Heat Shrink habit

[sanddrag]

You shouldn't "crimp the hell out of the connector." You should use automatic crimpers with the proper die or setting for the kind and size of connector you are using. Also, only strip enough wire to fit inside the metal part of the crimp connector, and the connectors housing and the wire insulation will prevent any shorts. If you are using open (uninsulated conectors) you should use a little bit of heat shrink to cover it. But, in any case there is no need for 5 inches of the stuff.

PS: with crimping it also helps to use a higher quality more finely stranded wire than FIRST currently gives us.