• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

cable sleeving

O

oOo sam lee oOo

Limp Gawd
Joined
Aug 29, 2004
Messages
297
if i wanted to sleeve my PSU, two IDE cables, and one Floppy Cable, how much sleeving would i need? and would 1/4 inch cover all of those?
 
you may have to get 3/8" for the IDE cables. Also, if you have to sleeve the connector that plugs into your mobo, that's like 3/4" sleeving. You can get 1/4" onto normal psu wires, provided that you take off the molexes, and tape the pins down. I'd guestimate ~12-15ft, but it depends on how long your wires are and such.
 
You could probably get that all done with one PSU sleeve modding kit. Depends on the length of the cable wires, but I have done 2 PSU with one kit the other day. Just make sure you get some connector removal tools. Makes it take a lot less time. Also, I would change the molex connectors as well to the EZ remove connectors like Vantec sells. I didnt think they were a big deal, but after trying them, I am now totally sold on their benefit. Check them out if you can...
 
Just searched for the molex kit that Vantec sells and from the reviews (google + ez remove connectors), its pretty straight forward. Its nice that they include the removal tool since it costs $8 alone at Radio Shack. Also, the Vantec kit includes all this so you dont have to worry about how long of each size you need.

10 ft. - 1/8" sleeving.
10 ft. - 1/4" sleeving.
5 ft. - 3/8" sleeving.
5 ft. - 1/2" sleeving.
10 - tie wraps.
1 ft. - 9mm Heatshrink Tubing.
1 ft. - 20mm Heatshrink Tubing.
6 in. - 25mm Heatshrink Tubing
 
oOo sam lee oOo said:
do i need a crimping tool thingy to change molex connectors?
Click to expand...
No you do not. The only thing you will need is the removal tool like mentioned in the above post which COMES with the EZ molex replacement connector kit. A good buy as mentioned above as well. The EZ connectors give you clamps that when squeezed pull the molex connector out for you. Great when changing equipment from time to time. Not that I have ever broke a molex connector, but I hate trying to.... :)
 
I really wish computer/electronics stores would start carrying cable sleeving supplies. When I get a bug up my butt to sleeve my cables, I want to do it, like, that day. I hate waiting 3-5 days for stuff to get shipped, by then I've totally lost my motivation. :mad:
 
Anyone know a cheap way to take off the connectors off the ATX plug without buying the $25 tool? Im gonna try using two staples (read it from another site) but its 20+ wires.
 
I've tried pointy tipped tweezers, I've tried a paperclip, I've tried a teeny little eyeglass screwdriver, and I've tried a staple. I couldn't get any of them to work.

If it helps, you can get an extraction tool for 6.95 here...
http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...=2077&osCsid=16f8a03426f13a61d67d42ff050e953e

However, where they say that it doesn't break easy...they lie. I've broken 2 of them. You get what you pay for, I guess.
 
I used a small flat head screw driver and things went well and easy.. The most important tool to have would be a good set of eye balls to see the little flanges that hold the pins in.
 
I used Staples, heavy duty staple gun ones, and it was a huge pain in the ass. I got it to work but not without a lot of swearing a sore fingers. I was cheap and didn't want to pay for the tool and paid the penalty for it.
I agree with ^^^^, good eyes help a lot.

Another note: be sure to label everything with something that won't rub off when you handle the wires. I had the pleasure of trying to decipher smudged numbers because i used duct tape and a sharpie; then my clammy mitts smudged everything all up.
 
Yes, labeling is important. I drew the connectors and pins out on notecards for each plug and also marked them..

Go one piece at a time and don't try to go for them all at once.
 
Katiemarie said:
I really wish computer/electronics stores would start carrying cable sleeving supplies. When I get a bug up my butt to sleeve my cables, I want to do it, like, that day. I hate waiting 3-5 days for stuff to get shipped, by then I've totally lost my motivation. :mad:
Click to expand...
I got my TechFlex sleeving kits @ Frys.
 
I tried using staples also, but I made the poor decision of using the really small ones and it made my finger hurt like hell by the time I was finished.
 
haha...my lifeskills teacher in summer school(who was a first sergeant in the army) was saying that to us when we excercised
 
johnson said:
Anyone know a cheap way to take off the connectors off the ATX plug without buying the $25 tool? Im gonna try using two staples (read it from another site) but its 20+ wires.
Click to expand...

This guy used a couple of regular pins, seemed to work pretty good for him.
 
