Re: Heat Shrink Tubeing and connectors
Agreed that a proper crimp is the first step. Without that, trouble is sure to follow. If you already have high-quality crimpers for coax and/or cat-5, you may find that they have interchangeable dies. If so, a set of dies for your 16 AWG should be available to fit your crimper handles.
We usually slide the shrink tube down the wire before doing the termination, and heat it afterward. Although, there are times I forget to put it on first, or the wire is too short (like in a panel) to put the tubing on first, so since the good Ancor brand tubing is at least 3-to-1 shrink ratio, it's still possible to go up a size and slide the tubing over the finished termination. I recommend the tubing that has an adhesive liner as well.
Soldering is frowned upon in the marine environment. Supposedly it creates a hard spot, that is later subject to fracturing due to vibration. That is true in aircraft for sure.. I suspect that in reality, 50% of the amateurs who solder boat wiring do a poor job, which ends up being worse than a decent crimp. Crimping -- good crimping -- is the method that is approved by ABYC. That said, there are a lot of good solder terminations on my boat. If done well, in a properly strain-relieved setup, and covered with good heat shrink, they are just about bulletproof, though, as I mentioned, not ABYC-approved.
