4/23/24, 4:21 PM How to Crimp Rj45: 14 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow

How to Crimp Rj45

Expert guide to crimping an RJ-45 to a cable
Co-authored by Ricardo Mitchell
Last Updated: June 8, 2023 Fact Checked

You can quickly and easily crimp an RJ-45 to a cable with or without a crimping tool. If you
have a crimping tool, strip away a portion of the sheath, untangle and arrange the wires in
the correct order, fit them into the connector, and use the crimping part of your tool to
squeeze the small pins into the wires and secure the connector. If you don’t have a
crimping tool, no problem! Use a pair of scissors or a utility knife to cut away a section of
the sheathing at the end of the cable, untwist and arrange the small cables in the right
order, put them into the RJ-45 connector, and use a small, flathead screwdriver to press
down each of the pins.

Method
1 Using a Crimping Tool

Strip the cable back 1 inch (25 mm) from the end. Insert the cable into the
1 stripper section of the tool and squeeze it tight. Then, rotate the crimping tool
around the cable in a smooth and even motion to create a clean cut. Keep the tool
clamped and pull away towards the end of the wire to remove the sheathing.[1]
The stripping section is a round hole near the handle of the tool.
The sheathing should come off cleanly, leaving the wires exposed.

Untwist and straighten the wires inside of the cable. Inside of the cable
2 you’ll see a bunch of smaller wires twisted together. Separate the twisted
wires and straighten them out so they’re easier to sort into the right order.[2]
Cut off the small plastic wire separator or core so it’s out of the way.
Don’t cut off or remove any of the wires or you won’t be able to crimp them
into the connector.
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Arrange the wires into the right order. Use your fingers to put the wires in
3 the correct order so they can be properly crimped. The proper sequence is as
follows from left to right: Orange/White, Orange, Green/White, Blue, Blue/White,
Green, Brown/White, Brown.[3]
There are 8 wires in total that need to be arranged in the right sequence.
Note that the wires labeled Orange/White or Brown/White indicate the small
wires that have 2 colors.

Cut the wires into an even line 1⁄2 inch (13 mm) from sheathing. Hold the
4
wires with your thumb and index finger to keep them in order. Then, use the
cutting section of the crimping tool to cut them into an even line.[4]
The cutting section of the tool will resemble wire cutters.
The wires must be in an even line to be crimped into the RJ-45 connector
properly. If you cut them in an uneven line, move further down the wires and
cut them again.

Tip: If your tool doesn’t have a cutting section, use a pair of wire cutters or
scissors to cut the small wires.

Insert the wires into the RJ-45 connector. Hold the RJ-45 connector so the
5 clip is on the underside and the small metal pins are facing up. Insert the
cable into the connector so that each of the small wires fits into the small grooves
in the connector.[5]
The sheathing of the cable should fit just inside of the connector so it’s past
the base.
If any of the small wires bend or don’t fit into a groove correctly, take the cable
out and straighten the wires with your fingers before trying again.
The wires must be inserted in the correct order and each wire must fit into a
groove before you crimp the connector.

Stick the connector into the crimping part of the tool and squeeze twice.
6 Insert the connector in the crimping section of the tool until it can’t fit any
further. Squeeze the handles to crimp the connector and secure the wires.
Release the handles, then squeeze the tool again to make sure all of the pins are
pushed down.
The crimping tool pushes small pins in the grooves down onto the wires to
hold and connect them to the RJ-45 connector.

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Remove the cable from the tool and check that all of the pins are down.
7 Take the connector out of the tool and look at the pins to see that they’re all
pushed down in an even line. Lightly tug at the connector to make sure it’s
attached to the cable.
If any of the pins aren’t pushed down, put the wire back into the crimping tool
and crimp it again.

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Method
2 Attaching RJ-45 Connectors without a Crimping Tool

Cut into the outer sheath of the cable with a pair of scissors. Take a pair
1 of scissors and gently cut into the plastic sheath about 1 inch (25 mm) from
the end of the cable. Make sure you don’t cut into the wires inside. When the
scissors penetrate the sheath, rotate the cable and scissors to create a cut
around the cable. Then, stick your fingertips under the sheath and pull it off
towards the end.[6]
Don’t cut too deep when you make your initial incision.

Tip: If you don’t have scissors, you can use a utility knife to cut away the outer
sheath. But be careful not to cut the wires inside.

