More than five years of engineering and testing went into the Gates GlobalSpiral (GS) 90° swept elbow Komatsu flange coupling design. In performance testing required by Gates OEM customers, GS couplings surpassed one million impulse cycles at +250°F without stress cracks or failures. Both the stem and ferrule are machined from solid, unleaded steel bar stock for maximum strength. This enables GS couplings to handle working pressures up to 8,000 psi.
The no-skive ferrule eliminates the need for skiving equipment, as well as odours and dust created while removing the protective outer cover from the hose. Ferrules that require skiving are subject to blow-offs when skived improperly. Blow-offs and weeping at the hose/coupling interface also can result from failure to fully insert the stem during assembly. With the two-piece design of the GS coupling, it is possible to pull the ferrule down and check for full stem insertion.