Electrical Wire Boot

[rc0213]

Hi,

I am kind of new to electrical/mechanical design. And, so I might be describing my issue accurately. If so, I am sorry.

Well, the company I am working for is designing a two wire electrical harness with a connector for the automotive industry. And, this design will be exposed to the natural environment. The customer specifically wanted to have a shrink tube or a rubber boot. So, being that both wires are 18 GA, I was calculating that the diameter of the wiring bundle would be .080 in. DIA. Is that correct? Or does the .040 not include the insulation? If not, what is the average insulation thickness? The bottom line is, what is the diameter I need to design the shrink tube to?

Next, does anyone have some good suggestions on electrical vendors who would be able to help me with the shrink tube and/or rubber boot?

Thanks for any help,

 

[catserveng]

I use these guys quite a bit,

http://www.wirecare.com

Hope that helps, Mike L.

 

[mcgyvr]

Answer depends on the specific wire being used...
I've got some 22 AWG (UL 1007-AWM 1569)sitting on my desk and the OD of the insulation is .060" so 18 AWG "should" be larger than that.

Are you just asked to apply shrink tubing over the whole harness?
What about buying 2 conductor cable?