EMRFD Message Archive 6951

Message Date From Subject
6951 2011-12-05 10:02:33 dnorbury Ribbon cable stripping and connectors
I've built several projects recently with LCD displays. These would have been perfect applications for 16 line ribbon cable. I didn't have any at the time so I used 16 separate wires. Pretty messy! I've since found some ribbon cable and am wondering the best way to strip the wires (without cutting some of them off!) Is there a good tool for this?

Also, I think right angle cable connectors would be even more convenient than simply soldering the individual wires to the board and may not require stripping the ends. Is this correct? If so, how do you prepare the cable and where is a good place to buy them?

Thanks for any advice,

73, Dave, KD6A
6952 2011-12-05 14:45:36 kb1gmx Re: Ribbon cable stripping and connectors
6955 2011-12-05 19:36:45 popmedkoh Re: Ribbon cable stripping and connectors
6956 2011-12-05 20:06:57 ka7exm Re: Ribbon cable stripping and connectors
Here's another thought on connecting a bus of traces from LCD to PCB:

I had this issue with a project a few years ago. I was going to eventually design a PC board to go with the project. I decided to incorporate the PCB and the LCD as one mechanical assembly. The pads from one would eventually mate up to the other vertically.

After the prototype worked great ugly-style, the PCB was drawn and fabricated. The LCD is bolted on to the back of the PCB and then the leads from 1/4W resistors served as the connectors between the two boards. Fortunately all the traces are aligned up, 1:1 between the boards.

Just a thought.

(And yes I have a bunch of ribb
6958 2011-12-06 06:49:29 George Weaver Re: Ribbon cable stripping and connectors
If you really need to strip ribbon cable, something like this would seem to
be the ticket:

http://www.knipex.com/en/pliers-abc/how-does-it-work-animated-graphics/12-42-195-self-adapting-universal-insulation-stripper

http://www.knipex.com/en/pliers-abc/how-does-it-work-animated-graphics/12-40-200-self-adjusting-insulation-stripper

I haven't tried them, but it seems to me that you could slit the insulation
between conductors with a knife or scissors every N conductors where N is
the number of conductors that will fit under the stripper blade, then use
this tool to repeatedly strip N conductors at a time. If you make the
depth of your slits the same as the depth of the strip you should have a
fairly clean looking end to work with.

The Knipex strippers aren't cheap - best price I see online is around $70.
Cheaper variants appear to be available, but some of the customer reviews
aren't kind:

http://www.matcotools.com/catalog/product/WCS190A/WIRE-STRIPPER

http://www.amazon.com/Automatic-Wire-Stripper-Cutter-Wellmax/dp/B003VSSTBU

Note that the 2 products above appear to be exactly the same tool. Caveat
emptor. I have no experience with any of them.

-George, KB3ODH


6961 2011-12-06 06:50:16 George Weaver Re: Ribbon cable stripping and connectors
I find that the jaws of my Panavise are pretty effective at crimping IDC
connectors onto ribbon cables - haven't missed yet. Orient the Panavise so
that the jaws open vertically, gently sandwich the connector halves and
cable between the jaws, triple-check that the individual conductors are
aligned with the connector's blades, then screw it tight. No need to strip
- the connector's forked blades are precision spaced to pierce the
insulation at exactly the right spot so as to contact only one conductor
each. Note that there is generally a mark, often a triangle, on the
connector body to show you where pin 1 is. (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pin_1_idc.png)

When completed, run a sharp utility knife blade down the edge of the
connector to trim any excess cable and scrutinize the cut end under a
lighted magnifier to be certain there are no wire hairs that can cause
shorts.

-George, KB3ODH