Choosing the right RJ 45 connectors for right cable?

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xbliss

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Sep 26, 2015
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Choosing the right RJ 45 connectors for right cable?

I crimped one side of an RJ-45 on to a (soft) patch cable whose clip/ was damaged.

The whole soft cable was kind of loose under the "clamp bridge" that goes down and holds the cable (typically the solid/ strong one)

I am guessing the it was the wrong connector for such cables? I did read quite a bit about Solid vs Stranded (jacks & cables) and some RJ 45 that are dual suitable + Pins with 2 pin vs 3 pin that go down etc.

I am still unclear as there is no "clear single picture guide" that shows all varieties and their compatibles/ suitable components and leverage the same to determine and purchase the right pieces for a scenario.

One of the rare/ few listings online that points to 4 varieties but not sure it clearly outlines determining the above.
Cat6A RJ45 Shielded Load Bar x 25 50 100 lot Pack Solid Stranded Modular Plug
 
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aero

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Apr 27, 2016
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What exactly is unclear? General guidelines are to use solid CATx cable for long runs and in walls, and stranded for patch cables. Buy the appropriate RJ45 connectors; they should state if they are for solid or stranded. If they don't, then don't buy those ones, they're probably poor quality.

Also, be sure to get cat5e RJ45 connectors if you're using cat5e cable, and cat6 connectors if you're running cat6 cable...

As Jerry pointed about above, use the B standard.

There is probably no legitimate reason to run shielded for home use either for 99.9% of people.
 
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xbliss

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aero said:
What exactly is unclear? General guidelines are to use solid CATx cable for long runs and in walls, and stranded for patch cables. Buy the appropriate RJ45 connectors; they should state if they are for solid or stranded. If they don't, then don't buy those ones, they're probably poor quality.

Also, be sure to get cat5e RJ45 connectors if you're using cat5e cable, and cat6 connectors if you're running cat6 cable...

As Jerry pointed about above, use the B standard.

There is probably no legitimate reason to run shielded for home use either for 99.9% of people.
Click to expand...
Will be using B std as that is whats in place.

How does one distinguish between Cat5e connectors and Cat6 connectors and CAT5 connectors (if they exist)? I did ask this once but never got a clear answer. The only little piece of info I got was a video that showed that Cat6 had an alternating up & down wire hole structure inside the RJ 45 crimp. Anything else?

PS: Well, parts of this go ABOVE a small factory workshop time environment i.e. machines with electric motors. My guess is that would create some EMI/ EMF? They suggested banging some sheets on the roof / floor between where the cables are passing instead of having to re do wiring (just a few of them going across).
 
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Drewy

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Apr 23, 2016
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I buy cat6 rj45's and use them for everything. Your milage may vary but for me they have always worked fine. Bit more room in the plug to play with and if you get the ones with the guide pieces a doddle to wire, even with the eye's of a 40+ year old :)

btw I only ever use the final part of the guides, the one which takes the 8 wires and sits under the (to be) crimped connections.
 
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djflow195

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jgreco

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The way you distinguish between these is that you keep them separate and put them on the right cables, and hope everyone else does too.

It can be wicked hard to reliably tell what happened after the fact. Lower speed RJ45 connectors, including Cat5, have some identifiable characteristics. Pull this up:

https://www.amazon.com/Platinum-Tools-202003J-Connector-100-Pack/dp/B004HN81SE/

Notice that the cable is blocked from going more than about a third of the way into the body.

Higher speed crimps such as Cat6+ will need to allow the cable to be pushed up almost all the way to the pins, to maintain twist (and better strain relief). See for example:

https://www.amazon.com/Platinum-Tools-100010C-Connectors-Clamshell/dp/B000FI9VU2/

Some Cat6 crimps do use an alternating up and down pattern as you mention. However, not all do - including the EZ-RJ45's which I just linked to.

The EZ-RJ45 crimps are very nice for reliable field terminations, by the way. We do most of our cables here with them. But they're damn expensive for home use.

Solid and stranded cable need to be crimped with different crimps. Stranded crimps typically have two teeth that bite straight into the cable, forcing their way into and through the strands. Using this on solid cable results in the solid copper conductor being crushed, and possibly fractured, and if you suffer a fracture, then it'll probably work until you move the cable. Solid crimps typically use three teeth in an offset pattern to surround the solid copper conductor.
 
