Grain, feed and agriculture
Gum Rubber Sleeves and Flex Connectors for Grain, Feed and Agriculture
In grain the part is usually called a flex connector or a spouting sleeve, and it lives everywhere two pieces of spouting have to join without transmitting vibration. Bucket elevator heads and boots, distributor outlets, bin fills, and every drop between a leg and a spouting run.
We cut and hot vulcanize them to whatever diameter your spouting actually is. That matters here more than in most industries, because grain equipment is full of sizes nobody stocks. Send the measurement, get a quote back within 24 hours.
Where the sleeves live
Four spots wear out first. All of them are custom parts we make every week.
Bucket elevator head to spouting
The flex connection off the head that isolates the leg from the spouting run.
Distributor outlets
Short sleeves at each outlet leg. Usually the same size across the whole distributor.
Bin and silo fill drops
The last connection before material enters the bin. Dust control as much as flow.
Aspiration and bin vents
Light duty, small diameter, mostly a dust seal with a little vibration to absorb.
The size that comes up most is 8 5/8 inches, because it fits over 8 inch nominal pipe and round spouting. It is also the size we hear the most complaints about, since almost nobody carries it and the ones people find are cold-bonded. A glued overlap under a band clamp creeps and then splits at the clamp line, usually in the middle of harvest when there is no time to deal with it. Ours are cured under heat and pressure so the overlap is one piece of rubber.
A word on vocabulary, because it costs people money. In grain, the boot is the bottom section of a bucket elevator, the housing where the belt turns around the tail pulley. When you call a supplier and ask for a boot, that is what they will think you mean. The rubber sleeve you are actually after is a flex connector or a spouting sleeve. On a concrete plant the same rubber part is called a boot. Same part, two industries, opposite words.
A 1/4 inch wall is the working default across grain and feed. Whole grain is not especially abrasive, but the sleeve flexes constantly and a thin wall fatigues at the clamp. Step up to 3/8 inch on scaled feed, pellets with grit, or anything running hot out of a cooler. If the line is food or feed contact and you need an FDA-grade compound, say so in the notes and we will quote that material instead.
Common sizes for grain, feed and agriculture
Every size is made to order. These just quote fastest.
6 5/8" × 1/4" × 12"
Downspouts and vents
See the 6 5/8 inch gum rubber boot →8 5/8" × 1/4" × 12"
Elevator and spouting flex
See the 8 5/8 inch gum rubber boot →10 3/4" × 1/4" × 14"
Main spouting runs
See the 10 3/4 inch gum rubber boot →12 3/4" × 1/4" × 18"
Large leg connections
See the 12 3/4 inch gum rubber boot →Example application
8 5/8 inch flex connectors on grain elevator spouting
Between a bucket elevator head and a spouting run, at distributor outlets, and on bin fill drops.
This is the size where cold-bonded seams give out first. The band clamp squeezes the glued overlap, the seam creeps, and it splits at the clamp line. A hot vulcanized overlap is cured rubber with nothing in it to peel.
What we need to quote it
The spouting outside diameter, the wall you want, and the gap plus overlap. An old part number works if the part is gone.
Send your measurementsQuestions from grain, feed and agriculture
Do you make food or feed safe sleeves?
Yes. FDA-grade compounds are available for food and feed contact. Note the application in the RFQ notes field and we will quote the right material instead of standard gum rubber.
I need a boot, not a flex connector. Which do I ask for?
In grain, the boot is the bottom housing of a bucket elevator. The rubber part between two pieces of spouting is a flex connector or spouting sleeve. If you want the rubber part, give us the inside diameter, wall and length and the terminology sorts itself out.
Have your measurements?
ID, wall, length. That is all we need to quote it.
Will-call pickup
Pick up your order in Englewood
AG Rubber Co2780 Raritan St
Englewood, CO 80110
303-339-1240
Will-call hours: Monday to Friday, 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Local plants: call ahead and most standard boots are ready for same-week pickup.