Can You Modify an Ethernet Cable?

[cragar]

cand you take the end off of an ethernet cable
and put on another cable , it seems like once their crimped on yer done .

 

[chroot]

You're correct, the connectors are meant to be crimped once and only once. Good thing they're very cheap.

- Warren

 

[cragar]

thank-you

 

[Ivan Seeking]

cand you take the end off of an ethernet cable
and put on another cable , it seems like once their crimped on yer done .

You can buy the connectors and a crimping tool at Radio Shack.

 

[cragar]

sweet thanks , can i get buy with just using pliers.

 

[Proton Soup]

the contacts just have blades that dig through the insulation. it would be difficult to pull them up and reuse the connector, but i think I've actually done that once. if you've got some skill with redneck engineering, and a lot of dexterity, you might can pull it off. but your best bet if it's only 25ft or so is to just purchase a new cable with the ends already connected. if you get the cheapo radio shack plastic tool, be gentle with it.

 

[cragar]

k well i already have a 50 feet of cord with no ends , a two like 5 foot cords with ends .

 

[Proton Soup]

i guess if you want to make a bunch of cables, or plan to, get the crimper. i don't see the cheapo one at RS anymore.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2255112

if all you care about is 1 cable, then it might be cheaper to go to the walmarts

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4660731

or the shack. seems about the same

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3538775

 

[cragar]

wow thanks you have been very helpful , this is red neck but can i strip off each little wire of the 8 wires and then twist them together then duck tape them individuals to splice one on with an end .

 

[MATLABdude]

You can also try most computer store for the crimper (bonus: the pricing is usually online, allowing you to better compare pricing). They're also sold at places like Office Depot or Staples (but they'll probably be the most expensive).

Also, do you have any really computer-inclined friends? Chances are that one might have one. And putting "YOURNAME really, really would like to borrow an RJ-45 crimper" on Facebook or Myspace occasionally turns up good results, depending on who's in your circle of friends (and how favourably-inclined they are to you).

 

[cragar]

instead of the crimper can i used pliers

 

[MATLABdude]

wow thanks you have been very helpful , this is red neck but can i strip off each little wire of the 8 wires and then twist them together then duck tape them individuals to splice one on with an end .

Using telephone splices (available at Radioshack, or any hardware store with an electrical / telecom section) would be better (contact-wise, and just in terms of robustness). However, I have a sneaking suspicion that you may have a lot of signal attenuation and reduced speeds (especially since you'll probably be untwisting the pairs for a fair bit mid-connection).

You're that much better off just buying / borrowing the crimp tool (I'm not sure if the hardware store ones would be cheaper than the other ones mentioned above). Or just buying the pre-made cables, as others have suggested. I bought the tool, but that's because I was making 30 cables.

 

[Proton Soup]

instead of the crimper can i used pliers

can you? you've got to find a way to push the contacts into the indentions without breaking the plastic housing.

 

[MATLABdude]

instead of the crimper can i used pliers

Probably not too well. You may be able to use a knife to punch down the blades one at a time, but chances are that one or more of the individual wires will pop-out / not be properly terminated / connected by the time you're done.

 

[cragar]

i see , well i'll prolly get the tool because i don't want to drill that big of hole through the floor big enough for the end to go thorugh i already have the cable under the house
i just need to put ends on it ,

 

[mgb_phys]

If this is just for home use (you don't need gigabit or Cat5E certified) you only need to connect 2 pairs, just use pins 1+2 and 3+6 (counting from the left looking into the plug) You can join the wires using a regular 3Amp choc-block.

If you are running cables in the house and you don't have room for a lot of wire you can also run 2 connections down a single cable - use 1+2/3+6 for one socket and 4+5,7+8 for the other. Again doesn't work for gigabit.