Bonding
Utex is a leader in bonding rubber to metal, particularly FFKM, because of the care given to metal surface preparation, material selection, and mold design. These precautions are taken into consideration carefully for each application. Once the molding is complete, the Utex quality assurance team scrutinizes parts. When inspecting a part, they maintain stringent standards for declaring an acceptable level of bonding.
Utex is also capable of bonding PEEK, phenolic and other substrates to both standard and high performance metals. Many of our standard products also include springs, used for anti-extrusion, as you see here.

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Quality Rubber to Metal Bonding
We have conducted many experiments and tests in our lab to validate our rubber to metal bonding capabilities. Through this testing to validate our bond strength, we’ve learned that we want to see rubber to rubber tear. When this happens, it means that the material was the weakest link and what tore first, not the bond.
If the material gives first then there is no separation between the material and the metal. Utex uses proprietary adhesives, which are specifically engineered to bond particular elastomers, to gain a chemical reaction in order to bond rubber to metal.
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Our testing with chemically inert materials, which tend to be more difficult to bond since they have been developed to NOT react, have helped us advance our process to be the leader in bonding rubber to metal. We have developed techniques to get these stubborn inert materials reacting to the adhesives, creating the chemical reaction needed for these difficult bonds. Let our bonding experts help you with your next project.
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Bonded Products Examples
Street Sweeper Brushes
Utex bonds hard rubber onto three feet in diameter of street sweeper impellers allowing the brush to scrape the asphalt without damaging it. High durometer means the rubber will wear more slowly. -
Pallet Jack Wheels
Pallet jack wheels are composed of urethane hoops with a steel hub. The steel gives wheels a rigid form while the urethane allows the wheels to grip and not damage the floor. -
Mud Pump Piston
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Metal End Cap (MEC) Seals
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P Seal
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P Seal SV
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UCS SV Seal
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Wiper Darts with metal cores