Why the 3.96mm pitch and 7.5A rating matter for your board
The 7-1123724-3: The 3.96mm pitch sets the board footprint and the per-contact current ceiling — at 7.5A the temperature rise stays within the UL94 V-2 housing material limit. This is a standard spacing for power distribution on lighting and industrial PCBs, where the wider pitch keeps trace routing simple and the current rating covers most solenoid, relay, and LED driver loads.
The friction lock holds the header mated to the receptacle under moderate vibration — it's a single-wall shroud that snaps into the matching housing, not a secondary latch. In a lighting fixture or industrial panel where the connector sees occasional shock, the lock prevents back-out without adding assembly time. Glow wire compliance (IEC 60335-1) means the header material passes the 850°C glow-wire test, a requirement for unattended appliances and lighting ballasts.
5 positions, 3 loaded — confirm your BOM count
The housing carries 5 contact positions, but only 3 are loaded with pins. This is a common Economy Power variant for designs that need the mechanical alignment of a full housing but only three signal or power circuits. Verify that your mating receptacle and terminal count match the 3 loaded positions — the empty cavities accept optional plugs or remain unused.