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Ring or fork terminal

Updated: October 2026

You are bolting a cable to a stud on a battery or a fuse holder, and the tub contains both closed rings and open forks. The stud is the decision. A ring or fork terminal is not chosen by piece count. A ring stays on until the nut comes off. A fork slides out when the nut is only loose, which is useful for service and weaker if the nut backs off. This page is that comparison for the listings in the [cable terminals comparison](/hub/electrical-equipment/cable-terminals). Ferrules and lever blocks are different joints. Prices are the amazon.co.uk figures captured on 21 October 2026.

You are bolting a cable to a stud on a battery or a fuse holder, and the tub contains both closed rings and open forks. The stud is the decision. A ring or fork terminal is not chosen by piece count.

Our top picks

ANVINKU ANVINKU 65 cable lugs

Best overall

ANVINKU ANVINKU 65 cable lugs
8.2/10about £7.79
View offer
Gorffy Gorffy 300 insulated crimps

Best value

Gorffy Gorffy 300 insulated crimps
8.8/10about £7.29
View offer
Bolatus Bolatus 300 insulated crimps

Rank 3

Bolatus Bolatus 300 insulated crimps
8.6/10about £8.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.The stud decides, not the tub
  2. 2.A spade is not a fork
  3. 3.Match the hole, then the cable
  4. 4.Which boxes in this set actually contain a fork

The stud decides, not the tub

Furneaux Riddall’s terminals guide puts the ring on a screw or a nut and bolt, and it calls the ring more secure than a fork. The ring is a closed loop. Once the nut is tight, the cable cannot leave the stud unless the nut comes all the way off. A fork is the open tongue. You loosen the nut and the terminal slides out sideways. If vibration loosens the nut, the fork can leave the stud while a ring would still be captive. Choose the ring when the nut should have to come right off. Choose the fork when you will loosen the joint and still check the nut.

A spade is not a fork

A spade, or push-on blade, does not go under a nut at all. It pushes onto a tab. If you pick a male or female spade out of a 300-piece tub and try to trap it under a stud, you are using the wrong part. Gorffy’s insulated kit includes those spades as well as rings and forks. UK reviews call the push-fit flimsy, and that note is about the spade, not the fork. A butt splice joins two wires in line. It is not a stud terminal.
ANVINKU ANVINKU 65 cable lugs

Testsieger

ANVINKU ANVINKU 65 cable lugs
8.2/10about £7.79
View offer

Match the hole, then the cable

An M6 or M8 mark is the stud the type code claims. These lug pages do not print the hole. InYoHui does: SC35-10 is 35 mm² and a 10.5 mm hole. Do not assume an M8 lug in another pack has that hole. On insulated rings and forks, Edwardes puts red at 0.5–1.5 mm², blue at 1.5–2.5 mm² and yellow at 4.0 and 6.0 mm². Gorffy starts yellow at 2.5 mm². Bolatus keeps yellow at 4–6 mm². A ring in the wrong colour can be captive on the stud and still pull off the cable.

Which boxes in this set actually contain a fork

Only the two insulated assortments are fork kits. Gorffy is about £7.29, tin-plated brass at 120 V, with no tool. It is the best value tub when you already own a ratchet. Bolatus is about £8.99, tinned copper at 230 V AC. That voltage line does not move onto Gorffy’s tub. The tube-lug packs are rings, not forks. Gorffy’s 130 lugs, ANVINKU’s 65 and TOPCZY are 6–25 mm² rings with M6 and M8 in the type codes. InYoHui is one ring size only. A poor crimp still lets a ring fall off the cable, which is why the how to crimp cable terminals page matters more than a second squeeze.

Common questions

When is a ring the better stud terminal?
When the nut should have to come all the way off before the cable can leave. Furneaux calls that more secure than a fork, and Parts4Now treats the closed loop as the stud that stays put. A battery or starter connection is the usual case. The ring does not fix a crimp that never held the strands.
When is a fork enough?
When you will loosen the nut and slide the tongue out for service, and you will still check that the nut stays tight afterwards. A fuse stud you open more than once is the usual case. If the joint vibrates and nobody will inspect the nut, the fork’s openness is the reason to use a ring instead.
Is a spade the same as a fork?
No. A spade is a push-on blade for a tab. A fork is an open tongue for a stud. Gorffy’s kit contains both, and reviews call the spade push-fit flimsy. Bolatus contains both as well, plus butt splices. Do not trap a spade under a nut and call it a fork.
What hole do I need for an M6 or M8 stud?
The type code’s second number is the stud it claims. These lug pages do not print the actual hole except InYoHui, which prints 10.5 mm on SC35-10. Fastlec shows trade holes slightly larger than the stud name. Do not copy an 8.2 mm figure onto Gorffy or ANVINKU. Offer the lug up to the stud before you crimp a whole harness.
Are the copper tube lugs rings or forks?
They are rings. Gorffy 130, ANVINKU 65 and TOPCZY are 6–25 mm² tube lugs with M6 and M8 in the codes, not fork assortments. InYoHui is a single 35 mm² ring with a 10.5 mm hole. Forks in this set are in the Gorffy and Bolatus insulated tubs.
Does a ring survive vibration if the crimp is poor?
The ring can stay on the stud while the cable leaves the barrel. A Gorffy review describes a 16 mm² cable that slid out of a 10 mm² lug after crimping, and the InYoHui review says lugs popped off. Vibration is not the test those reviews failed. The barrel never matched the cable. Finish the ratchet before you blame the stud.
Can I use these rings on 230 V mains because they are tinned?
No. Tin is not a seal and not a marine grade. Gorffy’s insulated rings are listed at 120 V, in brass. Bolatus prints 230 V AC on tinned copper. The tube lugs that print a voltage say 12 V DC. TOPCZY and InYoHui print no voltage. Do not move any of those figures onto another listing, and do not read tin as permission for mains.

Related pages

Best cable terminals

Cable terminals buying guide

Bootlace ferrules

Cable terminals

How to crimp cable terminals without a flat barrel

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, used on 22 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures for these 12 listings.

  1. Voltimum UK: Termination of conductors (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. IET Wiring Matters: Mythbuster 5, terminal blocks (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. IET EngX: Ferrule crimps (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. legislation.gov.uk: Building Regulations 2010, Schedule 1, Part P (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. legislation.gov.uk: Building Regulations 2010, regulation 12 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. HSE: Electrical safety introduction (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, regulation 16 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. Furneaux Riddall: terminals guide (retrieved 22 October 2026)