Electrical resistance heating assemblies of the type employing a coiled resistance element require the manipulation of the coil with respect to the supporting electrical insulators during their assembly. The insulators are secured to a tree or rack and support and locate the coil. Commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,528,441 discloses different insulator designs and one scheme for manipulating the coil and insulator to secure the coil in place. Commonly assigned U.S. application Ser. No. 92,815 filed Sept. 3, 1987, which is hereby incorporated by reference, discloses an adjustable coil retainer and spreader which can be used in conjunction with the present invention.