[Benny Jahmin]

 

[Benny Jahmin]

I have watched all of HP Academy's videos on wiring and listened to their podcasts with professional motor sport wiring harness builders.
I will never solder anything on my car, EVER!

 

[Benny Jahmin]

Dry solder joint, means not done correctly.

Doesn't matter what the job is, it can be done poorly. The right tools and skills go a long way. I would also go as far as saying a poor solder joint will probably be better than a poor crimp joint and a good solder joint with appropriate strain relief will most likely last until its someone else's problem for our typical application in a 4wd.

However, if you want to look at 'best practice' then the place where money isn't an issue and it's all about reliability then see what goes on in a motor sport wiring harness.
You will also find the same butt splices in a factory wiring harness.
It isn't hard to achieve a good crimp but a little trial and error is required to get a feel for what makes a good crimp.
I would hazard a guess that the most common 4wd diy mod will be some sort of 12v accessory so setting your self up with a decent set of crimpers and some butt splices is a great idea.

 

[Benny Jahmin]

otherwise a good quality electrical tape such as Nitto brand.

This is another consumable I do NOT use on a car.
Having said that I used the Tessa cloth tape on the loom inside the car and wish I didn't.
Initially it was great, even to the point of unwrapping it and being able to rewrap with the same stuff without a problem. But a year later and it's a sticky mess if you need to unwrap it.

I wrapped a small section at the top of my failing leather wrapped steering wheel in the work Ute with some scotch +33 tape. I didn't 'try' to put it through hell but I regularly drive with one hand on top of the wheel where I had it. And it did slowly start peeling by it lasted a year or 20,000km and NEVER got sticky. And it lives out on the street in full sun.

 

[Benny Jahmin]

And I use heatshrink on everything.

Have you got a recommendation for a 'quality' heat shrink?
I have been using the cabac dual wall (glue lined) stuff from the local electrical wholesaler but I'm sure there is better out there without going to raychem dr-25.