Industry’s Best Welding Cable

We know it’s a tall claim – claiming our ToughFlex™ welding cable is the industry best. We stand behind that statement. By the end of this article we are confident you will too.

What Makes a Welding Cable Quality?

When it comes to welding, there are many critical qualities important for choosing the best welding cable for your job. Here we cover the top components of a quality welding cable:

Durability

Your cable needs to be durable. If not, you are looking at serious hazards. ToughFlex™ cable is jacketed with EPDM that resists cuts, tears, abrasion, grease, oil, water, and flame – tested to prove its long-lasting durability.

Safety

If you don’t know your welding cable’s safety ratings, you put end-users of the cable at risk. ToughFlex™ is rated to meet National Electrical Code Article 630 electric welders with operational temperature ranges from -40C to 105C. Meets UL VW-1 flame test as outlined in UL1581.

Conductivity

Once you have durability & safety covered, then you want the benefits of high conductivity. ToughFlex™ is manufactured with high-quality annealed 30-gauge bare copper conductor – making its conductivity top-notch!

Flexible

Along with excellent conductivity, you don’t want to sacrifice ease of use. ToughFlex™ comes with both exceptional conductivity and high flexibility. A combination of our copper stranding and EPDM jacket allows superior flexibility above other welding cables.

What Makes ToughFlex™ The Industry’s Best Welding Cable?

ToughFlex™ meets all the criteria above as we touched on already. This is why we believe it has continued to be the best-selling welding cable available and are confidient it will continue to do so.

ToughFlex™ is extremely durable. It is jacketed with an EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer). This synthetic rubber jacket excels in resistance allowing ToughFlex™ to prevent cuts, tears & abrasion and withstand grease, oil, water, and flame.

ToughFlex™ undergoes intense testing and analysis proving its safety for welding. ToughFlex™ is rated to 600 Volts, meets the National Electrical Code article 630 electric welders, and UL VW-1 flame test outlined in UL1581. Along with the extensive testing, Kalas’ has more than 60 years in manufacturing copper wire & cable, touting a history of expertise. Therefore we are able to put our customers’ minds at ease by knowing they are receiving a product manufactured by experts in the field.

One of the top reasons ToughFlex™ is the best welding cable is its conductor – our copper. It’s Annealed 30 (0.010) gauge bare copper conductor with class K stranding. We start with 5/16” copper rod and with our rod mill we are able to draw down the copper to a finished gauge ready for jacketing. This gives Kalas complete control of the quality, efficacy, and craftsmanship of each product. The fine Annealed 30 gauge (0.010) bare copper conductor makes ToughFlex™ extremely flexible and easy to work with, coil and store. At Kalas, we are proud of our manufacturing process and the complete control it offers to our customers.

Lastly, something Kalas offers through owning the manufacturing process of our cables – is options in lengths, colors, packaging, finishing, and more. So whether you are looking for bulk welding cable or a bulk order of welding cable leads and extensions, we offer that. ToughFlex™ comes in #6 – 250MCM and virtually endless possibilities of customization. We offer ToughFlex™ in the standard black along with Blue, Green, Red, and Yellow jacket colors. We stock 250 ft. and 500 ft. reels, making orders in those increments extremely easy to ship right out the door including cut lengths in 25’ increments. Some colors and gauges are made to order or not stocked items, so reach out to the Sales team for ordering.

We also offer full-service completion of assemblies so customers can buy finished whips, leads, and grounds right from us in a wide array of welding connectors from top brands such as Lenco and Tweco. You can also order custom packaging for distributors – uncrushable boxes, coils in shrink wrap bags, and large reels are all available options. Want to customize your cable even further? You can order custom print legend and even indent print that will not rub or wear off.

So, whether you are looking for a custom welding extension cut and ready to weld, or bulk welding cable reels you can use for various applications, we are here to support you. Reach out to our customer support team who are ready and able to support every need large and small. Have questions? Fill out our contact form and our sharp & caring team members will answer them. Ready to have a welding cable you can trust to do the job, suit your needs, and not fail you? Reach out through our request a quote form today!

We look forward to supplying your welding cable needs and satisfying your desire for a cable that is better than the rest!

Looking for orange jacketed welding cable with even greater flexibility? Check out our FlexWhip™.

Kalas ToughFlex™ Reel

ToughFlex™ Welding Cable

We stock 250 ft. and 500 ft. reels, making orders in those increments extremely easy to ship right out the door quickly including cut lengths in 25’ increments.

ToughFlex™ Kalas Welding Cable

Welding Cable Assemblies

We offer full-service completion of assemblies so customers can buy finished whips, leads, and grounds right from us in a wide array of welding connectors from top brands such as Lenco and Tweco.

