Yeah, I use it sometimes for a flashlight as I haven't gotten used to the neck knife idea (haven't really tried it with an appropriate knife, either!).
What i do is after I heat up the paracord's end to a melted glob, I remove the flame, wait just a few seconds, and then gently round it with my licked fingers. This merges the core and sheath, narrows the end to pass through the cordlock, and rounds it all in one step. Just my way, I like your pinching technique though.