Over the last couple of weeks, working on the power supply for my Raytrack amplifier (see my post in the technical section), I used a great many ring and spade crimp-on lugs in the low-voltage and primary wiring. I've got a good quality hand crimp tool, which makes very secure crimps. After a week or so of that, I noticed some discomfort in the tendons of my forearms, which at first I blamed on something I might have been doing wrong in my exercise routine—maybe I was gripping the bar wrong, or too tightly, or having my wrists at the wrong angle—and I even bought myself a new pull-down bar, with "D" handles on the ends, to put my wrists in a more comfortable position.
Anyway, it took me a while to figure it out—duh!—but it was all those crimps; nothing to do with my workout routine, which hasn't changed much in years. So, I ordered myself this, from eBay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/403261102077 Yeah, it's very obviously Chicom, although the label says it was designed in America, but it's got a very solid, heavy feel; seems well constructed, and although I haven't used it for very long yet, it works very well, making very secure crimps. (Beware: there's a cheaper version that only comes with one set of dies; likely not the ones most of us would use.)
Amazon has a nice looking hand-held pneumatic one, but I didn't want to be tied to my compressor hose in case I'm working outside my shop.