Separate and straighten out the small wires in the cable. Use your fingers
2 to untwist and straighten the exposed wires after you remove the sheath. If
there is a plastic core or wire separator, cut it away with your scissors.[7]

Put the wires in the right order. Arrange the wires from left to right so the
3 order is orange/white, orange, green/white, blue, blue/white, green,
brown/white, brown. They need to be arranged in a specific order to be properly
crimped to the RJ-45 connector.[8]
Some of the wires have 2 colors on them, like the orange and white wire.

Trim the wires 1⁄2 inch (13 mm) away from the sheath. Bring the wires
4
together and hold them with your thumb and index finger. Then, use your
scissors to cut them. Make sure they’re cut evenly.[9]
The wires need to be even in order to fit into the grooves in the connector.
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If you cut the wires unevenly, move further down and cut them again so their
ends are in a straight line.

Fit the wires into the grooves of the RJ-45 connector. Hold the connector
5 so the metal pins or brackets are facing up and the clip is facing down. Hold
the small wires together in the right order and slide them into the connector. They
should fit into the grooves of the connector, with the end of the sheath of the cable
fitting just past the base of the connector.[10] [11]

Press the pins down with a flathead screwdriver. Locate the small metal
6 pins at the ends of the grooves of the connector. Use a thin, flathead
screwdriver to push each of the pins down. Push the pins 1 by 1 so they’re
pressed all the way into each wire.[12]
Be careful not to crack or break the plastic connector.

Tug on the end of the connector to make sure it’s secure. Double check
7 that all of the pins are pressed into the wire, and give a light tug on the
connector to make sure it won’t slide off. Each of the pins should be inserted at
the same level to form an even line.[13]
Lightly shake the cable and listen for any rattling that could indicate that one
of the pins isn’t secure.

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Expert Q&A

Question

Can you crimp RJ45 without a tool?

Ricardo Mitchell
Electrician & Construction Professional, CN Coterie
Expert Answer

Well, you can always use a connector to join two lengths of RJ45, but if you don't
have a crimping tool, that's basically your only option.

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Question

What are the picture representations of the color codes while in the RJ45?

Community Answer

The colors are arranged in a similar fashion so that the computers know what
they are sending/receiving. The lines don't specifically carry an arranged data
line, but there are data+, data-, data2+ and data2+ in there. Wikipedia would help
you with that. Fun fact: as long as the colors match at both ends you should be
fine, if you messed up a color. However, the pairs ARE twisted still. There are two
extra pairs in the cable which aren't used until cat6, with Gigabit. You can do
perfectly fine without the extra pair for c5 and 5e.

Question

How do I determine how many centimeters to cut when trying to crimp one?

Community Answer

You can use the length of the RJ-45 connector itself. I use the width of my thumb.
You will figure out a way that's good for you have you have done a few. Make
sure the individual wire pairs maintain their twist right up to the crimp mechanism
in the connector. If you have too much of the twisted wires showing prior to the
crimp put both hands a foot down the cable and with one hand grip the cable
loosely and gently slide the cable cover towards the crimp. The neoprene cover
will stretch a little and make a nice looking crimp job.

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Things You’ll Need

Using a Crimping Tool

Crimping tool

RJ-45 connector

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Attaching RJ-45 Connectors without a Crimping Tool

RJ-45 connector

Scissors

Thin, flathead screwdriver

Tips

References

1. https://web.ics.purdue.edu/~rvoyles/Help/CRLtools/crimping_soldering.html
2. https://web.ics.purdue.edu/~rvoyles/Help/CRLtools/crimping_soldering.html
3. https://web.ics.purdue.edu/~rvoyles/Help/CRLtools/crimping_soldering.html
4. https://web.ics.purdue.edu/~rvoyles/Help/CRLtools/crimping_soldering.html
5. Ricardo Mitchell. Electrician & Construction Professional, CN Coterie. Expert
Interview. 6 May 2020.
6. https://youtu.be/Z20ROaFmRC8?t=75
7. https://youtu.be/Z20ROaFmRC8?t=107
8. https://youtu.be/Z20ROaFmRC8?t=128
9. https://youtu.be/cYI8fYaIBAc?t=165
10. https://youtu.be/cYI8fYaIBAc?t=165
11. Ricardo Mitchell. Electrician & Construction Professional, CN Coterie. Expert
Interview. 6 May 2020.
12. https://youtu.be/Z20ROaFmRC8?t=245
13. Ricardo Mitchell. Electrician & Construction Professional, CN Coterie. Expert
Interview. 6 May 2020.
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