The Testing Times

The Compression of a spring can be quite a hard thing to measure, the spring has a tendency to want to exert it's applied force horizontally to the platens (in other words, fly off under the nearest table...) This isn't really a problem, just a nuisance and in some applications a desirable feature of springs... To stop the test sample from flying off these compression platens have a free running guide that retracts into the top body. This holds onto the spring, whilst having a known affect on the test.

All of the testing grips and attachments listed here have a specific use. For example the Insulation Grip is designed to be used with insulation materials, but it can equally work just as well with any fibrous material. We often review or re-use previous designs because we know that they work and have been proved to be successful in the field. The staff here have an encyclopedic knowledge of over 2,000 Bespoke products and custom test fixtures we've produced over the years, and are continuing to produce on a daily basis. Basically, if you need to test something, and you require help call Tinius Olsen ...

To improve usability we have extended the range of insulation grips to include a screw based closing mechanism. This gives the ability to close the grip like a vice and so you are relying on the mechanical advantage provided by the screw rather than by the lever, this can offer more control of the sample alignment and help prevent a jaw break... There are interchangable teeth, depending on requirements.

The ASTM D429-03 69.1 (Method G) is for testing the adhesion properties of rubber. The rubber is pre-formed onto 3 metal plugs. this gives a double rubber sandwich that can then be tested. This attachment holds the metal components of the sandwich and allows a double shear test to be performed.

A range of faces make the 123-001 Textile Grip an adaptable and very useful attachment. Textiles can be a very hard materials to test, they can be very strong in tension, and unless ripped, near impossible to break… it can hold large amounts of energy and can break with a bang! The grips that hold fabric tend to be hydraulic and have special grip arrangements because of this property. There are 3 types of face of the jaws. Plain, Hatched and Grab each have a specific set of materials that they can be used with, each with singular benefits. The 123-001 holds the sample between two 250mm wide faces, these come together with a clamping force and the test can then be performed. If you're interested in this or other Textile testing, please contact Sylvia Hillier or go here: http://www.testingtextiles.com/

As mentioned before, we do a wide range of platens (two parallel plates that are used to compress the test specimen...) Often the sample is uneven or has protruding features, the fixed platens are less effectual in this instance. In cases like this, self aligning platens distribute the load across the sample by increasing the contact area. (The arrows show movement...)

It's really nice to be able to show you some pictures of the finished products, rather than renderings. The attachments, once checked, go straight to the customer... (so we don't often get time for pictures). This test is for Bituminous Materials, like tar -or- polymer modified asphalt (depending on you professional inclinations). The ASTM Standard calls for a very precise procedure that includes warming and filling a 3oz. pot with the sample and lowering a semi-sphere into it. This is then extracted and the forces required measured... It's quite a demanding test for the equipment as the sample material is quite, well, sticky... so we've made the parts that would come in contact with the sample out of stainless steel, this should allow the parts to be cleaned without having to worry about affecting any surface finish.