I've just been reading an article on IVA compliance I stumbled across online: Link

When I got to the section on electrics, there was a note which read something along the lines of "don't fix your loom down with cable ties, as you'll encounter chafing issues in a couple of years. Use P-clips instead or proprietary cable mounting saddles instead"

Is this true? My plan was to rivet cable tie bases to the chassis and cable tie the loom to these. I've installed a few of them now and I think it looks pretty neat, and of course, if I ever wish to remove the wiring I can just cut the cable tie instead of having to drill out a rivet on a p-clip. I'm covering the harness with a slit, braided sleeving.

Should I be thinking of removing them and fitting plastic P-clips instead? - to be honest I can't really see how a securely fastened cable tie could cause any more chafing than a p-clip?

Cheers,
Jek

[Edited on 17/6/12 by JekRankin]

Jek, I've done 4 cars same way as you are doing and works for me. Only time you would see any issues would be over tightening the cable tie so you were nearly chopping convoluted tube.
Cheers D

Cheers, that's good to know. The only difference to your method is I'm using a slit woven PVC cloth braiding rather than convoluted tubing, but if I take care not to over tighten the cable ties, I don't think it should cause any damage to the cables inside.

Jek

Depends on the cable ties you get.

I've unfortunately experienced the problems with it chaffing and cutting the insulation on wires, and would advise you to just be careful where and how tightly you clamp them.

Make sure you get cable ties which haven't got a sharp edge on the inside corners (a lot of the cheap small ones are sharp enough that if you run your finger along the cable tie you'll get a cut) - the ones which are slightly rounded shouldn't cause any issue at all as long as not overtightened.

ive used cable ties, just over the loom tape mostly, 4 years later with lots of water and a long spell living outside, Ive had no electrical problems whatsoever.

I've had similar experiences as PSpirine, cheap a55 ties that work well to cut anything you're securing with them. At the very least they'd need something protecting the wire, but even then I suspect they would still wear through. I also find the heads don't work very well, if you try and cut the tail off flush with the head you don't leave enough serrations (?) to provide a reliable fixing. More expensive ties are smoother on the corners, and have an inset 'zipper', so they can be cut smooth and flush. There's nothing like an exposed badly cut cable tie to remove skin!

The wiring p clips that I've seen have a rubber inlay and seem much more suited to the job. But the price goes well against the LCB philosophy.

I think a large dollop of common sense is needed manufacturers use decent quality cable ties but they always use a proper mounting bases and what they don't do is simply cable tie straight on to a metal or sharp edged plastic part.

Flexible plastic conduit is the way to go if you want to do a good job especially where the wiring is in a particularly exposed position as it is impossible to have the perfect size conduit for every part of the loom so if the conduit is a bit over sized then some spiral wrap over the wires inside the conduit is a good trick.

You've answered your own question to be honest.

"proprietary cable mounting saddles" are what you're already thinking of using! Cable ties are perfectly fine as long as you don't just wrap one round a chassis member and hope for the best. Use a fixed base and you'll be fine.

Thanks all, I'll stick with the ties then, but I'll check for sharp edges on them. Not sure if they're cheapies or not - a BT repair man gave me a couple of bags of them for free out the back of his van when he saw me working on the car one day, so I would hope they are reasonable quality.

Just noticed that there are a few cable ties holding parts of the OEM R1 loom together.

If there's one thing I've learned about myself during this project, it's that I seem to suffer from a bit too much mechanical anxiety!

Jek

I have some cable ties from a nearby helicopter manufacturer (I'm sure the wont miss them!) and they have the serrated edge on the outside so the edge that contacts the cables are completely smooth because of chaffing issues under high vibration. Not sure who makes them but they are out there if you are concerned about your chaffing. I'm sure if cable ties are acceptable for a helicopter then you should be fine provided as above you mount them to appropriate bases.

I used the same system as BritistTrident.

I used 1" diameter split flexible trunking, and 1" aluminium p-clips, which were attached to the chassis using self-tapping screws. Whilst I hate screwing into the chassis, at least I'm replacing metal with solid metal (unlike a rivet) and it's demountable.

p-clips have a nice rounded edge, no chance of chaffing. Also, steer clear of insulating tape to hold it together, the adhesive doesn't do well in the heat of an engine bay. there's proper harness tape if you need it.

When mine went through SVA I started to get a little nervous because the inspector brought over his boss to look at it, but he was pointing out that this is the right way to do it.

spiral wrap is very good, amazing how much poo it stops getting in