Are you ready to organize your wires and cables? You’ve purchased braided sleeving, but you may have one question that still looms: "How am I going to terminate the ends?"
Before we delve into how-to finish your sleeving, let’s start with a few braided sleeving cutting basics. It’s important to properly cut it because there are some types that fray with scissors — those types should be cut with a hot knife. There are some woven kinds that are designed to be fray-resistant — and those can be trimmed with scissors. You will also find some braided sleeving materials, like Kevlar®, cut best with special shears.
This how-to guide lets you in on the details and supplies needed for four easy braided sleeving finishing methods. Just read on!
PROJECT CHECKLIST
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| Experience Level: Beginner |
| Time Required: 1-5 minutes, depending on which method you choose |
| Options: 4 |
| Supplies: braided sleeving, electrical tape, cable ties, Velcro® cable wraps, heat shrink tubing, heat gun, hot knife, scissors, shears (cutting tool dependent on sleeving type) |
OPTION 1 — TERMINATE WITH TAPE
This is the most economical and least time-consuming method for terminating braided sleeving. The only supplies required are color-matching electrical tape and a pair of scissors. After you've run your wires or cables through braided sleeving, simply wrap the ends tightly with electrical tape.
OPTION 2 — TERMINATE WITH CABLE TIES
Cable ties provide a quick solution for neatly terminating braided sleeving, and have the added benefits of being inexpensive — and sold to match the color of your sleeving. Cable ties are especially convenient if you don't plan on reworking your wire assembly often — and are great for use in project cars.
OPTION 3 — TERMINATE WITH VELCRO® ONE-WRAP® CABLE WRAPS
Please keep in mind that like electrical tape, some types of cable ties are not reusable. There are hook and loop types, as well as some with beaded, zipper-like, or elastic-style construction, however, that you can reuse. If you're in the market for a termination method that is both affordable and reusable, then Velcro® cable wraps are just one of those products you're looking for. These wraps provide tight, secure sleeving terminations, but also allow for the unlimited reworking of cable assemblies.
OPTION 4 -—TERMINATE WITH HEAT SHRINK TUBING
Last but not least, we have the heat shrink tubing method, which is by far the neatest way to terminate the ends of braided sleeving. Heat shrink tubing is a bit more time consuming to apply because it needs to be shrunk with a heat gun, but it's ideal for aviation and automotive applications that require heat protection and weatherproofing. Computer project fans around the world also love heat shrink tubing for its cosmetic advantages. (Please keep in mind that if you need to purchase a heat gun, this will increase the project's estimated budget)
Now that you have the basics for terminating braided sleeving, shop at CableOrganizer® for all your cable management needs.
