What is the answer for wire harness protective covering?

I'm doing a major overhaul of the motor in my 2003 GMC Safari and the wire harnesses (everywhere) are in bad shape.

I don't want to replace with the same stuff - especially from my LAPS because it will probably be even less rugged than the OEM stuff.

What is the better material for this application? Do we like the stuff from Tesa?

I use the braided splitloom.  The key (for me) is to use hockey tape to secure the ends.

Hockey tape sticks to itself rather nicely, doesn't leave a sticky residue, and doesn't get brittle with heat.  Cheap too.

I just did a bunch of accessory wiring on my truck, and we had some good discussion of pros and cons of different types in the thread.

I ended up going with braided. The bigger stuff was split , but I accidentally ordered a bunch of the small lines in non-split, thread the whole bastard through there type. All my lines running from front to back of the truck are the solid type. Overall, I like the braided over the corrugated. Even the non-split was good once I got the hang of it. I finished the ends of the small stuff with heat shrink and it looks great. The big stuff I kind of finished with electrical tape. Not the greatest solution.

I specifically used corrugated split loom on some of the front end stuff because it completely hides the wires, color and all. 

I don't have a feel for which one will hold up better yet.

If you want to see types of amazingly cool wire wrap that you never knew existed, check out wirecare.com  I haven't ordered from them, I found them as aI was finishing the project. They've got some nifty stuff.

I use a a lot of braided nylon, self wrapping, split loom at work.  It's resilient, easy to work with, and compact but still very flexible.

Pegasus has had the best price for bulk quantities.

https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/group.asp?GroupID=WRAP

The little tool for installing the stuff is super handy too.

You need something sharp or hot to cut it.  Scissors work best, a razor blade is okay, if you've been scratching lotto tickets with your pocket knife, you're going to struggle to get a clean cut on the stuff.

bigdaddylee82 said:

You need something sharp or hot to cut it.  Scissors work best, a razor blade is okay, if you've been scratching lotto tickets with your pocket knife, you're going to struggle to get a clean cut on the stuff.

Tis, 100x. I used a fresh pair of HF giveaway scissors and it barely did it. Also, flame doesn't seal the cut ends. It makes a rats nest. Just FYI

Split braided nylon with taped ends is the easy/cheap way that still looks good. Must be cut with a hot knife or at least melt the ends with one after cutting. 

Timely discussion.  I'm putting a Painless harness in the Nova and I need some of this stuff to make it pretty.  Painless makes a nice split woven product, but I was wondering who else offered a similar product.

Does the braided stuff stand up to heat and the passage of time?

Has anyone tried using the Tesa stuff? I had never heard of it until I read a comment from a guy on another car related forum describe it.

Electrical tape. Preferrably the knockoff stuff from HF. 

I'm not sure if it's always the right answer, but I have wired up multiple bikes and some interior wiring on cars with spiral wire wrap and it has worked well. Easy to get wires out at branch points, and won't hold water or dirt in it. It doesn't look bad, but definitely not as clean as the woven wrap.

I've never used the split woven stuff before, but it looks like something I'll have to try in the future.

I am doing the efi harness for the mini in this stuff

It is not split loom. It expands like a finger trap for connectors and whatnot. It is quite hard to cut and will abrade your hands when you are working with it.  I feel confident that it will hold up underhood.

We've been using Techflex F6 on the drop on harnesses that we make.  Its main downside is that it can retain oil and is best cut with a hot knife, but it stands up very well to heat and other abuse.

MadScientistMatt said:

We've been using Techflex F6 on the drop on harnesses that we make.  Its main downside is that it can retain oil and is best cut with a hot knife, but it stands up very well to heat and other abuse.

Can you put that on the flying lead pro and micro harnesses too? I have trashbags full of the split loom. Love, your favorite reseller 

In reply to Trent (Generally supportive dude) :

I have a friend who sells a DIY guitar-to-pedalboard snake kit that uses this stuff(PedalPython) and it certainly holds up to that kind of abuse well.