Low Voltage Heat Shrink Splices

Heat Shrink for Low Voltage Splice Sealing

      Rated to 1000 volts when in direct contact with a crimped splice, WCSM is one of the simplest products on the market for sealing up a low voltage (1000 volts or less) splice.  Available in tubes as long as 1200 mm (48"), WCSM can be custom trimmed to any length less than those 48".

     Available for cable and crimp sizes from 3mm on up to 30 mm; WCSM is always kept in stock for most sizes and available for same day shipping. 

     Utilizing a radiation crosslinked, high shrink ratio polyolefin backing; WCSM also includes an inner sealant layer of a high shear adhesive designed to form a perfect seal through which water, air and other foreign objects will not be able to permeate. 

     Installed with a small propane torch or an industrial hot air gun, WCSM is simple and easy to install.  Normal installation of the WCSM tubing might be 2 minutes or less with the proper equipment (heating method) on hand.

     Also used regularly for coating cables to offer extra jacket protection to cables that will be pulled through directional drilling holes; WCSM is very much the jack of all trades in the heat shrinkable products world with dozens of different uses across many different industries.

     Contact us today for pricing and delivery information.  Please be certain you either know which WCSM size you need -- or you are able to offer up cable sizes. 

Indian and Chinese Heat Shrink Tubing

Heat Shrink Tubing from India or China

    Had another report this morning from a customer who took the chance and purchased some heat shrink tubing from China or India.  It did not work out.  Here is their list of pros and cons they came up with after the fact:

 

Pro:

Low Cost

 

Con:

Didn't shrink right

Sometimes wouldn't shrink all the way down to the cable

Inconsistent wall thickness had them concerned about voltage ratings (since wall thickness directly determines voltage rating)

Adhesive didn't flow right

Adhesive didn't properly bond to cable

Lead time was long

Transit time was long

Credit terms were unavailable

 

     I understand that WCSM is a high quality product.  High quality products generally require a somewhat premium price.  But let's face it, the adage "you get what you pay for" is very often true.  WCSM is manufactured right here in the United States of America.  It is manufactured by American workers.  It is manufactured using the same high quality components that it has always used.  WCSM has been consistently made (other than some minor sizing changes) for decades now!

 

     When you buy foreign made shrink tubing, you are gambling on a novice heat shrink manufacturer.  This other company is often chemically cross linking their product rather than spending the money to use radiation to crosslink the PE (radiation crosslinking is more expensive, more reliable and more consistent). 

 

     Those of you in the electrical world - I don't know the answer, but you probably do.  What is the cost when a seal fails?  What is the cost when water is able to get to a connection and short out the cable?  What is the cost in down time, in a lost anode bed, in a lost anode, in some kind of electrical blow out?  I bet it is costly both in terms of dollars and in terms of reputation - "Company X used some kind of cheap Indian heat shrink and as a result our system is currently all screwed up."  That sort of a situation is going to COST you a lot more than you will ever save by purchasing some cheap, poorly made shrink tubing. 

 

     That is the way I see it anyway.  It just isn't worth the risk.

How Do I Shrink a Raychem (Tyco Electronics) Heat Shrink Sleeve?

Question:  How do I shrink a Raychem heat shrink sleeve?

Answer:  You've got a couple of options.  First and foremost it is important to know that the backing of the sleeve will begin to shrink once it reaches a temperature in the vicinity of 267F (there is a generalization as some Raychem sleeve backings do shrink at higher or lower temperatures than this).

In any case; the question now becomes; how do I get the backing to reach that 267F temperature?  This can be done easily with a small propane (or other) torch.  You want to make sure that you have a torch that puts out a 'bushy', broad flame.  Acetylene or welding torches will not work well in this role.

Bernzomatic torches do an excellent job of shrinking our Raychem heat shrink sleeves.

An industrial hot air gun can also be used to excellent results.

 Otherwise, you also have the option of using a hot air gun of some kind to do the job.  It could possibly take a bit longer (depending on the air gun) but ultimately you will achieve the same exact result.

WCSM Sizing Change

     WCSM Heavy Wall Sealant Coated Tubing has recently gone through a sizing adjustment.  In almost every case, this is an incredibly minor change as the tubing has simply been expanded a little bit more and re-named.  In every case the tubing recovers down to the very same dimension.

What used to be WCSM 9/3-1200-S is now WCSM 12/3-1200-S 

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 9mm ID (.354")

but is now supplied with an ID of 12MM (.47").  

This change has effectively modified this WCSM (and all WCSM sizes) to cover 

a larger range of wire and connector sizes.

