Ever use heat shrink tubing?

[Meractik]

I have a keyboard cable that is fraying and I would like to utilize some heat shrink tubing to make a good permanent fix before it gets to bad.. Question is.. do I need a heat gun to shrink/affix the tubing? Could one use say... a hair dryer on high or a really hot iron?

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Heat Shrink Tubing Polyolefin[/FONT]

 

[Rakehellion]

Hair dryer.

 

[disappoint]

I use a heat gun because it has a higher heat range than a hair dryer. You can try a hair dryer and see if it gets hot enough to do the job. If it doesn't then you'll have to get a heat gun. I don't like irons or flames because they don't provide an even enough heat. Maybe a toaster or a toaster oven? I haven't tried those because my trusty heat gun works perfectly well.

 

[acheron]

hair dryer might work. or just a lighter.

 

[sdifox]

hairdryer should work.

 

[Rakehellion]

Yeah, hair dryers don't get that hot. You'll have to use the highest setting and press it as close as you can to the shrink tubing, but it'll work.

 

[olds]

Hair dryer likely won't get hot enough. Use a lighter. Or use it as an excuse to go to harbor freight and get a cheap heat gun.

 

[RU482]

lighter

 

[Meractik]

I will give it a whirl, thanks for the inputs everyone. ill update post with what I actually end up using and what worked best.

 

[olds]

I will give it a whirl, thanks for the inputs everyone. ill update post with what I actually end up using and what worked best.

Post some pics of your mom while you're at it. :whiste:

 

[sjwaste]

I use the side of a soldering iron tip. Works fine, just keep it moving fast. Once the tubing starts to shrink, it'll go fast. Don't make contact or it'll melt.

 

[Howard]

Your range will work in a pinch.

 

[phucheneh]

It depends on the heat shrink. There are about three levels of the stuff. First one is the colored crap from an auto parts store, which is about as good as wrapping the connection in tissue paper. The better stuff (black) shrinks easily with a lighter.

The good shit is the kind that is very thick and craps goo out of the ends when you shrink it. Seals connections very well. It's hard to shrink with a lighter; works better with a butane torch. Heat shrink butt connectors practically require one (a torch, that is).

A hair dryer will barely do anything, I'm gonna guess. They're a far cry from a good heat gun, which can get burn-the-shit-out-of-you hot.

I use the side of a soldering iron tip. Works fine, just keep it moving fast. Once the tubing starts to shrink, it'll go fast. Don't make contact or it'll melt.

If you're talking about using the vent on a butane iron, I do this too. Basically the same as using a torch indirectly.

 

[PsiStar]

I did this when I was 14. Tell me that you are smarter than a 14 y/o?:whiste:

 

[deadlyapp]

If you reduce the air flow with a piece of duct tape or similar you can get the airstream hotter - will work a bit more effectively.

 

[phucheneh]

If you reduce the air flow with a piece of duct tape or similar you can get the airstream hotter - will work a bit more effectively.

Cig lighters are about $0.50-2.00 depending on quality and quantity...

And if someone is worried about fire with that, god help them if they watched me solder and shrink with a torch. There's a lot of blowing out flaming insulation.:awe:

 

[JulesMaximus]

Wait, you mean there's a member of AT who doesn't own a heat gun?

 

[Red Squirrel]

hair dryer and heat gun actually use the same amount of wattage, so hair dryer on max setting should do. Heat guns are basically just fancy hair dryers with more settings. By slowing down the fan and using various attachments you can concentrate the heat better.

 

[roguerower]

I used it when I was rewiring the electrical wiring and lights on my motorcycle. I used a lighter.

 

[Jeff7]

If you get a heat gun:
1) Be careful. It was a bit of a surprise for me the first time I worked with a heat gun. Ok, so there's no flame. Yeah, but it's still damn hot, and can burn you or start fires surprisingly quickly.
2) Don't get the gun too close to the splice right away, or you can melt the wire's insulation.
3) If you need to double-shrink-tube something, don't try to slide the second piece over the first one right after heating. The residual heat will shrink the new tube, and it might get stuck at the wrong place.
4) Choose a size that will sleeve over the wire without being very loose. The stuff typically shrinks at a 2:1 ratio, so if you go really loose, it might not shrink enough to give a really tight fit. There's some stuff I've seen though that will shrink even more, but I don't know how common it is.

Wait, you mean there's a member of AT who doesn't own a heat gun?

I guess everyone's got to start somewhere.

I made it until I was....24 before I had a heat gun. Until then, it was cheap butane torches from surplus shops on eBay.

 

[disappoint]

It depends on the heat shrink. There are about three levels of the stuff. First one is the colored crap from an auto parts store, which is about as good as wrapping the connection in tissue paper. The better stuff (black) shrinks easily with a lighter.

I've used colored heat shrink tubing that was just as good as black heat shrink tubing. I didn't buy it at an auto parts store though.

 

[SSSnail]

If you want to McGyver it up, then use a lighter. Just don't burn it.

 

[sdifox]

fuck it, get this

http://www.amazon.com/Weller-ML200-M...s=butane+torch

 

[phucheneh]

fuck it, get this

http://www.amazon.com/Weller-ML200-M...s=butane+torch

The kind you can throw a bic lighter in tend to have a more workable flame (easier to get it small enough to not instantly vaporize solder). And, you know...you just throw a lighter in them.

 

[Leros]

I've used heat guns, hair dryers, lighters, and matches. They all work just fine.