Dura-Flex™ Birth Certificate
How Should I Handle My Dura-Flex Cable?

    Congratulations on the delivery of your new
    Dura-Flex™ cable!


    Using the latest manufacturing technologies, your new Dura-Flex™ cable was produced with the finest materials and with safety approvals and the environment in mind. With proper care and handling your Dura-Flex™ cable will last you many, many years.

    Life on the road can be tough, especially on cable. But don’t fret, as every Dura-Flex™ cable is manufactured to take on the rigors of the road and withstand the toughest touring conditions. Don’t take caring for your new cable too seriously and don’t be afraid to trust your own common sense.

    Every time you pick up your new cable, even if it's a little awkward at first, you will begin to understand how your cable wants to be handled. Before you take your cable on it’s first big show, read these short notes and follow our four simple steps to raising a happy and healthy multi-cable.

    Step 1:

    Your cable was coiled on an automatic spooler and is
    anxious to spring into action. As the proud parent, you need to introduce your new cable to the world in the proper
    fashion by first stretching it out flat to help it relax and forget it was cooped up in a box during shipment. Always begin by pulling the end from the innermost part of the coil.

    Step 2:

    Now is the time to listen to your new cable and get a feel for how it wants to behave. While holding the cable 3 feet from the end, continue pulling from the center of the coil. As you pull, sense how the cable wants to unreel and rotate the cable to release any twisting if necessary. If you are sensitive to its needs the cable will tell you how it wants to uncoil. If possible have someone baby-sit the coil, encouraging it to uncoil smoothly, without throwing any temper tantrums (the coil, not the babysitter!)

    Step 3:

    Do something nice for your cable. Proper cable care is not difficult, and the payoff is big for both you and the cable. Cables don’t like to be treated like indentured servants. Take the time to let them know you appreciate what they do for you. Before tucking your cables away in their road case or back on the shelf, stretch them out flat and again release any twisting after each show. Let them relax and unwind, allowing them to erase any bad memories. It takes a little bit of effort, but it’s worth it.

    Step 4:

    Cables love repetition. The best way to coil your cable is first to lay it out as straight as possible, then start coiling from an end, laying each coil over the previous one, allowing the cable to untwist. Don’t fight the cable; let it coil the way it wants to. When finished, fix the coil with a length of tie line or tape. When necessary, you can clean your cables with a damp cloth and/or a mild soap solution. You should check the condition of your connectors regularly, tighten loose strain relief nuts and inspect for damage. Also, a tiny bit of Lithium grease applied to threads will ease the installation and removal. Be careful not to over-lube, as this will attract dirt and debris.

    "Sexing" Your New Cable

    If you have received your Dura-Flex™ cable in bulk or as a pre-cut unterminated length and decide to raise it to adulthood by terminating the cable yourself, you will need to "sex" the ends of the cable before making the connection to your favorite connector. Hold the end of the cable facing you.
    If it looks like this you have the male end and would install the male connector.
    If it looks like this it is the female end and you would install the female connector.
    Keep in mind cables, like teenagers, will only do what they are told to a certain extent. Installing a male end into a female connector will work (it will be hard to do, and it will work), but it will come back to haunt you as it grows up and goes through life.

 

 
 Creative Stage Lighting Co, Inc.
P.O. Box 567
149 Route 28N
North Creek, NY 12853
Phone: (518) 251-3302
Fax: (518) 251-2908
info@creativestagelighting.com

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