So you break a tool by overstressing it in a manner it's not designed to withstand and the problem is with the tool?
I have taken apart 3 main wiring harnesses with that same tool and didn't break it until the last part of the 3rd one.
Granted I did break my first one but I know that the reason it broke was my own fault.
I have broken many tools over the years and damn near every one was my fault for using the tool in the way it wasn't designed to be used.

OP I've found the trick to getting the pins and sockets out is to push the wire into the connector to move the tab away from the connector before you try to bend it down so that it will easily pull out of the connector.

 

No, I did not get heavy handed with the tool, the tip broke off under normal use, in fact, on the first pin I tried to use it on.

As a licensed Airframe and Powerplant mech for the past 44 years, I do have a clue as to how to de-pin an electrical connector.

 

I'm not sure which connector the OP is referring too, but if it's an AMP Multilock, I've used the Snap-on wedge probe TT600-3, which is what the HD factory service manual recommends.

 

The OP`s bike has AMP Mate-n-Lock connectors, these were used through the `95 model year.

 

Yes, that is indeed the case. Sorry for not stating that up front.


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So, I bought one of these...



...but I still can't get the f**king pins out.

I tested both with new, replacement pins that I bought, and both appear to be the right diameter, and both seem to press the retaining tab on the pin enough to free it from the housing. However, I just can't make it happen. Ugh.

The dental picks I have aren't thin enough, so I need to go buy a different set before I try that technique.

 

Eh, it turns out that I was just being a p***y. I just needed to push on the plunger more aggressively. The pin is out!

 

Congrats on getting the pin out but it shouldn't be hard.
Like I said before the trick is to push the wire into the connector so that the keeper is off the connector when you try to bend it down so that you can remove the pin.

 

As TH states, pushing the wire in the opposite direction of removal will let the locking tab that you are trying to compress clear the base of the housing so it can be moved more easily by the pin tool. A little shot of wd40 or silicone spay on the connector pins and housing prior to removal helps also. YD

 

Thanks to all who provided "the trick", with explanation.