Colored ToughFlex™ Welding Cable

Colored Welding Cable

ToughFlex™ comes in #6 – 250MCM and virtually endless possibilities of customization. Available in the standard black along with Blue, Green, Red, and Yellow jacket colors.

Happy Holidays from Kalas – 2021

As 2021 comes to a close, we want to wish all of our customers and Kalas family and healthy & joyful holiday. It’s been an eventful two years. We are extremely grateful to be able to serve our customers through this time with clarity & quality and we couldn’t do it without each caring & dependable member of our Kalas Family. 

Our Kalas associates were invited to enter their children’s drawings to be chosen as our holiday cards this year. To wish everyone a happy holiday, we selected two winners from the cheery entries to send out as our official holiday card.  

Congratulations to the winners –

  • Hannah Tobias, Grade 6, daughter of Roxanne Welsh, Lancaster plant 2nd shift Production Supervisor (Merry Christmas Card)

  • Alexis Bair, Grade 4, daughter of Jaime Bair, Lancaster plant 3rd shift Production Supervisor (holiday wreath & snowy scene)

We hope these cards bring you a smile this season. Thank you to all who entered their drawings! 

Have a wonderful holiday & we wish you a happy New Year!

Kalas Exhibits at FABTECH 2021 in Chicago

This week Kalas exhibits at the FABTECH Expo at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois.

After one year hiatus due to Covid-19, it’s s great opportunity to meet our Kalas team, see the quality of our products in person and browse the wide range of first-class suppliers in the metal forming, fabricating, and welding industry.

Stop by to see the Kalas team in booth B33034. The show runs today, September 13, through Thursday, September 16. You can view events and speakers live at fabtechexpo.com as well as find details about the show.

We are excited for the chance to bring our products and our exceptional customer service to Chicago this week to reach more of our Kalas partners and meet attendees looking for quality welding cable with reliable programs that suit their needs. Can’t wait to see attendees there! 

 

Honoring Over 1,000 Years of Service at Kalas

This past year of social distancing and safety precautions meant putting a pause on any in-person gatherings. Before 2020, we would celebrate several times a year our associates who had reached milestone anniversaries of working at Kalas. It had been over one year since Kalas had the chance to gather all associates who reached a service anniversary of 5 years or more.

With the return of safely being together, our HR team coordinated a big two-day celebration for all of our associates who reached a memorable anniversary during 2020 and this first half of 2021. Under a big tent, we invited all honorees and their supervisors for a time of celebration to honor and recognize their presence as a part of the Kalas family. During both events, each honoree was specially thanked and was given space to share if they wanted memories or comments from their time with Kalas. It was so heart-warming to hear repeated how many of our long-tenured associates truly considered Kalas a family. There were also special memories shared of how much change had been seen over some 30-40+ years with Kalas.

We are humbled and grateful for each individual we get to call family and especially want to thank those who surpassed a meaningful anniversary over this past year and a half. Please read through the names below, congratulate and thank them for their time, and enjoy the photos from our corporate celebration.

Thank you, honorees! We are so grateful we get to call you family.

Below is a list of our honorees recognized alongside the number of years they have been a part of our Kalas family:

DAVID HACKMAN 40
CRAIG HERSHEY 40
GREGORY SMITH 35
KIMBERLY WEACHTER 35
DANIEL FRITZ 35
TERRY SHREINER 35
MARK NAUMANN 35
TIMOTHY GARDECKI 30
STEPHEN FRITZ 30
PHILIP ENTERLINE 30
CHERYLL HIGH 30
STEVEN REINHART 30
NGIA KHA 25
ROBERT LUDWIG 25
TAMMY WENRICH 25
JANET EBERLY 25
SHERRI EBBERT 20
SHANE BERGMAN 20
JULIAN MUNOZ 20
PAUL SWEIGART 20
JAIME BAIR 20
GWENDOLYN WAGNER 15
EDWIN GUTIERREZ CORREA 15
CASPER HANG 15
JUAN DIAZ 15
LANCE ELTZ 15
JAMES ROMAN 15
LEGAYEUR CELISSAINT 15
MIA YVETTE CRAFT 15
JENNIFER JOHNS 15
HOUA SCOTT KUE 15
JANELLE ZWALLY 15
NYDIA ACEVEDO-GALVAN 15
LIZETTE VELEZ-COLLAZO 15
TRAVIS WEITZEL 15
JOHN PRICE 15
SONYA SIMS 10
CINDY PELKER 10
BRIAN MITCHELL 10
MICHAEL MORGAN 10
MATTHEW BACK 10
LISA MARIE MARTZALL 10
ALEX MERCER 10
ANDREW STONE 10
MAXINE LEE KURTZ 10
ANGELICA PENA 10
LUE VANG 10
KYM CALABRETTA 10
COLIN STARKS 10
RICHARD SCHWEITZER 10
TERRY TEMPLIN 10
ERIC DOTSON 10
DONNA HENRETTY 10
DAVID BOERNER 10
RONALD SHANK 10
CARLA SWEIGART 10
CHRISTIAN MAY 10
SHELLY ACEVEDO 10
ERIK WEITZEL 10
CAMERON WOYURKA 10
GARY BOYER 10
CYNTHIA DEA HOFFNER 10
KELLY SHIRK 10
CHRISTIAN NIETO 5
EVELYN DAVID 5
CHRISTOPHER FISHER 5
JERRY HARTWELL 5
JEFFERY CHAAPEL 5
EDWIN SILVA 5
ROXANNE WELSH 5
LUKE LONABERGER 5
AMADOU GARBA 5
DANIEL BARDSLEY 5
PATRICIA HOBBS 5
JESSE FOULK 5
WESLEY MORALES 5
OMAYRA GONZALEZ 5
VERONICA JOHNSON 5
STEVEN ENSOR 5
GEORGE HITCHENS 5
JOHN PORTILLO 5

