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How Duck Tape
is Made

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Tape Glossary

HOW DUCK TAPE IS MADE

This is the story behind the roll – how Duck Tape is made. Before you read any further, you may want to ask yourself, “Do I really want to know this?”

Duck Tape is like magic. And finding out the process for making it is like finding out how a magic trick is done. It is no longer mystery. It becomes science.

So for all you mystery fans out there, you may want to stop right here to preserve the magic. Scientists, keep right on reading.

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Adhesive:

Adhesive is the most expensive component in a roll of duct tape.

The best duct tapes use a graded natural rubber-based adhesive. (Some other brands use reclaimed synthetic rubber or ungraded natural rubber)

All grades of Henkel's Duck® brand duct tape use a graded natural rubber-based adhesive.

Cloth:

Cloth mesh gives duct tape its strength and ability to tear and hang straight.

Poly cotton cloth has been proven to be stronger than nylon/rayon cloth.

Another way of measuring the quality of duct tape is by the number of cloth strands per inch.

Duck® brand duct tapes contain poly cotton cloth, and maintain consistent cloth quality throughout its four grades of tape.

Duck® brand duct tapes' number of cloth strands per inch increases with each increase in the grade of tape. (eg. Professional has more cloth strands per inch than All Purpose Duck Tape®)

Polyethylene:

Polyethylene is one of the most popular plastics in the world. It is used in grocery bags, bottles, toys and even duct tape.

A polyethylene film is what gives duct tape its shine, color and water resistant qualities.

The best grades of Duck® brand duct tape have a heavier polyethylene backing, making them more resistant to water and moisture.

Manufacturing Processes:

Traditional Manufacturing: (Calendar Laminating)

Takes all 3 components (cloth mesh, adhesive, and polyethylene) and laminates them together at the same time under thousands of pounds of pressure. This process is mostly used on colored Duck® brand duct tapes.

Co-Extrusion: (Durabond Construction™)

This process extrudes pellets of polyethylene into the film at the beginning of the manufacturing process and then blends the film with the cotton mesh while the polyethylene is still hot. The adhesive is then smoothed onto the product, resulting in a more consistent product that will not delaminate when exposed to the outdoors. This process is used for all grades of silver Duck® brand duct tapes.

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