Marine Heat shrink Terminals

[jmcdboater]

Hey everybody, preparing to change an old & outdated barrel-type fuse block to a marine-grade blade-type fuse block. I’ve gotten marine-grade terminals from West Marine, do I have to buy a heat-gun to perform the heat shrink? Will a hair dryer work? Will a cigarette lighter work? My first time using heat-shrink connectors. Thanks a bunch!

 

[ocgrant]

yes a lighter will work on heat shrink just be careful to not light it on fire.

 

[jmcdboater]

yes a lighter will work on heat shrink just be careful to not light it on fire.

Cool, thanks a lot. Might not ever have to change another terminal, didn’t really want to buy a heat gun……

 

[The Bill Collector]

Cool, thanks a lot. Might not ever have to change another terminal, didn’t really want to buy a heat gun……

Harbor freight has a great one for under $20... I've had it for 15+ years.

 

[Nater Potater]

...didn’t really want to buy a heat gun……

Oh, come on; you know you want one! https://www.amazon.com/Soldering-St...=&sprefix=heat+gun,aps,361&sr=8-4-spons&psc=1
Seriously, heat guns make shrinking terminals and heat-shrink tubing a joy without the fear of charring those expensive plastic-jacketed crimp connectors. Besides, what's twenty bucks nowadays?

 

[jmcdboater]

Well shucks, guys, I guess $20 isn’t so bad, I was thinking I’d be looking at $50-$75 for a one time use. I try not to go into Harbor Freight, I’ve thrown so much of their stuff (tools…..ha!) away, it’s just a waste. I like tools, real tools….

Proud Customer leaving Harbor Freight with his new tool:

 

[jmcdboater]

Harbor freight has a great one for under $20... I've had it for 15+ years.

so the one from Amazon is 1800 watts, and has tips designed for shrinking heat-shrink connectors, the one from Harbor Freight is 1500 watts and they say it’s for removing paint and unfreezing pipes…..it DOES work on the heat-shrink terminals?

 

[Hoplite808]

A BIC lighter will do the job. Just make sure there are no fumes around that could ignite before hand. Also don’t hold the heat in one place too long. You don’t want to melt the wire insulation or burn the heat shrink material. Only heat it up so that it will shrink and seal the metal connection from the elements.

 

[Bill Curtis]

A lighter will leave black marks on the heatshrink, and is potentially a hazard to surrounding flammables.

A cheap heat gun costs less than 4 gallons of gas.

Given those perspectives, seems silly to not have a heat gun.

On another note: I have a Northern Tool cheap $20 heat gun (had it for 12 years or so) and high end one made for the electronics industry ( have had that one for 4 years). The hot air out the 2 is the same, with exception the industrial one set on high is way hotter than needed.

 

[jmcdboater]

I’m a bit disappointed, went to all the trouble to insert a picture of Harbor Freight Customer so you’d all get a chuckle, nobody has responded.

 

[bbwhitejr]

I bought one of these and really like it. For me, the heat gun has to be plugged in and puts out heat over a larger area than I need it to. Maybe they make one specifically for heat shrinking, but I like this little thing.....

Bennett

 

[KevinC]

I use a small hobby/craft heat gun. Get the job done and it's much smaller and easier to get into spots. Plus since its small I can easily carry it around in my tool bag.

-Kevin