Now take your bead crimping pliers and grab the crimping bead in the notch that is closest to the handle. We will call this the “1st crimping position” for simplicity.
With the fingers of your other hand, grab the tag ends of the wire to hold it straight. You want the two ends of the wire to be perfectly parallel and lined up right next to each other, otherwise you may get an offcenter crimp. (Note, in the picture, I haven’t grabbed the ends because my other hand is holding the camera!) When you’ve got them straight, go ahead and squeeze down firmly on the pliers in the 1st crimping position. You want to squeeze down in one quick motion rather than squeeze a little and then stop and then start again.
Here’s a picture of what the bead crimp will look like once you’ve squeezed down on the crimp bead in the first position. Note how the metal from the crimp tube has been “formed” around the two wires and that they are nicely separated. If you weren’t holding the wires straight w/ your other hand, you may sometimes experience a crimp where the two wires are stuck together and both on one side. If this happens, I’d suggest doing it again because you will have problems making it look nice. It CAN be finished, but it will look a little messy.
