Repair USB C Cable (Host)

Crap. Your recable has a broken cable? Sure, that's annoying at first - but it's not a big problem! Because recable is a repairable charging cable. With a few simple steps (and a few simple tools) you can easily repair it yourself.

Why is this a good idea? By repairing your charging cable, you're doing something good for the planet. Because you avoid electrical waste and save resources. You also don't need to buy a new cable and save money. A win-win situation for you and the environment!

Ready? - Then let's get started!

Difficulty: medium
Time required: approx. 30 min

What you need

tools needed to repair a USB C cable, such as soldering iron and cutter knife
  • Side cutters
  • Combination pliers
  • Soldering iron
  • Solder
  • Cutter knife
  • Lighter
  • heat shrink tube
    (We use a shrinkage ratio of 3:1 with an initial diameter of 9.5 mm. Can be found here ).

Tip: If you are missing one of the tools, you don't have to buy a new one. Instead, borrow it from neighbours, friends or your family. Maybe there is a repair café near you that can help you.

Let's go!

Step 1

Step 1 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Remove heat shrink tube , Close Up
  • Unplug recable from the power supply, disconnect the power supply.
  • Carefully cut the heat shrink tube lengthwise with the cutter-knife.
  • Peel the heat shrink tube from the connector housing with your fingers.

Step 2

Step 2 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Bend Up Strain Relief, Closeup
  • Use the cutter to bend open both clips of the strain relief.

Step 3

Step 3 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Remove Housing Halves, Close Up
  • Carefully pry up the catches between the housing halves with the cutter.
  • Take off both halves of the casing.

Step 4

Step 4 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Remove heat shrink tube , Close Up
  • Using the cutter, carefully cut the heat shrink tube inside lengthwise.
  • Peel the heat shrink tube from the board and the strands with your fingers.

Step 5

Step 5 Repair USB C Cable host, How to desolder stranded wires, close up
  • Heat a soldering contact with the soldering iron until the solder melts.
  • Move the connector so that the stranded wire is released from the solder pad. Do not pull too hard on the solder pads!
  • Repeat the process for all five connections. A "third hand" can make your work easier.

Step 6

Step6 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Remove Damaged Area (Cable Break), Closeup
  • Cleanly cut off the damaged area on the cable with the side cutter.
  • Use the side cutters to free the cable to approx. 1.5 cm from braided sleeve.
  • Carefully fuse the ends of the braided hose together with the lighter.
  • For the natural fibre braided sleeves, you may need to use a strip of Washitape to secure the braided sleeve against unravelling.

Step 7

Step 7 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Expose Strands, Close Up
  • Expose the strands over a length of 10 mm.
  • Carefully cut the sheath of the cable all around with the cutter (not too deep!) and pull it off with your fingers.

Step 8

Step 8 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to remove insulation at the ends of the strands, close up
  • Score the insulation of the stranded wire 3 mm behind the end. Pull off the insulation with your fingers.
  • Repeat this step for all four strands.

Step 9

Step 9 Repair USB C cable host, How to impregnate stranded wires with solder, close up
  • Soak the stranded wire with solder by heating it with the soldering iron and adding the solder. Clean your soldering tip in between, e.g. with a wet piece of kitchen roll.
  • Repeat the step for all four strands.

Step 10

Step 10 Repair USB C cable, How to sort and solder stranded wires, closeup
  • Sort the strands by colour in the following order:
    red (power supply)
    white (data-)
    green (Data+)
    black (GND)
  • Join the stranded wire and the matching solder pad. Fuse the two together with the soldering iron.
  • Repeat the step for all four strands.

Step 11

Step 11 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Attach heat shrink tube , Close Up
  • Slip the heat shrink tube over the circuit board and the strands. Shrink it with the lighter.
  • Make sure that the braid of the shielding is sticking out to the side.

Step 12

Step 12 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to Attach Housing, Close Up
  • Reassemble the housing halves around the connector.
  • Press them together so that the lugs come together again.
  • Make sure that the shielding's filler wire is in the strain relief.

Step 13

Step 13 Repair USB C Cable host, How to attach housing, close up
  • Smooth out the braided sleeve on the cable, almost to heat shrink tube
  • Press the clamps of the strain relief firmly with the Combination pliers .
  • Make sure that the axe strand is clamped in the strain relief.

Step 14

Step 14 Repair USB C Cable Host, How to heat shrink tube Shrink on, Close up
  • Slip the heat shrink tube over the USB-C plug and shrink it with the lighter.
    Do not get too close with the flame. The heat shrink tube will otherwise become sooty. To avoid this, you can also use a heat gun instead of the lighter.

You did it!

By repairing your recable, you have made a small but important contribution to environmental protection. That's great!

Where to put the rubbish?

after cable repair, how to correct waste separation, yellow garbage can, residual waste, hoses, e-waste, etc., graphic

If you should have broken something during the repair, you will find here Spare parts.