Building wiring harnesses can be an exercise in frustration for amateur builders. For those who do not buy their harnesses pre-made, it sometimes seems like every time you’ve laced (or zip-tied) it up for the last time, you find one wire that you need to add, or did wrong, or look at and decide you can run a wire better/cleaner in case you have to repair it later. You grab the wire snips, hold your breath, squint, and carefully reach in and cut the zip ties or lacing, hoping you don’t nick or cut a wire.
I was waiting in line at one of our local big box stores a few years ago when I saw a small neon twist tie thingy hanging from the rack by the register. Made by Nite Ize, it was called a Gear Tie, a pack of 3-inch long, rubber-covered wires that reminded me of a more elaborate version of the twist ties I used to use on my kitchen garbage bags. Intrigued, I picked up a couple packs and at my hangar wrapped them around a wire bundle, and they were a perfect match for bundles of about a half dozen wires or more. I could even put them on with a single hand. Cool!
Over the years I’ve ended up collecting a few dozen in various sizes and colors. The short ones work well for the initial wrap-up, and I’ll use longer ones as the bundles get more complete and complex. The best part is that I can unwrap a bundle in a couple minutes, fix what I need to fix, and have it wrapped back up in less time than it would have taken to cut zip ties or lacing string on the same length of run. Aside from wiring, it’s surprising how many other uses there are for them—such as holding fuel lines or pushrods out of the way.
I second Steve’s recommendation for these little guys. They’re very useful.
But before you go off and order “several dozen” of them, be aware that they can be a bit pricy. They can average well over $1 each in usable sizes, especially the longer ones.
Like any tool, though, if you need them, they’re worth whatever they cost!