Cloth insulation Tape

[Harry WilkesParticipant @harrywilkes58467]

Not wishing to highjack Tim's thread but his question brought to mind the black cloth type insulation tape we used prior PVC tape, around here it was known as Blackly tape do other members remember it ?

H

[Harry WilkesParticipant @harrywilkes58467]

[vintage engineerParticipant @vintageengineer]

Still use it!

[John Billard 1Participant @johnbillard1]

…and it can still be bought. Even smells the same. Much better than the plastic stuff particularly when the glue goes off.

John B

[Paul LousickParticipant @paullousick59116]

We are showing our age if we say that we remember it. I think it had a bitumen base as an adhesive. Have not seen it for sale, here in Oz.

Paul

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

I think it was known as Empire Tape in NZ, think I still have some.

Ian S C

[john fletcher 1Participant @johnfletcher1]

Empire tape in my day was smooth yellow tape which we bound up the end windings of motors/generator and stuck the end down with some black stuff, the name of which I can't remember. It was in sticks about and inch wide, we warmed it with a flame so that it melted a bit and then sort of smeared it onto what ever we wanted sticking down. Maybe it was sticks of pitch, long before modern material were available. In the winding shop store we had many different insulation materials. Elephant hide comes to mind, so does syster flex in different diameters. That Black so called insulation tape was used extensively by electricians, it was rolled in onto what ever, sort of up side down so that it was really tight fit. I'm not sure just how good it is/was insulation, wise compare to modern tapes. Maybe not so good, as the adhesive driers out with time, never seen it for sale for years. John

[AdrianRParticipant @adrianr18614]

Many many moons ago I had some Blacky tape, it was pre-Internet days and I did not realise it was still available. I started using self amalgamating tape. It is sort of a modern equivalent.

For those that dont know it, it is a black silicon rubber tape, it does not have adhesive, you stretch it and wind it round, after a few hours it fuses together. Great for repairing nicks in cable outer sleeving.

Also good for cable strain relief, if you have a cable that always breaks near the tool, a few winds of tape works a treat to stop it happening again.

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