Is it possible to "crimp" 6.5 m.m. bullet connectors to wire

Anyone tried this using a crimping tool ? Can it be done so it gives a better connection then soldering , that is strong with less resistance , or is soldering the bullet connectors the only decent way to attach them to 8-12 gauge wire ?

The generic bullets I've bought from Hobby King a while back have a decent pocket on one side, but...the other side has a very shallow pocket. I don't remember offhand if it was male or female...

Personally?...I wouldn't do it. I do crimp the large connectors (8ga copper stranded wire or fatter), but...I use connectors that are made to be crimped.

spinningmagnets said:

The generic bullets I've bought from Hobby King a while back have a decent pocket on one side, but...the other side has a very shallow pocket. I don't remember offhand if it was male or female...

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I was wondering if I took a dremel tool with a small cutoff wheel, and cut a thin slot lengthwise down the casing { where the wire is installed and soldered} , if the banana bullet connector would crimp strongly onto the wires , without breaking the metal casing of the bullet connector

Its not made to do it that way, why can't you just solder?
a cheap soldering iron is $5.

Your connection will be degraded if you do it the way you want to do it.

rumme said:

I was wondering if I took a dremel tool with a small cutoff wheel, and cut a thin slot lengthwise down the casing { where the wire is installed and soldered} , if the banana bullet connector would crimp strongly onto the wires , without breaking the metal casing of the bullet connector

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I doubt it would work, but it depends on the type of crimper you use, and whether the metal of the connector you are using is intended to be bent and crushed. (if it is not, it'll just fracture and break or crumble, if not immediately, then as the joint is stressed/vibrated).

With a crimper made for round tubes, the only way a crimp will work and remain a good connection is if the entire tube is complete, so that when crushed into the wire, it holds that shape and becomes one piece of metal with the wire. (cold-flow).


There are some crimping connectors designed differently, in that they are open-winged to start with, or double-tubed like a double-barrel shotgun, with an open end in the center. The crimpers for those are designed differently than those for a round tube, as they fold the wings or centrally-slotted tube pair down together int he center, around the wire conductors, and then crush it all together (cold-flow) into one piece of metal.

Unfortunately many crimpers of this type don't ahve the force to do the cold-flow part, so the connection is not as good and the wires can be physically pulled out of the crimp, too. You have to get crimpers capable of a level of force that will cold-flow the metals together to make them good crimps.


A crimp that isn't cold-flowed is probably better to be soldered in addition to the crimp, to ensure it doesn't fail later--but the solder itself will cause other problems (wicking up the wire causing stiff places taht will break off under bending/vibration being one of the worst).


Most likely the bullets are not designed for crimping, and you'd be better off using contacts that are designed to be crimped, if that's the method you prefer.

I too have been looking for high amperage crimp bullet connector to eliminate increased resistance and wire breakage associated with soldering and solder wicking.
The largest crimp bullets I found are 4.57mm tin plated brass.
The options are slim. Either permanent but joints or use a bulky connector like Anderson. The trouble is people desire the convince of connecting, disconnecting and re-configuring in a small form factor.

Surely there is a product out there but I haven't found yet.

NO, you have to solder that type connecter. I'm assuming these are the same connector you see on a hobby king lipo pack.

You need an iron with a big tip, but does not have to be high wattage. Look for them where they sell stuff for making stained glass.

Soldering bullets is fairly easy, once you have a thing to stand them up. A pair of needle nose vise grips works for me, set to grip them lightly. If you have a bunch to do, you might drill holes in a block of wood.

Once they stand with the cup facing up, soldering them is pretty easy with the big tip that holds a lot of heat once it gets hot.

There are high current connectors that do crimp, such as the larger andersons for one example.

amberwolf said:

but the solder itself will cause other problems (wicking up the wire causing stiff places taht will break off under bending/vibration being one of the worst). .

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Has anyone here explored anti-wicking solutions?

The basic requirement is to stop the wire above where the joint is to be made cool(er) than the melting point of the solder to prevent it from flowing via capillary action.

I've never seen anti wicking tweezers for gauges this big -- its doubtful they could conduct the heat away fast enough; But I do wonder if you clamped the cable into a copper block:



And perhaps a squirt of Pipe freeze spray.

i can just confirm what others said: NO. it won't work. those connectors are not to made to be crimped but soldered. if you crimp them the connecting parts itself will deform and not have a solid connection afterwards. the material is not made for crimping as well, and the hole for the wire is too big. your wire diameter should be very close to the soldering hole inner diameter. if not the connection surface may be too small to work properly.

It could be possible to solder a connector that does crimp, into the cup. Then you get that connector, and no solder wicking up the wire.

Might be just as likely to break off though, between the connector and the cup, since it would not be supported by the housing as designed.

Could be a cool item to have in an emergency kit though, a replacement connector you can crimp.

If you use a piece of stiff heat shrink around the soldered section, you can immobilize the solder wicked area so it doesn't fracture.