Locking connectors/Spade clips??

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Bill N

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Jan 4, 2014
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Ozark, Missouri
I am speaking of these flat slip on connectors to connect wiring.  I have an awning control box that has about 20 of these mounted to a circuit board and the wires connect to them and are covered with colored plastic.  I haven't worked with electonic stuff in a few years but was always under the impression that these connectors just slipped on an off.  NOT anymore, at least not on this circuit board.  It appears they are locked together once slipped on.  Am I missing a way to get them off without destroying the connection?  I wanted to just removed these wires and replace them with wires from another control box but looks like I am going to have to go into the snip and clip system because the 15 pin connector I need (female half) is very hard to find with the right size pins.  But for now I would settle for a way to get these connections apart safely.

Bill
 
They may just be really snug bill. I usually use a pair of needle nose pliers to work them off. Usually gripping them where the wire connects and rocking it back and forth a bit will slide it off. 
 
SargeW said:
They may just be really snug bill. I usually use a pair of needle nose pliers to work them off. Usually gripping them where the wire connects and rocking it back and forth a bit will slide it off.
Thanks Sarge.  I have a few of those wires that are unused as they were for a different awning so they go to an empty plug on the Winnie.  Good ones to experiment on.

Bill
 
The old control box definitely has removable connectors - they come off if just a bit of wiggling.  But the new box appears to have a mix of removable clips and others that I thought were removable but closer inspection makes me think they are squeezed on to an upright pin on the circuit board.  I will get a small razor blade knife and cut one of those on the side to confirm that.

Bill

Update:  There are several nonremovable wires to the circuit board.  What I thought were clips are a connection covered with very hard plastic.  I had hoped to just transfer all of the wires over from one control box to the other but that will not be an option.  Thanks for the help Sarge.

Bill
 
Those connectors are quick connects:

https://www.waytekwire.com/products/1432/Quick-Disconnects/

This is a spade connector:

http://www.elecdirect.com/crimp-wire-terminals/spades-forks

You can usually pick up the connectors at just about any big box store.
 
kdbgoat said:
Those connectors are quick connects:

https://www.waytekwire.com/products/1432/Quick-Disconnects/

This is a spade connector:

http://www.elecdirect.com/crimp-wire-terminals/spades-forks

You can usually pick up the connectors at just about any big box store.

Bad terminology on my part.  The ones I can remove are definitely quick disconnects.  The others =?  I will try to photograph and post a pix.  Tnx for correcting that terminology.

Bill
 
Try as I might I cannot get a photo to post.  I had a beautiful one all made but it was far too large so I went into this rigamarole of reducing it and in the process made the thing blurry it can't be read.  Will try again when I can figure out how to do it.

Bill
 

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What I often do with stubborn connectors is cut them off with a 1 inch tail (large enough to crimp onto again if I had to). Then I just put new quick connects on the wiring harness.
 
cerd said:
What I often do with stubborn connectors is cut them off with a 1 inch tail (large enough to crimp onto again if I had to). Then I just put new quick connects on the wiring harness.

It is beginning to look like that will be my final solution.  I was trying to avoid damaging my own control box in case the new control box is defective and has to be returned but by using the quick connects I can probably avoid that problem but it will involve removing the Winnie half of the 15 pin connector.  I actually have found a 15 pin connector and a set of pin release tools and have them on order.  Not expensive so I will not lose much if it does not work.  So will report back later.

Bill
 
I have run across a few different types that had some different variations of locking tabs.  I don't know enough about them to say more...except that I've usually been able to figure them out eventually looking and poking around a bit...sometimes it has been a "squeeze", or a "push to eject", or a "lever"
If you don't see anything after looking carefully (try a magnifying glass and good light), then my bet is with Sarge's suggestion
 

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