The machined construction, as opposed to a stamped-and-formed contact, delivers consistent geometry and insertion/retention forces — a detail that matters in high-reliability harnesses where every contact must seat identically in the housing cavity. For a harness that will see field service or live in a cabinet with temperature cycling, this plating grade is the difference between a contact that stays reliable and one that drifts in resistance over time.
The crimp barrel accepts 20-24 AWG stranded or solid wire. When setting up the crimp press, use the die set specified for Multimate II contacts — the barrel geometry is designed for a four-indent or full-cycle crimp that meets TE's tensile pull-force requirements. A correctly crimped 201580-1 will hold the wire beyond the rated tensile load of the conductor itself, so the termination is never the weak link in the harness.