Wire extension: Connector part numbers - SOLVED

[disback]

Hey there guys!

I am modding my LC and gave it an additional 3 inches of build height in the Z-axis (along with other snazzy improvements); however, now I need to extend my communication cables to accommodate for the change. I've got my cables dressed up nicely in blue wire wrap to match my wood stain, so I don't want to just chop it in half and soldier splice this. Not only is that bad for long term movement, I see this as an awesome opportunity to create a "disconnect" point that would no longer require me to flip my printer upsidedown every time I need to remove the upper assembly. So I am looking for the part numbers for the respective connectors necessary to patch my current cables and give the system about 6 more inches of length. I can find these numbers on my own, but I was hoping to save myself a little time if someone had already looked up these numbers in the past while doing the same thing as me. I have a molex crimper at work that I can use, so I won't be fretting over spending $200 for the tool. So, anyone have these part numbers? (The BOM lists the complete cable assemblies, not each individual component on a cable).

EDIT: So I did a few hours of research and I think that I found the correct molex connectors. I will be posting their part numbers if I can confirm that they are the correct ones once they arrive.

EDIT EDIT: I just got the parts in now, the following parts are compatible with the current printrboard connectors...

22-29-2021 (Male PCB header, 2 pin) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... EADERS.xml
22-29-2031 (Male PCB header, 3 pin) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... EADERS.xml
22-29-2041 (Male PCB header, 4 pin) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... EADERS.xml (These also work with the unkeyed, black, 4-pin connectors for the servo connectors!)
22-01-2025 (Female crimp terminal housing, 2 pin) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... USINGS.xml
22-01-2035 (Female crimp terminal housing, 3 pin) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... USINGS.xml
22-01-2045 (Female crimp terminal housing, 4 pin) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... USINGS.xml
08-55-0111 (Housing crimp terminals for 22-30awg wire) http://www.molex.com/molex/products/dat ... MINALS.xml

2013-08-05_14-40-02_567.jpg

2013-08-05_14-40-36_596.jpg

[REPRAP SQUAD]

I extended my wires for the dual extruder beta plus I have 16 inches of z axis travel. I used these kind of extensions and then used wire shrink over the connections. I also labeled my wiring at each end. Works great.

[RetireeJay]

Hey guys, post the part numbers! I'd like to buy a slew of connectors from 1 pin up to 7 or 8 pins - both to mate with headers on the board and also to create floating connections in cables. I know I'll need to buy the metal inserts and a crimping tool also. So where do I get these things and what's the part number family?

[disback]

Hey there Jay! I've attached a link to the relevant Molex catalogue below which lists the product families for the pin spacing in the printrboard connectors. The connectors on my LC are either from another family line, or more likely, molex knockoffs which are generally easy to find in most electronics (it is always cheaper to buy the chinese alternative). I'm looking at getting the following components but I won't be able to state if they are the correct ones until I've tried them. As with most components, if you don't know EXACTLY what it is you need and remember every intricacy of the part code, you might get something just a litttttttle bit different from what you want. I am actually specifying gold plated pins which are only a little more expensive but increase the rated number of connect/disconnect events from 25 to 100 before failures began to occur. Generally you should only use tin if you are connecting these things once and then never touching them again (ex: consumer electronics/toys) and know for certain that the envrionment they will be used in is clean and not harsh (ex: used near salty shores, used in excessively wet envrionments, used in atmospheres with high levels of particulates).

http://www.molex.com/catalog/web_catalog/pdfs/C.pdf

22-29-2021 (Male PCB header, 2 pin)
22-29-2031 (Male PCB header, 3 pin)
22-29-2041 (Male PCB header, 4 pin)
22-01-2025 (Female crimp terminal housing, 2 pin) (The catalogue shows a picture of a connector without polarizing ribs, but the website online does! We will find out if they are the right ones when they arrive...this is the reason I hate ordering components)
22-01-2035 (Female crimp terminal housing, 3 pin)
22-01-2045 (Female crimp terminal housing, 4 pin)
50-57-9004 (Female crimp terminal housing, non-polarized, 4pin)
08-56-0109 (Housing crimp terminals for 22-30awg wire)

Like I said, I'll tell be sure to post the results once the parts get here. I ordered a dozen or so of each connector and a handful of pins.

