#1924

Episode 1924
solid copper with wide opening
www.muellerele...
Be a Patron: / imsaiguy

[@WECB640]

They make a "B" version which is zinc plated steel. The "C" version is copper. Digikey and Mouser both carry them. Buy once, cry once.

[@t1d100]

Another thing to dislike about the alligator insulating covers is that they allow the alligator lever to spin out from under your thumb = extreme aggravation. I believe that those Mueller clips are an old design that was/is intended to clamp onto the big Lead posts on old-style automotive and marine batteries. I have seen them commonly used on trolling motor cables.

[@MatsEngstrom]

Yes, the modern cheapos are far too slippery for my liking. And the wiring is really thin, you can easily drop like a volt if you push more than 500mA through the cable. I don't remember them being that bad like 20 years ago, maybe there are better quality of them out there if I look hard enough.

[@Manf-ft6zk]

You can connect the alligator clips to the big clips to use the big clips as adapters. In that way you do not have to many different cables and stay with a modular system.

[@jeffclark2725]

Agreed, I do that alot using a bigger clip,,gotta do with what you hand

[@joeteejoetee]

True. Excellent reminder. Thank you!

[@mikesradiorepair]

They do make this format in different sizes. I use the huge ones for battery charger cable ends. They do make rubber boots for these. If you like these you should also look at the other variant, Mueller #85. They actually look like a crocodile jaw, they are extra long. There is the #27 that has smooth curved jaws great for clipping on to round objects. I could go on and on. Mueller has a bewildering array of test clips and clamps. I was lucky enough to get two large Akro-Mils parts cabinets full of Mueller clips and boots several years ago at a closed industrial plant auction.

[@jspencerg]

Oh, to be able to do electronics impulse shopping trips.

[@Bobo-ox7fj]

We use larger zinc plated variants of those for HV testing safety equipment, they're really nice and you can leave them in the elements for a looong timw before they go bad

[@NickNorton]

I've always had a love-hate with Alligator Clips and associated vinyl boots. Clipping on and having them ping off as you are about to take measurement is the work of the devil.

[@capriracer351]

I think that the second, better quality pair of alligator leads were also made by Mueller. One of the last things I bought from All Electronics before they went out of business was a package of about 10 test leads that had the chinesium versions of those BU-48C's on each end. They were so crappy that they just bent under their own spring pressure. So, my idea was to buy some of the real Mueller ends and replace the Chinese ones. Um, yeah. The "wire" had about 2 or maybe 4 very fine strands of something in the insulation. Kept the vinyl insulators and threw the rest away. Then made my own out of good quality silicone test equipment wire like I probably should have in the first place.

[@tedivester4947]

Yes! I've been battling those cheap jumpers for years. I have had some that when age are almost impossible to open. The hard life of us hobbyists.

[@radarmusen]

They looks like they can take some current. The small is sometimes crimped pretty bad and they suddenly just are disconnected.

[@magicsmokeblog]

As a (sabre) fencer I have dozens of those clips, of course mine are made in Germany. They are indeed very sturdy indeed.

[@jrkorman]

I like the small clips for some tasks - BUT any of the newer ones have crimped (barely) wire. I pull the plastic shield back and solder the wire to the clip. Years back when I was in electronics maintenance, USAF, I made various "break-out" extenders. BNC with some coax to bring out the signal/ground, various wire/pin combos for different Cannon plug sizes.

[@coldfinger459sub0]

Mueller copper refrigerant piping is what I buy in the industry and so did my father and my grandfather they’ve been around forever. Did not know Mueller made other copper products . Good to know now I know where to get good quality USA manufactured clamps

[@uni-byte]

You can put little cuts in the vinyl hoods parallel to the jaws to make the alligator clips easier to open. Alternatively there are better ones than the one you shown made by a number of companies that have much better insulating hoods that are squared off to prevent rotation and have the relief already cut into them to allow them to open fully.

[@edgeeffect]

I was going to get some of those Mueller clips... but my miserly budget got the better of me. ;)

[@barrybogart5436]

I always knew them as crocodile clips. I thought they had disappeared along with 'spaghetti' insulation.

[@TheEmbeddedHobbyist]

there is no one size fits all, you need clips for attaching to equipment, ones for clipping to wires, others for connecting to TPH components leads. not found one that can grab one end of an SMD resistor etc. i use a collection of miniature alligator, E-z-hooks, micro dual gripper ( the ones with the two little bent wires that come.)

[@iainmcculloch5807]

I've seen those listed as copper battery spring clamps (or copper battery test clips) on sites like eBay and AliExpress. I'm pretty sure they come in 10A, 20A, and 40A varieties. I've no idea how the quality compares to the Mueller clips. Perhaps that could be the subject of a future video? 😉

[@deanbell5164]

I remember 60+ years ago my grandfather had the same type (BU-48C) on his lead acid battery charger 12v & 6v.

[@tlhIngan]

Of course, the cost is indicative. The ones you hate are fractions of a penny each (it's a highly automated process), the good quality ones are under a nickel each. Those good ones costing a dollar probably are easily 50 or more cents to make. That's why you can get a pack of 20 jumper leads for $1 or so of the cheap ones, the good quality ones cost maybe a buck each, and the ones using those high quality connectors will likely cost $5 each.

[@stevenwilliams6258]

I have the same thoughts and experiences with alligator clips. The larger ones work the best. The tiny ones, as you point out, have a few issues. I have the same larger copper clips which clamp down well. My big issue has been the ground alligators on my Rigol and Silent scope probes. My first sub $400 Rigol scope had clips that just fell apart as I was clipping on! Those don't close all the way and the insulator seemed to prevent closure and opening. Pure junk. I replaced those. My latest Rigol and Silent scope probes are better. Another frustration is with knockoff Pomona style mini clips that have poorly formed ends either too small to clip on or fall off easily. I pay up for the real deal.

[@M0UAW_IO83]

For the real cheap test clips I tend to slit the side of the PVC cover but I do prefer the Mueller clips, I've got a dozen or so of them with multimeter probe fixings, all sorts of sizes and they're a bargain too, they're really not expensive.

[@mr1enrollment]

I roll my eyes at "clip of the day",... But yeah, the worst of the cheapest is crimped wire not soldered at lead. They suck. I buy silicone wire gator leads. Spare no expense with such things.always worth it.

[@danishnative9555]

Please view Simon Spiers test proofing of cheap steel jumper jumper clips vs. current.

[@IMSAIGuy]

I'm glad there was not smell-o-vision

[@AdmiralQuality]

There's half a dollar of copper in those. (Actually maybe even more, I guessed 5 grams.)

[@KeritechElectronics]

Oh, those cheap-ass Chinese alligator clip cables! There's almost no copper in there, and the clips themselves are lousy and misaligned. Vintage thing is better, but my to-go clips are plastic insulated and with banana jacks cooperating nicely with shrouded safety plugs. Yours though - these are indeed a thing of beauty and a joy for ever. Should be good for accus too.

[@dean6860]

Wire gauge is too small and many are delicate

[@DimasFajar-ns4vb]

dear sir copper is maybe on the coating on it because you can use copper beside use nickel coating just let you know i just found it recently unaccidently

[@IMSAIGuy]

solid copper: www.muellerelectric.com/products/bu-27c

[@franzliszt3195]

I win