Wire Harness Testing Equipment

Terminal pull-force testing measures mechanical retention; crimp cross-section analysis examines the joint geometry. For the assembled circuit, compare continuity and insulation testing. These methods answer different questions and should be matched to your acceptance specification. Use our wire harness test equipment selection guide to define the test, fixtures and sample plan.

Did the crimp hold? Pull testers measure terminal pull-off force: the WM-817 is a 500 N dial-gauge unit for spot checks, the WM-820 automates the same class with a touchscreen, ±0.04 N accuracy and UL test values, and the WM-811 clamps automatically and pulls to 10,000 N for heavy lugs. Is the crimp metallurgically right? Cross-section analyzers cut, grind, etch and measure the joint at 30–312X: the WM-813 covers 0.01–30 mm² (optional 150 mm²), the WM-818 integrates cutting and grinding in one benchtop unit up to 120 mm². Does it conduct and insulate? The WM-814 tests 128 points for conduction (0.1–50 Ω), insulation (1 MΩ–1 GΩ) and components under DC 200–700 V; the WM-823 tests finished power cords for polarity, insulation and hi-pot on two heads. Is every wire where it belongs? Vision systems verify color and sequence without touching the part: the WM-815 in under 0.2 s, the WM-816 for two-row connectors in 0.25 s.

Ordinary crimped terminals fail far below 500 N, so a 500 N-class instrument reads them in the healthy middle of its scale — that is where accuracy lives. Put the same crimp on a 5,000 N frame and the reading sits in the bottom few percent of range, where every class-of-accuracy figure is at its worst. So: routine crimp verification belongs on the WM-817 (manual) or the WM-820 (automatic, records UL values); heavy lugs and thick-wire crimps go to the WM-811 with its 10–10,000 N range and motorized 10–600 mm/min pull; and the WM-812 is a 5,000 N dual-column universal frame for tension, compression, flexure, shear and peel — a materials-lab instrument, not a crimp spot-checker. For connectors, the WM-830 measures push-pull load, insertion force and pull-off vertically.