Contacts are the pins and sockets that establish the electrical connection when they come into ‘contact’. Some connectors are delivered with contacts, some without. Of the ones delivered with contacts, these might already be loaded or not. Typically, solder cup contacts and PC tail contacts are often preloaded, while crimp contacts are not, but it really depends on each product series, so it is important to understand which contacts are suitable for your application.


　　Selecting contacts for your connectors can be confusing as contacts come in a variety of shapes, sizes and types. This buyer guide walks you through the important elements to consider when choosing which ones will deliver the best possible connection for your application at the best price.

　　Electrical contacts

　　Let’s start by reviewing the 2 types of standard electrical contacts you’ll find:

　　Signal

　　Electrical signals are used to communicate information from a source to a destination. When the quantity of information is large, it will usually be referred to as data. Signals on the other hand usually communicate basic information in binary form (ex: ON or OFF), and are found in applications like sensors or buttons. Signal contacts are therefore usually small (#20, #16), since they don’t need to transfer much current and voltage (usually between a few mA to a few A).

　　Power

　　Power contacts on the other hand transfer voltage and current in order to operate components and equipment. For applications requiring small voltages, the contacts can be the same as signal contacts. However, larger or more energy-intensive applications will require larger sized contacts such as #12 or size #8. Industrial power contacts can deliver up to a few dozen Amps of current.

　　Reminder: for contacts and wires, smaller numbers represents larger sizes: i.e. size #8 is larger than size #20.

　　CRITERIA FOR SELECTING CONTACTS

　　Now that we have a slightly clearer picture of what contacts are, let’s take a look at how to pick the right one for you. There are a few criteria that you need to look at before making your pick.

　　Connector & layout (to determine contact size)

　　Your wire size

　　Contact type (machined, stamped & formed)

　　Delivery option (bulk or on reel)

　　Plating

　　Termination type (solder, crimp, PC tail, wire wrap)

　　STEP 0 – YOUR SPECS

　　The very first element to consider when picking contacts is the amperage and voltage that is going to be running through your circuit. This will determine which connectors are available and consequently which contact sizes.


　　Remember to consider also the current carrying capacity of your connector and contacts. As electrical current goes through your connector, heat will be produced by the contacts, and the more contacts you have, the more heat the connector will be subjected to. This means that if your connector is going into a machine where the temperature will reach 120° C and its max operating temperature is 125°C, the heat produced by the contacts might subject the connector to a temperature above 125°C and consequently damage your system.

　　For information about our other contacts, please refer to our website:https://www.renhotecic.com/.

　　Certain industry standards, notably in aerospace and railway, require machined contacts.Select the best plating option for your application based on your performance requirements.

　　And of course, if you have any questions you can contact our technical and commercial teams at

　　https://www.renhotecic.com/index.php?route=information/contact.