Harness Inspection Checklist
Use this on a finished or incoming harness when “looks fine” isn't an inspection result. It pulls together the guide's build checks and common traps from Selection Workflow §4, the Practical Checklist, the 38999 mistakes table, and What People Forget.
This checklist tells you where to look. It does not invent pull forces, crimp heights, torque numbers, or test voltages. What counts as passing comes from the workmanship/acceptance standard your program names (commonly IPC/WHMA-A-620, or the program/customer equivalent)1 and the manufacturer's application specification for the exact contact system. If you can't name those documents, you already found the first problem.
This page covers build/incoming acceptance: does this unit match the released design? Proving the design itself is the job of the Connector Qualification Plan Template.
1. Paperwork first
- The governing drawing / cable drawing is on hand, at the revision being built/inspected
- The ICD (or equivalent interface definition) is on hand, at revision
- The workmanship/acceptance standard and class the harness was built to is named on the drawing or work instruction (§4)
- The manufacturer application specs for each contact system used are identified
- Any deviations/waivers are recorded, not verbal
2. Crimp and contact evidence
Per the crimp design package §4 says the drawing should carry:
- The exact contact P/N used matches the drawing (not "equivalent-looking" — hobby crimping explains why families don't transfer)
- Wire gauge and insulation range match what the contact and wire seal were specified for — undersized wire in a wire seal defeats the seal (§7.9)
- One wire per crimp barrel — a doubled-in second wire is an unqualified termination (and a defeated wire seal) unless the drawing cites the contact's own dual-wire specification; branches belong in splices or multi-wire-rated terminals (crimping, §5.2)
- The approved crimp tool / positioner / die was used and is in calibration (§4)
- Visual inspection performed per the named acceptance standard/class — remembering the trap: a crimp can pass visual and still fail in vibration (§7.9); the application spec's inspection/pull-test requirement decides, not appearance
- Pull-test or equivalent verification performed if and as the drawing/application spec requires, and recorded
3. Connector assembly
From the §7.9 mistakes table and What People Forget:
- Backshell present, correct P/N, assembled per its instructions — strain relief, rear seal, shield termination all depend on it
- Strain relief engaged on the cable, not on individual conductors
- Shield termination matches the drawing's stated strategy (360° / pigtail / isolated — as documented, not as improvised)
- Unused cavities carry sealing plugs where the drawing requires them
- Coupling / jam-nut torque applied per the documented torque procedure — finger-tight is not a sealed, engaged mate (What People Forget)
- Caps/covers present for connectors that ship or sit unmated (§7.9)
4. Mechanical checks
- Keying/clocking of each connector matches the ICD — same-key-different-pinout is an eventual mis-mate (§7.9)
- Contact gender vs. the mating half verified — gender is independent of plug/receptacle (§7.9)
- Bend radius and cable exit comply with the drawing (§10)
- Labels / identification present and matching the rev-controlled labeling scheme (§10)
- Overall length and breakout dimensions within drawing tolerance
5. Electrical verification
- Continuity / pinout verified against the ICD or wiring schedule — per the drawing's stated verification method (cable drawing template)
- Shield / drain continuity verified where the drawing requires it
- Insulation resistance / hipot performed only if and as the program/drawing requires — record the requirement source, parameters, and result; this checklist asserts no test values
6. The record
Echoing the evidence-fields convention used across the templates:
| Item | Entry |
|---|---|
| Harness / assembly P/N + rev | TBD |
| Drawing + ICD revision inspected against | TBD |
| Acceptance standard + class applied | TBD |
| Application spec(s) for contact systems | TBD |
| Inspector / date | TBD |
| Deviations, findings, dispositions | TBD |
This is a working template, not a standard. IPC/WHMA-A-620 (or the program/customer equivalent), the applicable contract and drawing notes, and the manufacturer's application specification for the exact connector/contact/tooling system always control.1