[Mr. Lim]

A few additional tricks:

1) Repair the female end of the cable instead of the male. The female end holds up to being crushed in a vise much better. The male end is likely to just have the shield and pins collapse before you apply enough pressure to properly close the connector.

2) If you MUST repair the male end, plug the female end into the male end, and squeeze BOTH connectors in a vice at the same time.

3) Make 100% sure that the ribbon cable is lined up and perpendicular to the connector. If not, the pins won't connect to the right wires.

4) Cut the ribbon with a good sharp pair of scissors or shears. A dull or low-quality knife will pull the copper conductors out of the insulation, and possibly cause shorts.

These cables are tricky little buggers to get going, but once you do, they are great!