As for the crimper, there are ratcheting and non-ratcheting crimp tools. The price difference is massive, but so is the ease of crimping. This is one of those things that I must sadly say, going cheap will only cause regret. (https://www.google.com/shopping/product ... CDgQ8wIwAA). If you doing alot of electronics work though, its totally useful to have and you can get some good mileage out of it. Lucky for me, we have a few at work so I can throw these cable assemblies together in a few minutes.

[RetireeJay]

Thank you! That's an awesome reference.
For some reason, I had always associated Molex connectors with the larger power connectors which have round pins. This will get me going.
(I may go cheap on the crimper, unless I really have to do hundreds of crimps... I already have a crimper that *might* work if the dimensions come out OK.)

[disback]

Yeah I had only ever known molex from the 4-pin computer power supply cables until I got into my current line of work. They make a pile of crazy connectors! When it comes time to crimp those cables by the way, be sure to slide the wire into the tray so that the insulation gets crimped on the first set of rungs and the exposed conductors get crimped by the second set of rungs. Otherwise that pin is just going to fall off the wire :/

[Mochaboy]

For the molex pins I use these:

(first link)
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=4247#p27938

For the black header I use standard .100 pitch pins like the type you would find at pololu.
http://www.pololu.com/catalog/category/19

There's literally hundreds of those .100 pitch male/female pins to choose from from Digikey and one of these days I'll go through and select an economically priced option.

[disback]

Ok guys, I got the parts in today and they are the correct ones! I modified the original post with links to the datasheets and official webpage. You cannot buy directly through molex, but you can find these parts by entering their numbers into www.digikey.com, www.newark.com, or other component sites. I don't have the pins yet, but will be ordering some this week. As soon as I have them and can confirm compatibility, I'll post that part number also. Happy printing folks.

[Mooselake]

These are the official connectors per the printrboard's designer. Converting from Digikey's number to miles part numbers are left as an exercise.

Sorry for the delay.

Kirk

[RetireeJay]

Good news. I bought Molex connector shells and both male and female crimp inserts, and they do work just fine with the Printrboard. I bought shells which are non-polarized and non-latching, so they are "universal" but require me to remember (or mark) the correct orientation.

Also good news: instead of the $300 Molex crimper, I have had perfect success with a $34 crimper from Pololu. http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/1928

These connectors are pretty small, so I thought it might be helpful to show a guide on the crimping process:

I start by stripping about 2mm of insulation and placing the wire in the connector. I've marked with colored arrows the "insulation crimp" and the "wire crimp" zones

ConnectorPinBeforeCrimping.jpg

Then, in order to keep the connector joined to the wire for handling, I give it a gentle pre-crimp with a pair of pliers. When I'm done, the change in shape is virtually invisible, but the connector / wire combination can be picked up and moved around.

GentlePreCrimpToAidHandling.jpg

Here's the Crimping side of the tool, the part of the tool that bends the tabs over.

CrimperCrimpSide.jpg

Here's the Anvil side of the tool, the part that pushes the assembly into the Crimping side. You place the gently-crimped connector on this part of the tool, lining up the insulation side with the larger anvil and the wire side with the smaller anvil, then squeeze the handle. It ratchets until you have completed the crimp.

CrimperAnvilSide.jpg

Finally, here is what the finished crimped pin should look like.

CrimpedConnector.jpg

[Mooselake]

I've got essentially the same crimper frame, a Paladin, had it since I was making RG-58A/U Ethernet cables 20 years ago, with add-on thumbscrews for quick die changes. I have at least 5 different die sets, including one like yours (although it might not go that small). Pretty handy!

Now you need to learn about Anderson Powerpoles. See powerwerx.com, and lots of other sites. Good for currents beyond what we're using, and if joined properly you can't put them together wrong; Google ARES powerpole standard.

Kirk

[Jon Lawrence]

My apologies about using the old thread, but does anybody have the part numbers for the connectors on the UBIS hot end?

