Heat shrink and other such wiring sundries

[SGTCap]

I'm getting ready to wire up my rock light and a few other electircal components. While doing a soldering practice run last night I found out that the heat shrink tubing I have SUCKS. By the time it was hot enough to shrink, the insulation on the wire was melted and the solder joint had come apart.

Which leads me to the question, is there a perfered brand of heat shrink tubing I should be looking at or a good place to order from? Any other electrical goodies that people have found that make life easier or wiring jobs cleaner?

Any tips or tricks or things you wish people had told you before you started wiring up your vehicle?

Thanks
Cap

 

[94Discovery]

I'm getting ready to wire up my rock light and a few other electircal components. While doing a soldering practice run last night I found out that the heat shrink tubing I have SUCKS. By the time it was hot enough to shrink, the insulation on the wire was melted and the solder joint had come apart.

Which leads me to the question, is there a perfered brand of heat shrink tubing I should be looking at or a good place to order from? Any other electrical goodies that people have found that make life easier or wiring jobs cleaner?

Any tips or tricks or things you wish people had told you before you started wiring up your vehicle?

Thanks
Cap

Some pictures will help to be able to comment on your technique all shrink are the same with heat they shrink .
If you use the shrink with glue inside it will take longer but still it is about how you solder how long you put the soldering iron dis you really twist the cooper and put some solder on it before making the connection are you using a thick gauge etc .

 

[southpier]

i think we crimp, not solder. then shrink for strength. but i could be wrong.

 

[aardvarcus]

My observations: A good crimp made with a good crimper does a good job. Cheap crimp with cheap crimper only so-so. I have used cheapo heat shrink with no issues melting insulation, what sort of heat gun are you using? You should be shrinking that tubing quickly, before everything else heats up.

As far as brands go, from my personal experience anything wiring related with 3M on it is good. I get some stuff from Amazon, more specialized stuff from Waytek wire.

Doing a very high quality wiring job is time consuming and expensive. I just built some lighting wiring harnesses, had to adapt them to different lights. I used COOPER BUSSMANN - MINI FUSE AND MICRO RELAY RTMR PANEL as the base for fuses and relays using the correct seals and terminals, ordered high temperature automotive grade wire 12 gauge for power and 16 gauge for signal, used 3M non insulated crimps, weatherpack quick connects, ordered new factory plugs and pins to interface with the factory wiring system, heatshrink, etcetera. It took a lot of time and cost a lot of money, but with good end results.

 

[matthewp]

I'm a cheapskate and just use a lighter to... Uh... Shrink (?) the shrink tube. I have noticed that if your tubing is disproportionately larger than the wire gauge, it may/will not shrink enough before the tubing either melts on its own and/or the wire casing shrinks. Could that be your issue?

 

[lqdchkn]

I use the generic 4ft tubing sized just bigger than the wire(s) size that you can get at Frys like this

http://www.frys.com/product/3221721?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

Which ever the type you get pay attention to the shrink ratio. ie "2:1 Shrink Ratio"

And I really like using expandable sleeving like this for projects that need wire protection too

http://www.frys.com/product/2281378?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

 

[Yuccahead]

For what it's worth, I have been using a heat gun on some heat shrink connectors with no problems until I used the "high" setting on the heat gun. On the higher setting, the wire insulation melted before the heat shrink shrunk. On the lower setting, only the heat shrink was affected. My heat gun is just a basic Harbor Freight model, nothing fancy.

--David

 

[Ex Jay]

Very cheap or old tubing will cause problems. The harbor freight stuff sucks! I do a ton, I mean a TON of electrical and quality pieces are a must for me. 3M butt connectors, weatherpack, and quality wire only! The heat shrink at fry's aint bad. I've got local options but I'm sure there are good online retailers.

 

[Higbean]

Just finished wiring my whole truck. A few tips from a novice turned pro

Use good tools. I bought Klein crimpers, wire stripper (Catapult) and their ratcheting crimper as well. Good connections start with a clean cut on the wire and jacket. Good crimps are done with quality crimpers.

Non insulated butt connectors with good adhesive lined shrink wrap is tedious but worth doing. It's also cheaper than the shrink wrap butt connectors and you can put a really good crimp on them without worrying about tearing up shrink wrap.

Harbor Freight has a heat gun for cheap. Get one.

If your gonna solder, make sure there is a physical connection. Don't trust the solder or the shrink wrap to resist any stress. Tin your wires and make J hooks and hook them together. It takes a lot of time to get good at soldering. Soldering guns/irons don't like dirt and grime so keep things as clean as possible. I never seem to have enough tips to finish a job and no one in town carries Weller consumables.

I think I'll just stick with butt connectors and shrink wrap from here on out.

 

[desertspeed]

Just finished wiring my whole truck. A few tips from a novice turned pro

Use good tools. I bought Klein crimpers, wire stripper (Catapult) and their ratcheting crimper as well. Good connections start with a clean cut on the wire and jacket. Good crimps are done with quality crimpers.

Non insulated butt connectors with good adhesive lined shrink wrap is tedious but worth doing. It's also cheaper than the shrink wrap butt connectors and you can put a really good crimp on them without worrying about tearing up shrink wrap.

Harbor Freight has a heat gun for cheap. Get one.

If your gonna solder, make sure there is a physical connection. Don't trust the solder or the shrink wrap to resist any stress. Tin your wires and make J hooks and hook them together. It takes a lot of time to get good at soldering. Soldering guns/irons don't like dirt and grime so keep things as clean as possible. I never seem to have enough tips to finish a job and no one in town carries Weller consumables.

I think I'll just stick with butt connectors and shrink wrap from here on out.

Absolutely what he said- there is no reason to use solder in a vehicle other than in electronics. A good, non-insulated connector, a good crimp, and adhesive lined polyolefin shrink wrap http://www.waytekwire.com/products/1381/Tubing/

Here is another great product for wiring: Expandable Braided Tubing- make sure you order the PET version or the heat gun will melt it.http://www.genuinedealz.com/marine-electrical-supply/expandable-braided-sleeving?color=17

 

[HERC]

I've used 3M crimp and seals for years as a mechanic and an offroader. I love these things, super reliable, and super water proof. Try em out, you'll love em.