What used to be WCSM 13/4-1200-S is now WCSM 16/4-1200-S 

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 13 mm ID (.51") but is now supplied with an ID of 16 mm (.629")

 What used to be WCSM 20/6-1200-S is now WCSM 24/6-1200-S 

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 20 mm ID (.787") but is now supplied with an ID of 24 mm (.94")

What used to be WCSM 33/8-1200-S is now WCSM 34/8-1200-S

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 33 mm ID (1.299") but is now supplied with an ID of 34 mm (1.338")

What used to be WCSM 43/12-1200-S is now WCSM 48/12-1200-S 

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 43 mm ID (1.692") but is now supplied with an ID of 48 mm (1.889")

 What used to be WCSM 51/16-1200-S is now WCSM 56/16-1200-S 

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 51 mm ID (2.00") but is now supplied with an ID of 56 mm (2.20")

What used to be WCSM 70/21-1200-S is now WCSM 70/20-1200-S 

In this case, the change means that the WCSM 70/20, when fully recovered 

is 1 mm smaller at .787" instead of .826"

What used to be WCSM 105/30-1200-S is now WCSM 110/30-1200-S 

This simply means that the WCSM shrink sleeve used to be supplied with a 105 mm ID (4.13") but is now supplied with an ID of 110 mm (4.33")

What used to be WCSM 130/36-1200-S is now WCSM 130/35-1200-S

In this case, the change means that the WCSM 130/35, when fully recovered 

is 1 mm smaller at 1.377" instead of 1.417"

WCSM Stock

It seems to come up an awful lot:  What stock do you have on WCSM?

Here is what we have at this exact moment: July 1, 2013
(does not include orders in process or in transit from the plant)

300 each WCSM 12/3-1200-S
450 each WCSM 16/4-1200-S
1850 each WCSM 20/6-1200-S
250 each WCSM 34/8-1200-S
200 each WCSM 48/12-1200-S
100 each WCSM 56/16-1200-S
75 each WCSM 70/20-1200-S

Call us today for pricing!  We accept Visa or Mastercard (in many cases) and offer Net 30 once we've gone through your standard credit application form.

WCSM 24/6-1200-S IN STOCK 6/28/13

     I understand that through some kind of unlikely chain of events, the plant is currently unable to supply WCSM 24/6-1200-S for 5-6 weeks.  I can also understand what a huge problem this can be for many customers out there.

     We currently have this part available and ready to ship.  Actually, we have the previous size (WCSM 20/6-1200-S) available to ship (I think I have ~1800 pieces - all 4 feet long; so 7200 feet of material).

     The only difference between the WCSM 24/6 and the WCSM 20/6 is that the 20/6 is supplied with a 4mm smaller ID.  It will still work exactly the same and shrink down to the same wire sizes.  WCSM 20/6 was the standard part for many, many years until Tyco decided to supply the tube a little larger a few months back.  So - call us today - 936/321-3333 for a quote.

WCSM Wire and Connector Sizing

Question:  All I have is a connector size and a wire size; which WCSM shrink tubing do I use?
For sizes in inches (supplied and fully recovered) go here.

WCSM 12/3-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size: #14

Maximum Cable Size: #6

Maximum Connector OD:  .29"

WCSM 16/4-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  #8

Maximum Cable Size:  #2

Maximum Connector OD:  .41" 

WCSM 24/6-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  #6

Maximum Cable Size:  #4/0

Maximum Connector OD: .69"

WCSM 34/8-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  #2

Maximum Cable Size:  500

Maximum Connector OD: 1.06"

WCSM 48/12-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  #2/0

Maximum Cable Size:  750

Maximum Connector OD: 1.3"

WCSM 56/16-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  250

Maximum Cable Size:  1000

Maximum Connector OD: 1.5"

WCSM 70/20-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  500

Maximum Cable Size:  1500

Maximum Connector OD: 1.84"

WCSM 110/30-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  800

Maximum Cable Size:  2000

WCSM 130/35-1200-S

Minimum Cable Size:  1500

Maximum Cable Size:  2500

WCSM - Heavy Wall Tubing

   

WCSM Tubing is available in a variety of sizes

    WCSM is one of the most commonly used Raychem (Tyco Electronics) products.  It is a versatile, heavy wall tubing that can be used for anything from jacket repair to splice sealing.  WCSM is rated for use at 1000 volts when in direct contact with the splice (rated to 35 kV for jacket repair).
    In spite of the fact that it looks complicated, the nomenclature for WCSM is actually very easy to interpret.  The first number is the supplied ID of the tubing in millimeters.  The second number is the fully recovered ID of the tubing in millimeters.  The third number is the length of the tubing as supplied (it can be cut to any length fairly easily in the field or in your own shop).  The final "-S" simply indicates that the tubing is internally coated with an adhesive sealant (as opposed to being 'uncoated').

     Below is a listing of the different WCSM sizes (smallest to largest) along with a manual conversion from mm to inches.  In a future post, I will address the WCSM sizes in relation to cable and connector ranges.  For dimensions of cable sizes and connection size; go here.

WCSM 12/3-1200-S (supplied at .47"; shrinks to .118")

WCSM 16/4-1200-S (supplied at .63"; shrinks to .157")

WCSM 24/6-1200-S (supplied at .944"; shrinks to .236")

WCSM 34/8-1200-S (supplied at 1.339"; shrinks to .315")

WCSM 48/12-1200-S (supplied at 1.89"; shrinks to ..472")

WCSM 56/16-1200-S (supplied at 2.204"; shrinks to ..629")

WCSM 70/20-1200-S (supplied at 2.756"; shrinks to ..787")

WCSM 110/30-1200-S (supplied at 4.330"; shrinks to 1.118")

WCSM 130/35-1200-S (supplied at 5.118"; shrinks to 1.377")

     Keep in mind when selecting a WCSM size that you must have 'room' to slide the tube into place.  As an example, the WCSM 12/3 would not work for a substrate that is exactly .47" as there would be no room to slide the tube into place.