How to shrink heat shrink tubing?
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From: Jeff Liebermann on 10 May 2010 13:52 On Mon, 10 May 2010 16:24:04 +0000 (UTC), "Geoffrey S. Mendelson" <gsm(a)cable.mendelson.com> wrote: >Is there such a thing as a small heat shrink tube shrinker that does not >toast the things around it? The largest thing I need to shrink over is >about 1/2 an inch most of them are small (20awg or less) wires. Hot air gun with an assortment of tips and adapters. If you need to protect other components, just block the air flow with some aluminum foil. However, one stupid problem. I bought two ACE Hardware hot air guns: <http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1310859> which work well enough. However, the power cord is VERY stiff. The gun is quite light and the spring tension of the cord frequently causes the gun to move when placed on the table. As the tip remains hot for quite some time, having it move by itself around the table can do some serious damage. I've ruined the plastic on several devices before I was forced to build a holder (tin can screwed to a wood board). Normally, I would normally suggest finding a hot air gun that has a reasonably flexible power cord, but that seems to be difficult. I've looked at various equivalent hot air guns and all seem to have VERY stiff power cords. High end heat guns, such as: <http://www.boschtools.com/Products/Tools/Pages/BoschProductDetail.aspx?pid=1944LCDK> don't have this problem, and add much better temperature control, but cost much more than I want to spend (about $150). -- Jeff Liebermann jeffl(a)cruzio.com 150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
From: William Sommerwerck on 10 May 2010 14:13 Isn't there a burning bush in your vicinity? The problem is that fairly high temperatures are needed, well above what a lighter or hair dryer put out. Lighters, in particular, will burn the tubing before shrinking it. One workable solution is to use a hair dryer, and block the inlets with a sock. This causes the outlet temperature to rise to the "shrinking" point. There's a catch, though... The hair dryer will "overheat" (natch -- that's the idea) and shut off. If the dryer doesn't have a resettable fuse, you won't be able to use the dryer again. A few years ago I bought an inexpensive heat gun, which worked well. A bit of scrounging might turn one up.
From: AZ Nomad on 10 May 2010 14:35 On Mon, 10 May 2010 11:13:26 -0700, William Sommerwerck <grizzledgeezer(a)comcast.net> wrote: >Isn't there a burning bush in your vicinity? >The problem is that fairly high temperatures are needed, well above what a >lighter or hair dryer put out. Lighters, in particular, will burn the tubing >before shrinking it. If you need more heat than what a blow dryer will do, the HS is defective.
From: Geoffrey S. Mendelson on 10 May 2010 14:39 William Sommerwerck wrote: > Isn't there a burning bush in your vicinity? Yes, but it keeps yelling "Behold the Metatron, Behold the Metatron" and won't help. :-) > > The problem is that fairly high temperatures are needed, well above what a > lighter or hair dryer put out. Lighters, in particular, will burn the tubing > before shrinking it. Yes, that's what I found out. Especially if you get too close. Although I used to have a steady hand, that was a long time ago. It wiggles occasionaly, and when it does, the flame burns the plastic. :-( > A few years ago I bought an inexpensive heat gun, which worked well. A bit > of scrounging might turn one up. I've never seen one here. Almost all of the construction is stone or concrete and that kind of paint does not work well on it. Geoff. -- Geoffrey S. Mendelson, Jerusalem, Israel gsm(a)mendelson.com N3OWJ/4X1GM New word I coined 12/13/09, "Sub-Wikipedia" adj, describing knowledge or understanding, as in he has a sub-wikipedia understanding of the situation. i.e possessing less facts or information than can be found in the Wikipedia.
From: Rich Webb on 10 May 2010 14:45
On Mon, 10 May 2010 11:13:26 -0700, "William Sommerwerck" <grizzledgeezer(a)comcast.net> wrote: >Isn't there a burning bush in your vicinity? > >The problem is that fairly high temperatures are needed, well above what a >lighter or hair dryer put out. Lighters, in particular, will burn the tubing >before shrinking it. I've had pretty good luck with butane lighters that are turned way down (a mere flicker of a blue flame) *IF* they're used on fairly small shrink tubing. Just keep the hot spot moving and pay attention to what the tube is doing. Works great with 1/16" shrink tube for single pins but I do imagine it could be a disaster with large diameters. -- Rich Webb Norfolk, VA |