Using Your Industry to Choose the Best Sleeving for the Job

Certain factors should be considered before making a final decision about a braided sleeving purchase. Sleeves in every category are created with materials appropriate for the specific environments where they will ultimately be used. Braided sleeving is applied for cable management in most cases, though depending on the application, sleeving may have further specialized roles in covering wires.

Many Sleeving Types in Every Category

A general purpose braided sleeve should be chosen for routine wire coverage and organization. Sleeving types in this category still differ based on some of the sleeve’s qualities. Flexo® PET is available in a wide range of colors and often used when an expandable wire coverage solution is sought. Flexo® F6® is a popular general purpose split sleeve option to wrap around existing cable harnesses. Flexo® Tight Weave™ is suitable when additional coverage is needed in a general purpose application. Techflex® Clean Cut® is a general purpose sleeve that includes a fray resistant, proprietary filament. It is an ideal scissor-cut sleeving choice when a hot knife is unavailable.

Heavy duty braided sleeves serve to help wires survive in some of the most challenging environments. This sleeving category, for example, may have impact, abrasion, and crush resistant qualities. Battle Braid® is a heavy duty sleeve that safeguards cable and wire assemblies against punctures and impacts, making it a great match for EV manufacturers. Another option for EV sleeving is F6® Battle Wrap, which has the legendary F6® split construction convenient to apply around existing harnesses, but with the crush, puncture, and impact resistance of Battle Braid®. The versatility and protective qualities of F6® Battle Wrap captured a Global Media Award at the SEMA Show for Techflex®. The heavy duty sleeving category can provide extreme abrasion protection in marine and industrial applications, with Flexo® Heavy Wall a sleeve that can cover chains and cables to safeguard painted and laminated surfaces. Clean Cut® Heavy Duty is an open weave, flexible sleeve able to trap moisture, heat, and humidity in heavy duty environments where it may not be possible to use a hot knife.

Different types of metal and shielding sleeves can help protect wires against EMI (electromagnetic interference), RFI (radio frequency interference), or ESD (electrostatic discharge). Flexo® Anti-Stat is appropriate where sensitive wiring exists. It lessens high frequency noise with 11 mil carbonized nylon monofilament yarn. Flexo® Copper is an ultra-flexible braided sleeve that can help with current transmission, grounding, and shielding. Flexo® Stainless XC is expandable sleeving braided with 304 stainless steel wires, able to provide protection like overbraided hoses.

Advanced engineering sleeves have specific functions that protect against threats in certain environments, offering a supplemental layer of protection to wire bundles. Most sleeving in this category is flame retardant, and suitable for aerospace applications or other stringent transportation specs. Flexo® F6® Flame Retardant has a split construction that can be easily applied to existing cable harnesses, safeguarding wires in aerospace applications with an organic flame inhibitor. This category has its own fray resistant braided sleeve in Clean Cut® FR, which provides scissor-cut convenience in a self-extinguishing, flame resistant sleeving. Flexo® PPS is beneficial for those in the telecommunications, aerospace, or military industries. This lightweight sleeve has high temperature stability and is made of flame resistant PolyPhenylene Sulfide (PPS) to repel solvents and chemicals.

High temperature sleeves have state-of-the-art engineering to safeguard wires in soaring temperatures. Volcano® Sleeve is braided with basalt fiber that can endure up to 1,200°F in environments like vehicle engines. Insultherm® HD combines heavy duty capacity with heavy wall construction, along with thermal protections up to 1,200°F through acrylic resin and fiberglass cord. It is useful in welding, automotive, fuel lines, hydraulic, and industrial hose applications. FireFlex® Aero is a fiberglass braided sleeve coated with self-extinguishing silicone rubber. It meets various specifications to protect hoses and wires in civilian and military aircraft, safeguarding them in continuous 500°F temperatures, and against molten splash up to 2,000°F.

Specialty sleeves are engineered for various purposes. Some are created to reduce noise, others for traction, several to increase visibility, and a few for aesthetics. F6® Quiet is a sleeving that stabilizes wire harnesses in door panels and dashboards to keep noise levels down in these spaces. Flexo® Non-Skid features high-friction filaments braided with PET, to protect people from slipping on cable snakes in busy studio environments.

Electrical insulation sleeves add protection in low and high voltage applications through braided sleeving coated with acrylic, vinyl, or silicone. Acrylic Flex Glass® is braided of fiberglass and then covered with dielectric acrylic resin. It is helpful in radio circuits, relays, transformers, and motor and lead/crossover protection between -13°F and 311°F. Vinyl Flex Glass® keeps dielectric strength around bends. It additionally offers extra insulation around generator, transformer, motor, and resistor leads in places with operating temperatures up to 282°F. Heavy Wall Silicone Flex Glass® features a generous silicone coating to prevent dielectric breakdowns, with it helpful in dry transformer type of applications.

Other Considerations

Sleeving types may be chosen for specific reasons in a wire project. Some applications, for example, may require braided sleeving able to withstand mechanical stress or vibration. Machinery that moves repetitively in instances where automation or robotics could be involved, may require more durable coverage. Some sleeving might be necessary to fulfill regulatory or safety standards for a particular industry. Techflex® additionally offers sleeving in a range of sizes and lengths to accommodate specific jobs.

Testing Sleeving for Your Application

Techflex® performs in-house testing to ensure our braided sleeving meets and exceeds certain standards. You may like to evaluate a braided sleeve before using it on a larger scale, to ensure it performs how you would like it to, for your application.

Have more questions? Contact a Techflex® sleeving specialist today at 1-833-SLEEVING (1-833-753-3846).