If you’d like to work at a place that feels like family and celebrates your milestones:

Apply today to join the Kalas family!

Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition
Kalas Manufacturing Honoring and Celebrating Associates - Employee Recognition

2020 Kalas Christmas Card Designs

This year we once again went to our associates to design our 2020 Kalas Christmas card designs. We opened the contest to all associates with dependent children to create and send in drawings to be selected. The entries were all adorable and we are grateful for each child who created a design as well as for the associates who participated. It was a treat to see them come in!

This year we selected 2 card designs and made equal quantities of each to send to our associates, customers & community to say Happy Holidays and how thankful we are for each of them.

Congratulations to the winners –

  • Easton Hall, age 5, son of Dan Hall, Kalas plant 2 Supervisor who drew the snowman
  • Alexis Bair, age 8, daughter of Jamie Bair, Kalas Lancaster Supervisor who drew the reindeer

We hope each and every recipient of our holiday cards this year and every person reading this blog post has a safe, joyful, and healthy holiday. Here’s to making the most of the season in this unique year and toasting to a great start to 2021!

2020 Kalas Christmas Card Designs

Quality Characteristics of Kalas Flexible Cord

Flexible Cord – also known as Flexible Cable, high-flex or continuous flex cable, or Flex Cord is one of the less understood cables in our product catalog and can require a lot of technical knowledge to know which kind and what options to select. That could be because the use for Flex Cords is vast and the need for selecting the right type is high lest you run a safety hazardThat’s why we wanted to offer this article to provide some education about our Flexible Cord products and how Kalas is a superior choice to supply your flexible cord needs.  

What is Flexible Cord? 

To put it simply, flexible cords are often the cable used to take power from a source directly to its end-use application. Examples of that could be for use in lighting fixtures, small and large appliances, vacuum cleaners, and more. At Kalas, we manufacture three cables in our Flex Cord category – they are our Extra Hard Service Cord, which we understand is a deceiving title since “Extra-Hard” and “Flexible Cord” seem to be contradictions which we will explain, Hard Service Cord, and our SVT/SVTO cords. The reason the first two products listed have the word “Hard” in their title while technically being Flexible Cords, is that term signifies their jacketing is up to withstanding “hard” use. These two cords, our 600V Extra Hard Service Flexible Cord and our 300V Hard Service Cord, are supremely jacketed to safely distribute power and withstand the often-significant bend radius required when using or installing Flexible Cords. 

For example, think through a common service cord like one that plugs in a small appliance in your home – that cord may be used over and over, and you may bend it into a tight space to fit into your outlet. Therefore, it would be important that your cord is constructed safely enough that the copper stranding and insulation within it is built properly so it will not fray and will be able to stay as goodasnew over the life of the appliance. That’s what our hard” flexible Cords provide.  Below we will describe the unique qualities and variety of Flexible Cords we offer so you can better determine which would suit your application the best. 

Extra Hard Service 600 Volt PVC & TPE Flexible Cord 

First, we will talk through our Extra Hard Service 600 Volt PVC & TPE Flexible Cord. This cord is one of the products with the most selection when it comes to choosing your gauge and various options. That means with Kalas you can create the exact small or large enough cord to power and withstand the use your application reqiures.

We offer 18/2, 18/3 18/4, 18/5, 16/2, 16/3, 16/4, 14/2, 14/3, 14/4, 12/2, 12/3, 12/4, 10/2, 10/3, 10/4, 8/3, 8/4, 6/3, 6/4 , 6/3, 8/1, 4/3, 4/4 gauges and special stranding upon requestYou can also select bare or tinned copper as your conductor which can give you an option that is able to withstand corrosion or soldering to a higher degree. Lastly, we also offer our customers the option of jacketing with PVC (polyvinyl chlorideor a TPE (thermoplastic elastomermaterial which can give you a little more assurance of resistance to abrasion as well as chemicals. 

