Novitool® AERO™ Portable Splice Press Welding Guidelines
Novitool® AERO™ Portable Splice Press Welding Guidelines – V6
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Introduction
It is important that the FLEXCO Novitool Aero
™ Splice Press Safety and Operating manual provided with the
press be followed. The guidelines here are not meant to be a substitute for the FLEXCO handbook but rather
to complement it. Several comments are in order:
The purpose of the heat profile setting recommendations found in this guideline is to ensure a urethane
belt phase transition from solid to liquid during the weld process. The settings to achieve this phase
transition vary due to the individual press, the belt material and the environment. Prior to attempting the
actual weld, it is necessary to confirm that this temperature needed to achieve this phase transition is
met by conducting a test weld. To conduct this test, a thermocouple must be embedded in the belt
material (for toothed belts, the thermocouple should be placed
in the silicone pad’s tooth trough). If the
thermocouple doesn’t register the minimum actual belt temperature called out for that pitch, it is likely
that the weld will be compromised. Minimum actual belt temperatures and dwell times can be found
directly below the recommended settings table. If the minimum temperature is not achieved, it will be
necessary to contact Flexco to determine the root cause.
o
Gates Mectrol can confirm weld integrity through tensile and accelerated life cycle testing. For
tensile testing, submitted samples must be at least 3
” wide with 12” of belt length on each side
of the weld. For life testing, samples must be a welded belt 24” wide x 50” long.
Flexco recommends doing a warm up weld prior to performing the actual finished weld, particularly in
cold environments.
Note that a platen press weld causes the welded area to shrink slightly. This shrinkage may cause the
belt edges to lift slightly. Be sure that this edge
lift will not affect the belt’s performance in your
application.
