Wire Loom Coating/Insulation Deteriorating - How to Repair?

[eco325iX]

I am in the process of re-wrapping the wire loom on my 89 convertible with Tesa tape and have got to the point where it would be wise to repair the wires that send signals to the front driver's side brake pad wear sensor. The black rubberized coating/insulation is now 34 years old and has had enough of Mother Nature and Father Time. I was thinking about removing the remainder of the deteriorating material and using heat shrink tubing, however 1) the size needed won't fit over all the larger diameter connecting pieces that mount to the inside of the fender and strut and 2) was thinking the heat shrink tubing will become brittle and just fall apart quicker than the original coating. Other than trying to find another wire loom section and splicing it in, which is also the same age what would be the best course of action and material to use as this wire branches off from the main wire loom in the engine bay and then makes it's way through an opening into the fender liner and will be exposed to the exterior elements? I have attached a photo of the deteriorating wire below (red & black wires with the black coating resting in the engine bay water channel).

[roguetoaster]

4:1 shrink won't work? If not, consider those heat insulation wrap tubes that have something like velcro along the single seam. You could also try removing thr flaky wrapping and simply overwrap the wires.

[eco325iX]

roguetoaster, I was not aware heat shrink had various shrinking ratios, I had only utilized the tubing that shrank by lets say half (2:1) maybe once or twice in the past. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. 4:1 would be ideal as the largest rubber connector on the wire(s) is 3/4" in diameter and the wire is 3/32" in diameter, so 2 wires running side by side would be 3/16". I found Shrinkflex 4:1 on Cable Ties and More dot com that comes in 4' sections, but the description says it has adhesive on the inside. Is adhesive a bad idea if one ever had to remove the heat shrink because of a short circuit in the wiring?

[82eye]

roguetoaster, I was not aware heat shrink had various shrinking ratios, I had only utilized the tubing that shrank by lets say half (2:1) maybe once or twice in the past. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. 4:1 would be ideal as the largest rubber connector on the wire(s) is 3/4" in diameter and the wire is 3/32" in diameter, so 2 wires running side by side would be 3/16". I found Shrinkflex 4:1 on Cable Ties and More dot com that comes in 4' sections, but the description says it has adhesive on the inside. Is adhesive a bad idea if one ever had to remove the heat shrink because of a short circuit in the wiring?

most shrink tubing has an adhesive. there is also split loom housing you can use that wraps around itself and adheres on one side. you can use a silicon self fusing tape as well, looks a little like thick black electrical tape, i just it used to repair some abs sensor cables.

[roguetoaster]

roguetoaster, I was not aware heat shrink had various shrinking ratios, I had only utilized the tubing that shrank by lets say half (2:1) maybe once or twice in the past. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. 4:1 would be ideal as the largest rubber connector on the wire(s) is 3/4" in diameter and the wire is 3/32" in diameter, so 2 wires running side by side would be 3/16". I found Shrinkflex 4:1 on Cable Ties and More dot com that comes in 4' sections, but the description says it has adhesive on the inside. Is adhesive a bad idea if one ever had to remove the heat shrink because of a short circuit in the wiring?

Any covering will be a pain with a short, and as to adhesive (which should be there to weatherproof mostly), as said above, should be fine. As you can imagine, more total shrinkage means it's harder to get a consistent/flat sheath, but if you want longevity without too much worry over appearance you should be fine.

[eco325iX]

I watched a couple videos of the silicon self fusing tape, which will do the job, however the final appearance is messy and not ideal. The Shrinkflex 4:1 looks like the way to go. Thanks for both of your suggestions.