[Tfug] CAT5 Cables, The Sequel

[Bexley Hall]

Hi, John,

--- johngalt1 <johngalt1 at uswest.net> wrote:

> When cutting off the outer jacket, I cut off at
> least 3/4 to an inch. That way, once all the
> conductors are sorted, ordered and dressed I 
> take a pair or cutters and trim the wires to length.

I cut off much less of the sheath.  *But*, I would
tug on the pairs to get a bit more of them exposed
thinking that I can later slide the sheath back
*down* the wires to re-expose "just the right amount"
of them.

The crimper tool has a very wide, very sharp blade
to cut across all 8 conductors in one shot.  I
started to use a set of side-cutters to do this
by hand and realized it was much easier to use
the crimping tool to ensure there is no variation
from one conductor to the next (e.g., if you had
to "take a second bite" with side-cutters).

> But first, I identify and untwist the pair bundles
> in order.
> Green, Orange, Blue, Brown  (use whatever standard

In my case, it was Red, Green, Blue, Yellow, Black,
Orange, Gr[ea]y, Brown -- with the Blue/Orange pair
being the split one.  So, it was hard to differentiate
between Green vs. Blue and Orange vs. Brown unless
you looked carefully.  Especially once they were
positioned in the shell!

> you want). Sometimes the pairs don't come out of the
> entire bundle neatly, so it helps to unweave them in
> different directions until they dress without
> interfering with each other.
> 
> Then, beyond the first 1/8 to 1/4 inch from the
> outer jacket, I unwrap the pair strands in order
> in a fan shape.  W-GN/GN, W-O/O, W-BU/BU, W-BN/BN.
> (think palm tree leaves "fan")

Yes, good analogy.

> On the ends, I straighten the waviness in the wires
> because of the twisting to make the pairs.

I found that I had to do this before even trying to
dick with the order of the conductors.  Otherwise,
the wires kept getting out-of-order...
 
> Then, I swap the solid blue and orange strands and
> double check the order. W-GN/GN, W-O/BU, W-BU/O,
> W-BN/BN.  Then from the fan shape of the strands,
> I push them together to make them parallel with
> the cable axis. I use one hand to hold the wires
> together (thumb and forefinger) and the other hand
> to sort things and then to cut the strands to
> length, using the connector as a guide

I found that the gage on the crimper is "just right"
*if* I am very conservative about how much I "trim"
thereafter.  The hard part is keeping them in order
*as* you feed them into the shell.  The opening in
the shell is *just* wide enough for the 8 conductors
so they have to stay "touching" as they go in -- you
can't hope the connector will *funnel* them into
place.  This is where I would get crossovers and have
to withdraw the cable and start over.

> By this point, the wires are in the correct order,
> lined up
> next to another and cut to length. After doing this,
> I
> identify the pin one side of the connector and cram
> the
> ordered bundle into the connector, taking care to
> watch how
> well the wires stay lined up, and adjusting things
> to make
> the wires line up with the channels in the
> connector..
> 
> Look at the side of the connector opposite of the
> contacts.

I can't see the ends very well, there.  The additional
plastic from the latch obscures (I want to say
*refracts* but that is probably imprecise) a clear
view.

> Are the wires crammed fully into the connector as
> far as they can go? Are the wire colors still
> ordered properly? If not pull the cable out of the
> connector and adjust things.  Usually I can pull
> out on the wires from the jacket to gain
> some length if the wires don't go far enough into
> the connector.
> 
> If I messed up,

"If"???  :>

> I re-cram the bundle back into the connector and
> recheck. If the wire order and length are good,
> I check to make sure the outer jacket extends far
> enough into the connector so the jacket crimp will
> hold. If Ok, it's time to crimp.

[snip]

> How can anyone tell whether a RJ-45 style connector
> is intended for solid or stranded wire by some
> visual clue? If so, how?

I sacrificed a couple of connector shells to try to
figure this out.  I had assumed the difference was
in the "jaws" of the contact that pierces the cable.
But, near as I can tell, they were identical.
(of course, I am sure there are differences --
manufacturers, etc. -- but, without an optical
comparator, I couldn't identify any that looked
obvious -- in any of three dimensions)

Perhaps there is a difference in the *sharpness*
of the teeth.  Or, how the conductors are *held*
in place (to minimize "flex").

Though my gut still thinks it should be in the 
*teeth* (consider how easily a nicked wire fails...)

--don


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