Terminal cutter for removing terminals from a carrier strip

A terminal cutter comprising:

• a tool frame having an upper handle and a lower handle extending rearward from a front of the tool frame, the upper handle extending along an upper handle axis, the lower handle extending along a lower handle axis, the upper handle and the lower handle being movable relative to each other at a pivot axis, the pivot axis being perpendicular to the upper handle axis and the lower handle axis, the tool frame having a first side and a second side;
• a first cutting member coupled to the upper handle and having a first cutting surface defining a cutting edge for cutting a terminal from a carrier strip carrying a plurality of terminals, the first cutting surface being oriented generally perpendicular to the upper handle axis, the first cutting surface being oriented generally parallel to the pivot axis, the first cutting surface extending across the tool frame between the first side and the second side;
• a second cutting member coupled to the lower handle and having a second cutting surface defining a cutting edge for cutting the terminal from the carrier strip, the second cutting surface being oriented generally perpendicular to the lower handle axis, the second cutting surface being oriented generally parallel to the pivot axis, the second cutting surface extending across the tool frame between the first side and the second side;
• and
• a terminal strip guide assembly coupled to at least one of the upper handle and the lower handle, the terminal strip guide assembly comprising a strip guide and a guide blade coupled to the strip guide, the strip guide having a slot for receiving the carrier strip, the slot extending along an axis oriented parallel to the cutting edges defined by the first cutting surface and the second cutting surface, the strip guide including a platform forward of the slot, the platform configured to support the terminals extending from the carrier strip, the strip guide having a rear guide surface located above the platform and the guide blade having a front guide surface located above the platform, a gap being defined between the rear guide surface and the front guide surface, the front guide surface and the rear guide surface extending parallel to the cutting edges defined by the first cutting surface and the second cutting surface, the terminal strip guide assembly is configured to receive insulation barrel tabs of the terminals between the rear guide surface and the front guide surface to locate the terminal relative the terminal strip guide assembly.

A terminal cutter comprising:

• a tool frame having an upper handle and a lower handle movable relative to each other;
• a first cutting member coupled to the upper handle and having a first cutting surface for cutting a terminal from a carrier strip carrying a plurality of terminals;
• a second cutting member coupled to the lower handle and having a second cutting surface for cutting the terminal from the carrier strip;
• and
• a terminal strip guide assembly coupled to at least one of the upper handle and the lower handle, the terminal strip guide assembly comprising a strip guide, an adjustment plate coupled to the strip guide, and a guide blade coupled to the adjustment plate, the strip guide having a slot for receiving the carrier strip, the strip guide having a rear guide surface and the guide blade having a front guide surface with a gap defined between the rear guide surface and the front guide surface configured to receive a portion of the terminal, wherein the adjustment plate adjusts a position of the guide blade relative to the strip guide to adjust a width of the gap between the rear guide surface and the front guide surface.