How Do You Terminate A CAT 5E Cable?
Computer retailers typically charge high prices for a simple CAT 5E cable that you could make on your own for a few dollars. It’s a much better idea to learn how to make your own—homemade CAT 5E network cables will save you money. All you need to “terminate”—really just another way of saying “make”—a CAT 5E cable of your own is some bulk wire, which you can buy at a hardware store or order over the Internet; an RJ-45 connector; a wire stripping tool; and a crimping tool. Score the cable casing about two inches from the end. Be gentle—you don’t want to cut through the twisted wire pairs inside the casing. Pull the outer casing off the cable’s end to reveal the twisted pairs of wires inside. There should be four twisted pairs: blue and blue-striped; brown and brown-striped, green and green-striped, and orange and orange-striped. Some cables won’t have stripes on the second paired wire, leaving it white instead. Unwind the twisted pairs for the two inches of revealed wire so that