I finally cleaned up my cables, and everything is long enough except for the hot end. Instead of cutting and extending the existing cable, I would like to just make a new pair for the heater and thermister. The PCB side connectors are listed above, but I don't see the black coupling pair located on the hot end itself.

[daewootech]

great links, thanks everyone for the information, ive been slowley purchasing rods to extend my LC's z-height to just under two feet, and ive been worried about connectors. i was just going to cut and extend the current cables, but im thinking maybe making extensions using the actual connectors would be alot cleaner of a setup.

[disback]

It is tons easier. Also, you can make yourself a serviceable "disconnect" board that you can hide behind your printer so that you don't need to worry about flipping your LC upsidedown (or working on it like a car needing an oil change) just for the sake of re-attaching the cables! (Disregard what looks like a sloppy soldering job! They are actually soldered securely on the other side along solder bridges to the respective connector pins).

20140204_152317[1].jpg

Also, to the person 2 posts about this one. Sorry, but you will need to search the molex catalog for that information.

[jeromedayton]

These connectors are pretty small, so I thought it might be helpful to show a guide on the crimping process:

RJ-

Any reason that I should NOT solder the wire/pin connection AFTER doing the crimping? I always like to maximize the electrical contact at any junction with solder. However I'm afraid the heat of the soldering iron might weaken the join of the insulation to the clip.

[RetireeJay]

I'm afraid the heat of the soldering iron might weaken the join of the insulation to the clip.

Yes, the heat will soften the insulation and then you won't have as good a strain relief. Plus you have the risk of an excess blob of solder making it impossible to insert the pin into the shell; you would need to have a very fine-tip iron and excellent technique - probably under magnification.

I, too, tended to be a believer in solder. But the military has done extensive reliability studies of different ways of making connections, and a well-formed crimp or pressure connection can actually be more reliable than solder. There are billions and billions of reliable connections out there in the world made purely with mechanical compression (look at your telephone and Ethernet connectors...) In the kind of connector used for the Printrbot, crimping only works well with stranded wire - so if for some reason you needed to use solid wire then I'd say by all means solder it.

[gmh39]

I'm afraid the heat of the soldering iron might weaken the join of the insulation to the clip.

Yes, the heat will soften the insulation and then you won't have as good a strain relief. Plus you have the risk of an excess blob of solder making it impossible to insert the pin into the shell; you would need to have a very fine-tip iron and excellent technique - probably under magnification.

I, too, tended to be a believer in solder. But the military has done extensive reliability studies of different ways of making connections, and a well-formed crimp or pressure connection can actually be more reliable than solder. There are billions and billions of reliable connections out there in the world made purely with mechanical compression (look at your telephone and Ethernet connectors...) In the kind of connector used for the Printrbot, crimping only works well with stranded wire - so if for some reason you needed to use solid wire then I'd say by all means solder it.

That makes sense! when I was trying to crimp my connectors the other week I couldn't get a few to crimp properly. I believe they were solid wire.

[shaddii]

I don't suppose someone could give me an amazon link to the correct type and gauge of wire to use when building these connectors. Probably a stupid question but i would really appreciate it.

[disback]

Any stranded, 22-30 gauge copper wire is going to do the trick for you. Just make sure you don't get solid core wire. It isn't flexible and will break over time if it is used on any of the cable connected to the printer carriage. As for getting a link, I can't help you that far; you should be the one to decide how much you need for your project, and the color.

[shaddii]

Much thanks mate This page has been quite helpful

[Vapor]

I've been looking for this!

[disback]

No worries guys! Just remember to pay it forward and share your lessons learned with everyone on the forum when you make a discovery! Tons of people had the same technical issues as us, the only difference is that we took the time to write it all down ^_^

[RetireeJay]

In case you are looking for the in-line connectors used at the Hot End for the heater and the thermistor, here are the DigiKey part numbers:

0436450200: 2-pin shell for male pins
0436400201: 2-pin shell for female pins
0430310008: male pins
0430300008: female pins

DSC04959 copy.jpg

[theverant]

Thanks for posting this RetireeJay - just what I was looking for.

Is there some kind of sticky that has all this kind of info listed in a more concise way?

Cheers,

[PxT]

I don't think there is but if you make one we'll sticky it.