Wire covering that looks good?

[ZmOz]

I've decided I need to make a new harness for my '74 inline 6. Pretty much all the wires are crumbling and green. I'm not going to spend ~$200 for a new one from ebay. I'll need something to cover the bundle of wires going from the outboard to the boat - an ideas? I need something that looks ok and would protect it from the elements. Normal split loom would just fill with water and doesn't look very good...

 

[18rabbit]

Re: Wire covering that looks good?

Oz - What you are looking for is something called wire sleeving. It comes in all kinds of styles, materials, and colors. Some of it is braided and expandable. You slide the wires thru it then stretch it to make a nice, tight secure coving for the wires/bundle. PET is a very popular material.<br /><br />You can shop the stuff at the Techflex webside, then Google for something similar or for prices of Techflex product. There are other manfs as well.<br /><br /> http://techflex.com/product_picker.asp <br /><br />I buy the black Flexo-PET 3/8-in by the 200-ft spool. If your wire bundle will be in the 3/16 to 5/8-dia size, and you are ok with black, let me know how much you need and I’ll send you some.<br /><br /> http://techflex.com/revised_site/pages/prodpages/prod_PT.html

 

[ZmOz]

Re: Wire covering that looks good?

Is that stuff water tight? The bundle will probably be closer to 1-1.5", but thanks for the offer. I think I might use 2/0 for the battery cables...

 

[Ralph 123]

Re: Wire covering that looks good?

Hey Rabbit that Braided Sleeving is nice! Thanks for the link.<br /><br />Hey Z, what about Bilge hose or something similar? You can probably find gromets to fit the ends to make it water tight and attractive.<br /><br />

<br />or multiflex hose?<br /><br />

 

[18rabbit]

Re: Wire covering that looks good?

No, it is not watertight. I don’t think you want a sleeve that is unless you have a way to seal the ends where the wires come and go. The problem with watertight sleeving is if water ever gets in, it’s inside there for life. If you use a quality marine wire for your harness the insulation on the wire will be resistant to UV, oil, water, etc.<br /><br />There are all kinds of sleeving made for all kinds of applications. You can get flexible, corrugated electrical tubing made out of PVC that is watertight but I don’t think it is UV resistant. That split loom stuff you mentioned is made out of either polyethylene or nylon, so ok in UV, and it is available without the slit, use a fish to pull your wire bundle thru. See Ralphs pics.

 

[imstillatwork]

Re: Wire covering that looks good?

Here is a dealer of the product mentioned above<br /><br /> http://cableorganizer.com/expandable-sleeving/ <br /><br />many sizes to choose from up to 3 inches.