the cut is perfectly straight(making all the wires even)
6) Now slide them into the connector, before you crimp check that: the wires are in order, the reach the top of the connector, and (about) 1/4 of an inch of insulation is inside the bottom of the connector.
7) If it looks good crimp away, if not restrip or correct the problem.
Better to waste wire than connectors, the wire is cheaper...

After the crimp, check to make sure the wires are ALL touching the top of the connector, you will get a "head light look" as they say. The copper in the end of the connector will shine evenly across all wires.

Have fun and happy crimping....

Edit: i fixed #4, cnuke was right i left some details out... thx

 

[Cnuke]

Break apart has it going on.

The only thing I would add to it is step 4. I would mention to get them straight after flexing them. I always pinch them between my fingers and make them as flat as you can. hard to explain, but if you could imagine 8 pencils laying on a desk all neat together, this is how you want those pairs to look like. When I get them to that stage is when I pinch them from the top and bottom to make them straight as an arrow. After that it is smooth sailing.

There is no easy way. Even a professionals fingers are a little sore after making a few.

 

[teknoid]

I'll add one more thing... If you haven't bought one yet DO NOT go cheap on your crimp tool. The good ones do a good job the cheap ones just don't.

 

[K. Soze]

thanks guys, youre a great help...i love this forum!

 

[R0b0tN1k]

Don't crimp your own! hand-made crimps are usually bad and will cause more trouble than they're worth. Whenever you need a custom length, use jacks...they are much better connections and are easier to use. Use pre-made patch cables...they're guaranteed to be good.

 

[K. Soze]

what are jacks and patch cables?

 

[TerreApart]

I have to disagree with you Robo, i have seen premade cables fail as often as hand-crimped(premade uses CHEAP wire IMO). Besides if you don't hand-crimp your own, how you going to fix them?

In Hand-Crimping the MOST important thing is the quality of the crimp-tool. The better the tool the better the crimp...

If my current network was all premade cables it would have cost the company, an extra $800+ easy... Making your own cables is not only cheaper it is "custom" in lengths required, and an excellent skill to know in this field...

Jacks: Wall-plates are to be used when running long distances through walls and ceilings. Jacks are fixed in place with screws, thus the wire does not get flexed as often and this helps them last longer.

Patch Cables: Short runs of cables used to connect Wall-Plates(and patch-panels) to computer equipment. The cables are "short-connection cables" in simple terms. Buying these in the correct lengths can be EXPENSIVE!!! Making them is a huge savings...

 

[cavingjan]

After discovering that the main networking department a few buildings over from my office were making their own patch cords with solid care wire instead of nice durable stranded (there is a reason for the different wires), I went through our department and bought all new patch cables to raplace the homemade ones. They have switched over but that left the old cables in 6 buildings with 400 computers each. Took time but now they are replaced. Sure beats chasing down network outages all the time. In a company setting, time is money (as we all know) and buying all prebuilt cables are very much cheaper in the long run. You can get bulk packages of cables and there should be no reason for a custom length (well maybe that 1%). A 25 ft cable should cover the placement of the computer in 90% of the office.
With that said, I make my own for here at the house only because I still have most of a spool of cat5e still sitting here and I don't mind making the cable and then replacing them when I suspect a problem.
I get all my cables from a small outfit across the street since I found out that they switched from making their own to buying bulk. They are pricey when bought individually but when you can get them a box at a time, they are were 50 cents more per cable than the wire and ends alone.

EDIT: Forgot to answer the question. Breakapart and Cnuke have the right idea. I can never get the wires to be all the same length on the first try so I always strip extra wire (not quite as much as them) and then flatten the mess, cut straight, put in end, pull out since one wire always gets hung just a little bit behind the rest, cut to an equal and final length and shove it in and crimp.

 

[K. Soze]

you guys made it easy. the wires fit perfectly and easily...thanks all