I use the outside thick part of the solder bit and rub it along the heat shrink to shrink it to size, saves on another tool, just don't stop moving while in contact!
I do that a lot too. Of course I’ve also ended up melting the rubber onto the soldering iron more than once, so I try to use a lighter when I can but I’ll use the soldering iron too when I need to.
Always best to use the same coloured wires, but it's not always possible. The wires on Kato turnout motors are red and black as you know, but the wires on the 6900 and 6096 Fleischmann turnout switches I use to control them are brown, yellow and white. I use 60/40 tin lead solder as it works better than lead free solder. Tin lead solder has only been banned in manufacturing. I have a cheapo automatic wire stripper. I don't pull the sheathing all the way off when I'm stripping wire. I pull it part the way off, then twist it before taking it all the way off. Much easier than twisting it afterwards to keep the strands together. If using a fibreglass brush instead of brass bristle brush, be careful of the fibres as they love to embed themselves into you fingers. You'll probably be breathing them in too. I'm not a fan of Scotchlok aka suitcase connectors either. All these connector types take up more room than soldered connectors and it can be almost impossible to get them through the holes you've drilled for wiring in the baseboard frames. It can be VERY annoying to find you forgot to put the heat shrink tube on your wires until after you've soldered the joint! Also when you have the tubing too close to the joint and you find it's already shrunk and can't be moved. 😝I use the side of the soldering iron tip to shrink the tubing, not the end of the tip or the metal body of the iron. (Been there. Done that). I don't like to use electrical tape. The stickiness seems to ooze out over time and cause a mess. If I'm going to use tape for something then I prefer Kapton tape. If you're a top, top expert at soldering, (I'm not), then it's even possible to solder wires end to end without having to twist them together. You can see an example of this on John's Amazing Trains from 9 years ago. The joint is so strong that the wire will break first. I noticed that you don't seem to be cleaning the iron tip on a damp sponge after every use. It's recommended that you should.
Lots of good points. Yes, I wasn’t cleaning the soldering iron tip since I just brought it out for the example. Of course I’ll have to clean it up good before my next use. I’ll admit I’ve been lazy about that in the past causing me to go through more soldering iron tips than necessary.
Steve: excellent material in this video…wondering where I can find the instructions for building a battery operated controller, like your 9 volt unit…thanks
