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In search of a gland

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  • Heater. wrote: »

    A cable gland is not any kind of "cable connector".

    A cable connector would require electrical termination.
  • Whatever they're called, a gland with an orifice large enough to pass a USB "A" plug will never compress small enough to seal around the cable behind it. There has to be another way to solve the problem.

    -Phil
  • ceptimusceptimus Posts: 135
    edited 2017-05-12 22:50
    Use a compression type gland big enough to pass the connector through, but don't actually use it as a compression gland. Get some silicone sealant (the type used to seal around bathtubs and shower trays is okay, but there are also some better quality engineering ones available.

    If you have the time, fill the gland with sealant just a few mm at a time and allow each layer to set before adding more. If you're in a hurry you can use the two-part rubbers where you have to mix two components together, like an epoxy adhesive, and then you have a certain time to work before it sets up. Sugru is another way of doing it.

    Beware that some silicone sealants give off acetic acid vapour as they cure - which could cause corrosion if trapped inside a sealed cabinet. If the cabinet can be left unsealed (or periodically opened) over the first few days then this isn't a problem as once the silicone rubber has set there are no further emissions.

    Once the rubber has cured you can tighten the compression gland a bit (assuming the rubber hasn't got into the threads! ) to provide an even better seal.

    A slightly more 'hack' solution I've used on occasion is to wind insulating tape around the cable to build it up to a diameter where the large-enough-to-pass-the-connector-through compression gland can then be tightened on to. Even when you're using the rubber method, tape is still a useful means of producing a temporary stopper beneath the gland to stop the uncured sealant seeping away.
  • @ceptimus, Very good solution, if you wait 24 hours before tightening. Most of the silicone will be cured, except in the center. Tightening after a day, may push un-cured sealant in and around individual wires.

    This gate opener was made by an American company, and I installed it over 17 years ago. They call the part something different, I would have just called it a weatherproof grommet.
    2048 x 1152 - 677K
  • I have been looking for a split rubber bushing that could be used to go around the cable but fill the dimensions needed for the gland to compress
  • Yup, the removable plate found on electrical enclosures such as Hoffman, Rittal, etc., is and always has been referred to as the "gland plate". The plate is removable for easy installation of flexible conduit and cable glands.
  • Unless you have to have a premade cable, seems easiest to buy USB A ends and solder on after running the cable through the gland/stress relief. Or solder the wire end to the board the way some of the off the shelf USB stuff does.
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    Me:
    I would not like to guess where the "gland" terminology comes from but every American electrician knows what "cable glands" are.

    Well, at least the guys at Platt Electrical in San Jose https://www.platt.com/search.aspx?q=glands
    OK. I might have to take that back.

    Today I walked into a Platt Electrical store and asked for cable glands. The guy looked at me like I was an alien. I had to explain what they are. "You mean cord grips" he said. I said no, I mean "cable glands" as shown in the Platt online catalog.

    The transaction went down hill after that. Still, I did get by cable glands.

  • Was it your British accent? :)

    -Phil
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    Ha! Maybe. I forgot to shout loud enough!

    On the other hand he seemed to have very little idea about the products he was selling. For example, insisting we need a half inch drill to make holes for said cable glands. Which are getting on for an inch in diameter.

    Unlike the chap we met there the other week who was very helpful.

  • RS_JimRS_Jim Posts: 1,764
    edited 2017-06-02 23:30
    Heater. wrote: »
    Ha! Maybe. I forgot to shout loud enough!

    On the other hand he seemed to have very little idea about the products he was selling. For example, insisting we need a half inch drill to make holes for said cable glands. Which are getting on for an inch in diameter.

    Unlike the chap we met there the other week who was very helpful.
    Having had the pleasure(?) of trying to hire individuals for a retail electronics environment, I am well aware of the issue.
    Jim

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