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About re-wrapping - edge crinkle?

Train

Gold Contributor
Member For 5 Years
I'm getting about a 50% success rate re-wrapping.
1 - using a blow dryer
2 - some of the wraps came cheap from China

Is ending up with crinkles at the ends a sign of
a) an idiot that isn't heating the wrap properly
or
b) crappy wraps
or
c) some of each

I can't use 'em with the crinkles - the whole reason I'm re-wrapping is because they go in mech squonkers, some of which are a pretty tight squeeze, and that's where I get a catch and the beginning of a rip.

Are there "thicker" or just better quality wraps that shrink more perfectly?
Or does it have to do with temperature or what gets shrunk first? (I've tried a few ways, and the thing blows pretty hot).

Thanks for the help!!

Forgot to take a picture, but googled, and it's KIND OF like this...
(ignore the weirdness in the middle, and not this bad, but enough to be a problem)
upload_2018-7-16_14-28-59.png
 

Mykreign

Platinum Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Might just need more heat. My GFs blow dryer sucks and depending on the wrap, I have to leave it blowing on the same spot for awhile.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 

shawn.hoefer

Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
D. None of the above. That's kinda the way they go. Thicker wraps will give smoother edges, but not by much.

Sent from my LG-H931 using Tapatalk
 

PoppaVic

Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Hot air rework stations..
Butane torches...
Stove lighters...
/chortle ;-)
 

zephyr

Dirty Pirate Meg
VU Donator
Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Unlisted Vendor
I'm getting about a 50% success rate re-wrapping.
1 - using a blow dryer
2 - some of the wraps came cheap from China

Is ending up with crinkles at the ends a sign of
a) an idiot that isn't heating the wrap properly
or
b) crappy wraps
or
c) some of each

I can't use 'em with the crinkles - the whole reason I'm re-wrapping is because they go in mech squonkers, some of which are a pretty tight squeeze, and that's where I get a catch and the beginning of a rip.

Are there "thicker" or just better quality wraps that shrink more perfectly?
Or does it have to do with temperature or what gets shrunk first? (I've tried a few ways, and the thing blows pretty hot).

Thanks for the help!!

Forgot to take a picture, but googled, and it's KIND OF like this...
(ignore the weirdness in the middle, and not this bad, but enough to be a problem)
View attachment 115849


That's lack of heat, there. I turn a stove element (ELECTRIC) on high, wait for it to get fully hot, and move a battery over it. I shrink half a battery wrap at a time, then flip to the other half. The battery does not get hot this way. The very high heat from the stove element causes the wrap to shrink very fast, so very little time over the heat is needed (so the battery does not get hot)
 

zephyr

Dirty Pirate Meg
VU Donator
Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Unlisted Vendor
Also does not matter which part I shrink first - if there's a bubble/crinkle anywhere, just wave it over the heat again and it shrinks right up
 

jwill

The Great King of Nothing
VU Donator
Platinum Contributor
Member For 2 Years
VU Challenge Team
Reddit Exile
VU SWAT
This is a heat issue. You can get a heat gun at any craft store or harbor freight for under $10. I start with the creases sides because those weird little "veins" they leave are annoying to me for some reason.
 

Train

Gold Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Thanks for the tips. It SEEMED really hot, on my fingers and such...but I'll probably look for a heat gun, and try again.


That's lack of heat, there. I turn a stove element (ELECTRIC) on high, wait for it to get fully hot, and move a battery over it. I shrink half a battery wrap at a time, then flip to the other half. The battery does not get hot this way. The very high heat from the stove element causes the wrap to shrink very fast, so very little time over the heat is needed (so the battery does not get hot)
This is a heat issue. You can get a heat gun at any craft store or harbor freight for under $10. I start with the creases sides because those weird little "veins" they leave are annoying to me for some reason.
 

Arthur-VU

Silver Contributor
Member For 2 Years
I usually heat the ends of a wrap first, with a hair dryer on high.

I place the battery on the desk, and hold the back of it so it does not roll with a screwdriver so it does not burn my hand.

The desk surface gets hot too, which helps in shrinking the wrap. Using a screwdriver (as opposed to a dishtowel or glove to hold the battery in place also prevents my hands from burning up)....

For the negative end of the can, after heating (usually a lot) I turn the battery with positive end up and firmly press down so the negative end is pressing on the desk so the edges of the wrap that are open to the metal area are perfectly flush. I also do the same with the positive end, but at the edge of the desk when pressing down so that the little nipple of the positive connector is NOT being pressed.

This lets the ENDS of the wrap be as tight as possible.

If there are creases or crinkles, while letting the battery lay horizontal on the desk, I just keep applying more heat, going back and forth over the length of the battery.

In the end the batteries do get hot, so I let them sit until they are room temperature before charging.

Also, I usually wait until the batteries are run down ~3.11v before re-wrapping, just in case there IS a problem in reacting to the heat being applied, with less voltage stored I expect it might (even slightly) minimize any issues if venting from a battery going bad, etc...

I tried in the past using both a Zippo lighter and also a butane torch lighter and ended up melting the wraps, which rendered holes and the battery can showing, as this takes more finesse to get the distance from the flame just right, and the butane torch lighters actually project a very intense heat about 4-6 inches beyond the visible blue flame. I wasted too many wraps trying to use a lighter, so I just use a mini 1500-watt hair dryer set on high, and so far do not have any issues that I cannot resolve simply by spending more time heating the wraps...

Hope this helps! :)
 

jwill

The Great King of Nothing
VU Donator
Platinum Contributor
Member For 2 Years
VU Challenge Team
Reddit Exile
VU SWAT
They make these little cork rounds for putting hot pans on counters. These work great for this purpose and can be had for nearly nothing. They are perfect for rewrapping batteries and letting the heat gun cool.
 

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