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xbliss

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Thanks you all :) So, key question - My issue is when looking online to buy CAT 6 vs 5e vs 5 - RJ 45 its seldom not clear which is which. Several lists put CAT 6 and 5e in their listings and hence harder to distinguish.

Can each of you link to your favorite sources (have more?, even better) of CAT 6 rj 45's that are "value for money" for a Small Biz/ Home? I am having a tough time picking the right options online.
The more sources/ options you share the better my ability to get one of them. Mostly I shop via Amazon Prime, few times NewEgg.

Drewy said:
I buy cat6 rj45's and use them for everything. Your milage may vary but for me they have always worked fine. Bit more room in the plug to play with and if you get the ones with the guide pieces a doddle to wire, even with the eye's of a 40+ year old :)

btw I only ever use the final part of the guides, the one which takes the 8 wires and sits under the (to be) crimped connections.
Click to expand...
djflow195 said:
It should state what it is made for. But in reality that only works for good quality manufacturers.

The difference is that CAT6 should be a lower gauge wire (22-24GA vs 24-26GA). Using the wrong connector may lead to bad crimps/punches and a faulty cable/connector.

Cable Gauge - The difference between Cat6 23AWG & Cat6 24AWG - Tektel
Click to expand...
jgreco said:
The way you distinguish between these is that you keep them separate and put them on the right cables, and hope everyone else does too.

It can be wicked hard to reliably tell what happened after the fact. Lower speed RJ45 connectors, including Cat5, have some identifiable characteristics. Pull this up:

https://www.amazon.com/Platinum-Tools-202003J-Connector-100-Pack/dp/B004HN81SE/

Notice that the cable is blocked from going more than about a third of the way into the body.

Higher speed crimps such as Cat6+ will need to allow the cable to be pushed up almost all the way to the pins, to maintain twist (and better strain relief). See for example:

https://www.amazon.com/Platinum-Tools-100010C-Connectors-Clamshell/dp/B000FI9VU2/

Some Cat6 crimps do use an alternating up and down pattern as you mention. However, not all do - including the EZ-RJ45's which I just linked to.

The EZ-RJ45 crimps are very nice for reliable field terminations, by the way. We do most of our cables here with them. But they're damn expensive for home use.

Solid and stranded cable need to be crimped with different crimps. Stranded crimps typically have two teeth that bite straight into the cable, forcing their way into and through the strands. Using this on solid cable results in the solid copper conductor being crushed, and possibly fractured, and if you suffer a fracture, then it'll probably work until you move the cable. Solid crimps typically use three teeth in an offset pattern to surround the solid copper conductor.
Click to expand...
 
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jgreco

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Sep 7, 2013
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I don't know what "value for money" means. If it means "you don't need to have done 1000 of these to be able to do them correctly and reliably", that's probably the Platinum EZ-RJ45 crimps, where a beginner is more likely to be able to get a decent crimp. Those of us with five figures worth of crimps under our belts and can do field terminations with inexpensive crimps with >95% accuracy, well, I find that I still prefer the EZ's. Maybe I'm getting old, but I'm willing to spend money to get what I perceive as better value in terms of far fewer failed crimps. I'm often making cables to exact lengths so that plays into that somewhat.

I don't suggest buying from Amazon. The news reports that they're fighting a lot of counterfeit goods, and on this very topic I can report that I actually did order a bag of 50 Platinum crimps via Amazon recently for a client project, and ended up with cheap Chinese knock-offs, though looking back on the purchase invoice, it does appear that Amazon subbed a non-Amazon seller because Amazon didn't have them in stock.

If you want inexpensive crimps, head to Monoprice. You really can't beat the pricing there, but I don't think they have the fancy stuff like the EZ-RJ45.

If you want the Platinum stuff, and you don't choke on the idea of spending nearly a buck per end to make your cables, the best way to get them is through a distributor such as ADI. Not necessarily the cheapest of all possible sources, and you might need to be a legitimate business to buy through them, but a great source of all things low-voltage. If your city has an ADI branch, it's probably worth seeing if you can set up an account there. Replacement SLA batteries for UPS's and all sorts of network cabling stuff.
 
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