Tape for concealing wires?

I'm thinking of using these led pods for bed lighting:



They've got adhesive on the back for sticking to the underside of the bed rails.

Anyone know of a good tape to use for sticking the zip cord between the pods to the rails so that it's not seen, doesn't droop or get snagged by anything, etc.?

I know that duct tape gets pretty ratty looking when exposed to the weather over time. Would be nice if this tape came in black.

 

You want something like this

$21 Zip Tie Adhesive-Backed Mounts 100Pk. Professional-Grade, UV Black Cable Tie Bases, 1.1 x 1.1. Screw-Hole Anchor Point Provides Optimal Strength for Long-Term Durability & Use and Clutter-Free Cables.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XNBS6TG/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_Vfq9EbPQZ4S2A

 

Zip ties

 

Blech. We have those at work. Hate 'em, but if I absolutely can't drill a hole for a proper wire clamp, there's a trick to making them stick over time... Super glue.

Just one tiny little drop right on top of the adhesive pad and you'll have to chisel them off.

 

Won't go around the bed rail.

 

Those and zipties are how several of the packaged bed lights come. No tape will hold up as long as 3M double sided adhesive will. If you buy the one's I linked they will fall off in short order but more premium ones come with higher quality adhesive.

 

The bedrails have evenly spaced holes in them, zip ties are made in several lengths.

 

They don’t have to. I tucked my wires up in the plastic trim. Wasn’t very hard to conceal them. You can also just loosen the bed rail to get a zip tie behind it then tighten it back up. There are also holes in the bed rail.

 

They do? I hadn't noticed. Now I'll have to go look.

 

I'll have to look into these rail holes. That would open up the possibilities.

...AND, if these holes were intended for drainage (so water doesn't sit in the rail), covering them up with tape would probably be a mistake.

 

My CB antenna coax runs all the way under the top bed trim. It’s completely hidden that way and no need for zipties or tape.

 

That's something else I need to look into. I hoping to add an FM rod antenna to the tail gate area (ruled out the hood and the roof).

What route did you take to get the coax into the cab?

 

I have the caliraised bed corner bracket thing above the tail light. The coax runs under the trim and between the bed of the cab. From there I ran it under the truck and zip tied it to the frame and there are grommets under the driver seat. Pushed it up the grommet and sealed w silicone, then ran under the carpet and the center console to my CB. Coax is completely hidden.

 

I've got the same bracket. Any problems with the tail gate rubbing on it?

 

Nope, plenty of clearance on all sides. Only “downside” is trying to clean mud under it. A small detail brush makes quick work of that tho. Many complain that it isn’t a good grounding plane but I get an easy 2-3 miles range which is more than I need. I really only use my CB when in a group on trails.

 

Good to know, thanks. Thanks also to @hoarder23. I'll have to poke around some more.

 

I have a bunch of those. I peel the adhesive off and put some VHB on there instead. Never had an issue with them coming loose.

 

The ones we have at work are made by Panduit. There's no way that adhesive pad is peeling off the mount. I *think* they apply the pad while the nylon is still warm/soft from molding, dunno'. When you stick the mount to some clean surface, it feels like it's really on there and isn't going anywhere. Come back in a year and your wires are all over the place and those mounts are just dangling. Just a tiny bit of super glue applied right to the adhesive pad though, and...

I'll keep that option open for the bed lights, if I can find some smaller ones, and doing as you suggested with the VHB. Thanks.

 

Tesa tape the wire to a long flat piece of aluminum or a rod and screw that to the bed.

 

That or something similar is a possibility, too. I think I just need to get the lights, put them where I want them, then figure out what to do with the wires.