Thread protectors are used to seal, protect, and mask screw threads on items such as pipes, gas cylinders, and firearm barrels. They prevent damage, corrosion, and contamination, and can have additional features such as lifting rings. They are made from materials such as silicone rubber, vinyl, and polyethylene.
A thread protector is a member of a family of disposable or reusable parts designed to seal, protect, or mask screw threads. They are used to protect threaded parts from damage, corrosion, ingress of contaminants and as a cosmetic finish. Thread protectors are used to shield the threaded ends of pipes, gas cylinders, oil refinery equipment and firearm barrels. Thread protector designs range in complexity from simple soft rubber sleeves designed to pull up a wire to multi-purpose machined steel caps that incorporate several ancillary features.
Screw threads are generally quite sensitive to physical damage and corrosion. When threaded parts or items with exposed threaded connections are stored or transported, they must be protected. The humble thread protector not only serves to ward off damage to the threads themselves, but also prevents dust, moisture, or other contaminants from entering the containers through exposed fittings.
Corrosion protection is another important role of a wire protector. Threads cut into galvanized pipes remove surface protection; as a result, they can be particularly susceptible to corrosion and should be covered with a thread protector. They also prevent oil from contaminating the thread and posing an explosion risk. A thread protector is often used to mask threaded connections when newly fabricated parts are painted.
Thread protectors also have a mechanical purpose on threaded components in environments such as the oil industry. Here the protectors can have additional features such as lifting rings included in their design. These caps not only protect the threads on casings and drill pipe, they also act as connection points for jacking them up. These thread protectors are heavy-duty cast steel items typically featuring integral lugs that help tighten them onto pipes.
Protective caps are also used on firearm barrels which are threaded to accept sound and flash suppressors. These thread protectors are generally better finished than their utilitarian industrial brethren and offer both protection and cosmetic treatment. They are often knurled for ease of tightening and sometimes include integral front sight mounts. Gun barrel protectors are usually made of steel or aluminum and typically stamped or laser etched with thread pitch information.
Thread protectors aren’t always threaded and many are just plain extruded silicone rubber sleeves. These are most commonly used to cover threads on precision bolts, CO2 cylinders and small diameter threaded pipes. The materials used for the pressure protectors are generally silicone rubber, vinyl and polyethylene. These caps can include integral plugs and can provide some degree of pressure sealing as well as protect the threads. This type of protection is often used in the air conditioning and refrigeration industry to seal pipes and service points against the ingress of contaminants.
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