Thanks for the link. I tried using staples last night and I couldnt even get one pin out. I just ordered the Vantec EZ Connector and sleeving kit. Ill try and tackle the ATX plug again tonight.
 
the best meathod i have found for removing the 20pin ATX connector is 2 regular staples from a staple gun like you would find on a teachers desk at an elementry school. i have tryed many differnt meathods and 2 staples + a small netle noze plyers to hold the staples works the best. i have one of those $20 tools and they work for crap. they do not fit down the sides of the connectors well, always end up bending and going inside the pin insted of down the sides. i have sleeved between 6 and 8 power supplys and staples by far save the most time.

as far as labeling the wires, you dont need to number each one and put them back in the exact same place, you just need to not their colors and mark down on a peice of paper which color goes where, as each color represents a different voltage.

as far as cable sleeving size... its all about preferance... a lot of the custom sleeve jobs i see are very loose and look sloppy that way to me. i like a nice tight fit for the sleeving on the cable. what i have found to work the best is as follows.
20 pin ATX Power (best fit) = 3/8" Techflex sleeving (i find the vantec sleeving to be slightly less expanadable than techflex, so if you get vantec i recommend 1/2" sleeving for it insted of the 3/8")
4 pin male/female power cables (best fit) = 1/4" sleeving
6 pin AUX power connectors (best fit) = 1/4" sleeving (it should be a tight fit, but a good fit.
4 pin 12v Power Connector (best fit) = 1/8" sleeving (should also be a fairly tight fit)
3 pin Fan Power Cables (best fit) 1/8" sleeving
***remember to cut all zipties before sleeving your cables.*****

another thing i do as just a personal touch, is i use a very small ziptie at the end of each sleeving end (except inside the power supply itself, where there is not room for all the extra zipties) then i snip it off real close and smooth and shrink the heatshrink down over the ziptie.... this keeps the sleeving from moving on you, and also keeps it looking nice and clean.

my last hint of advice is to say be gental when removing the regular 4 pin Molex connectors for devices such as CD-Roms and Hard Drives. if the pin isnt coming out easaly with the removal tool, dont keep tugging, push the pin back up and push the molex removal tool in a circular arround the edge hole for the pin while pressing firmly down. then try to press the pin out again... if it still dosent give loose, just keep repeting this till it eventually comes free.

anyways... i hope my info helps make your sleeving go nice and smoothly.
 
sleeving for IDE and Floppy Cables are ugly looking.
Do yourself a favor and buy rounded cables.
 
Ok, yesterday I went to Radio Shack and bought a slotted screwdriver set (the precision kind) that came with a 1mm, 1.2mm, and 2mm tip. Used the 1mm one for the atx plug and 1.2mm for the molex connectors. When the ATX, I stuck the screwdriver in one side and gave it a twist so that the flat sides would push the tabs in. Took about 20 seconds for each wire if you take your time. All this for only $2 plus tax. Radio Shack part number is 64-1982. Now im thinking I wasted $9 on the molex ez connector things.
 
The Molex connector removal literally (I dont know about anyone else) for me takes 2 seconds per wire, Molex connector removed in less than 10 seconds every time... It is the hands down fastest way to take a molex connector off.

The 3.5 inch power connector (floppy power) is best removed with a small flat head screwdriver. I have not found a better way to remove these, if you have one, let me know. A 2-5mm sized flat head screwdriver really does the trick...

As far as the ATX power connector. Really, I dont know why anyone is taking these off. I have never had to remove the ATX power connector cable on all the power supplies I have sleeved and I have done quite a few. If you are buying sleeving that does not fit over your ATX power cables you are using, you are buying the wrong stuff (kit). The way I do it, is I take the connector and bend the cable so that the bundle of wiring is running perpendicular to the connector and I electrically tape it to stay like that (vinyl tape). When I tape it I make it so that the whole connector is covered in the tape as to make the outer surface fairly smooth with no real places for the sleeving to get stuck on. As I wrap the connector in the tape (away from the power supply towards the connector) I wrap it so that it starts to make a small pointed aread where I finish the tape off. This makes a piece of the tape where I can pull on when I get to the end of the sleeve. I work the sleeving over the connector (1/2 inch to 5/8) and when I get to the end, I pull on the vinyl tape bit with a set of needle nose to complete the sleeving. I find taking the ATX connector off takes a lot longer and riddled with putting the cables in the same place they started out to be. Much easier to just not remove it and make sure your sleeving will expand enough to fit over it...

After sleeving at least 20 power supplies so far (for myself and individuals I have created computers for) I can find no better way. Not saying I am the ultimate expert but these things really work well for me. Of course, I am always willing to try faster ways...
 
Katiemarie said:
I really wish computer/electronics stores would start carrying cable sleeving supplies. When I get a bug up my butt to sleeve my cables, I want to do it, like, that day. I hate waiting 3-5 days for stuff to get shipped, by then I've totally lost my motivation. :mad:
Click to expand...
If you do projects from time to time try to have a little bit of stock of it. After doing several myself, I decided to order it with every computer I buy. Works wonders on the overall appearance of the computers. It's too bad you dont have places like Fry's they are great for last minute purchases of things you forgot. I still prefer to web though for purchases to not pay tax and typically cheaper prices with better selections...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top