Hello,

I want to connect an addressable RGB led strip to female molex of a computer PSU cable. I want to solder wires to the 5v and ground connection on the led strip and on the other end add two male molex pins to plug to the female connector(I know molex also has 12v and another ground but I won't use them). In order to do that I'll need the appropriate items which are: suitable wires, molex male pins and crimping tool. I've never dealt with molex so I need your help with finding those 3 correct items and that they will be compatible with each other. Could you please write the exact name of the items I need and send link from eBay or Amazon? (Maybe molex male pins have different sizes, maybe I need a specific crimping tool for it.. etc)

Thanks!

 

The crimping tool would be expensive for just two pins. If you wanted you could just squeeze the contact around the wire and then to ensure a good connection carefully solder the wire into the connector.

The pins should be 0.093" diameter.
You can also get the pins pre-crimped onto a piece of wire. For instance: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/pre-...VgbTtCh1zBwwFEAQYBCABEgK5tfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

Welcome to AAC!

I've never dealt with molex so I need your help with finding those 3 correct items and that they will be compatible with each other.

It would be helpful if you specified which Molex connectors you're talking about. Molex was a company, now part of Tyco IIRC. They had many styles of connectors.


My apologies to Molex. Stories of their demise must have been a figment of my imagination...
https://www.molex.com/molex/products/group?key=wire_to_wire_connectors&channel=products

 

It would be helpful if you specified which Molex connectors you're talking about.

Computer power supply 5V output according to post #1

 

Computer power supply 5V output according to post #1

My bad. The lack of paragraphs to organize the information made me forget that by the time I got to the end and I didn't feel like reading the wall of words again...

 

Commonly still called a 4 pin Molex, these kits can be had on Amazon for about $8.00 USD the pins and sockets are easily pushed in. The common extraction tool can also be had on Amazon for about $5.00 USD. You can also hack any number of for example 4 pin Molex ro SATA adapters easy enough and those cost about $2.00 USD each or less.

Ron

 

The crimping tool would be expensive for just two pins. If you wanted you could just squeeze the contact around the wire and then to ensure a good connection carefully solder the wire into the connector.

The pins should be 0.093" diameter.
You can also get the pins pre-crimped onto a piece of wire. For instance: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/pre-crimped-leads/1260306?cm_mmc=UK-PLA-DS3A-_-google-_-CSS_UK_EN_Cables_And_Wires-_-Wire_To_Board_Cable_Assemblies|Pre-Crimped_Leads-_-PRODUCT_GROUP&matchtype=&aud-821594433763la-394495661468&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjuHj2r2k5wIVgbTtCh1zBwwFEAQYBCABEgK5tfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Yes! Exactly the details I needed. But I want to ask a few things:
If I plan to get a 1m 144 leds strip, I'll need a better wire than 18 AWG right? 18 AWG has 7 ampacity and 144 ws2812b leds would require 0.06*144 = 8.64 amps. Also, what about this cheap crimping tool: Molex Style Crimp Tool.

This is the (sort of) diagram of what I want:

 

Your drawing has an obvious flaw: The data line and power line have to have a common ground. I did not see that explicitly stated in your first post. Remember, data is a series of highs and lows. Both have to be relative to something.

 

I'll need a better wire than 18 AWG right?

From the table below, 18AWG is good to 16A for 'chassis wiring' - that is wire which has a free flow of air for cooling. As long as the wire is not enclosed or in a bundle with lots of other wires 18AWG will be fine.
https://www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm

 

And what about that cheap crimping tool? You think it can do that job? Also, why the table here shows different ampacity:
https://www.gore.com/IndustrialCableConfigurator/popup_hfr_wirespecs.html

 

There is no absolute figure for how much current a particular wire diameter will handle. It depends on the insulation (how thermally insulating it is, what temperature it will stand), how much opportunity there is for heat to escape, and the ambient temperature it needs to operate in.

I have no experience of that crimp tool. If you use that one then get a good surplus of crimps as you will likely wreck a few.

 

thanks! and one more thing before I buy the crimper: Does it looks to you like it has the correct shape for crimping those 0.093" molex pins, is this the correct tool I'm looking for (regardless of quality) ?I've never used this tool before and I just want to know if this is how the molex crimping tool should look like

 

I don't know how well this will do. A 'proper' tool ensures correct crimp pressure and would have two separate crimping sections, one for the conductor and one for the insulation in one action.

 

Can you send me a link so I can see how it should look like?

 

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/crim...VRrDtCh2wQwNQEAQYAiABEgKi1PD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

thank you