So depending on your use, you can create the exact 600 Volt Flexible Cord you’ll need. Each cord is insulated with PVC, meets the UL and CSA requirements for your selected construction so you can be confident in the quality, safety, and reliability of the cord you receiveWe can manufacture each cord to your liking to be ST, STO, STOO, STW, STOW, STOOW, SE, SEO, SEOO, SEW, SEOW, or SEOOW. We realize that’s a lot of information and can be confusing – all that to say, we are here for you, knowledgeable, and able to create the exact 600 Volt Flexible Service Cord you need. 

300 Volt Hard Service Cord 

Second, we would like to highlight our 300 Volt Hard Service Cord which is also available with your choice of a bare or tinned copper conductor and with PVC or TPE jacketing, insulated with PVC and constructed to meet UL & CSA requirements. This product we can manufacture for you in gauge 10-18 with 2, 3, or 4 conductors. The reason you would select this cord over our 600 Volt really depends on your job. We highly recommend viewing and understanding the NEC (National Electric Code) which goes into detail as to what cord you need, but typically our 300 Volt Flexible Service Cord is placed in small appliances like space heaters, electric fans, and similar small electric devices. The benefit of ordering flexible cord from Kalas, is that you get expertise and options. We can manufacture your cord to be SJT, SJTO, SJTOO, SJTW, SJTOW, SJTOOW, SJE, SJEO, SJEOO, SJEW, SJEOW, SJEOOW, SJT-R, SJTO-RSJTOO-R, SJTW-R, SJTOW-R or SJTOOW-R or 18/3, 16/3 and 14/3 fillerless cord – all of which will be manufactured with the same excellence that comes from our 60-year history in manufacturing copper wire & cable and our vast team of highly specialized engineers. Quality you receive when you buy from Kalas which other companies may not be able to.  

Both of our 600 V and 300 V Flexible Cords can be customized to have special stranding, non-wicking polypropylene, reinforced paper, or jute fillers and customizable inkjet print legend or PermaPrint™ indent print that will last the lifetime of the cable. Simply reach out and let us know what you need and we can make your cord a reality. 

SVT & SVTO Cords 

Lastly, we want to highlight our SVT & SVTO Cords. SVT stands for Service Vacuum Thermoplastic and SVTO stands for Service Vacuum Thermoplastic with Oil Resistant Jacketing. This cord is used in Vacuum Cleaners, Food processors, or Office Equipment for the most part. It comes with a bare copper conductor insulated and jacketed with PVC with an operating temperature of -40°C to 105°C.

You can order this cord in 18/2, 18/3, 17/3, 16/2, or 16/3 gauge all of which will be manufactured to meet the UL Standard 62 for Flexible Cord and CSA requirements give you the reliability and assurance you need to assure end-users of safety. The 18/2 and 18/3 gauges can be fillerless enhanced with a micro-poly strength member for mechanical strength. 

The composition of this cable provides excellence in durability because the conductors within are twisted with or without fillers. This twisting of the strands offers a tensile strength that can withstand high usage and bending – a perfect construction for something like a vacuum cord which needs to remain safe and reliable when frequently yanked and turned every which way! We also offer this with non-wicking polypropylene, reinforced paper, or jute fillers and custom print.  

Conclusion 

We hope this article has helped to increase your understanding of our Flexible Cord selection, why we call them “Hard Service Cords and helps anyone in the market for these types of cables to see the superior construction, customization, and support ordering from Kalas provides. We can handle any question you may have regarding our Flexible Cords and have highly attentive, informed, and educated customer service representatives that help make your experience of creating and ordering Flexible Cord from Kalas a positive experience. 

So, if you’re confused or just want to talk through options for any of these cables, reach out today. We would love to provide the answers you need or if you’re ready, we can give you quotes and lead times right away.  

Thank you for choosing to research your cable before buying. Safety is of the highest priority with these cables and we want to help everyone receive the quality they need when ordering and using Flexible Service Cords!  

Kalas Flex Cord 600V Wire and Cable

Kalas Extra Hard Service 600 Volt Flexible Cord

Bare or tinned stranded copper conductor insulated with PVC and jacketed with PVC or TPE to conform to UL and CSA. PVC available 105°C. TPE available 90°C or 105°C. ST STO STOO STW STOW STOOW / SE SEO SEOO SEW SEOW SEOOW and over 20 gauge options.

Kalas Flex Cord 300V Wire and Cable

Kalas Hard Service 300 Volt Flexible Cord

Bare or tinned stranded copper conductor insulated with PVC and jacketed with PVC or TPE to conform to UL and CSA. PVC available 60°C or 105°C. TPE available 90°C or 105°C. SJT SJTO SJTOO SJTW SJTOW SJTOOW / SJE SJEO SJEOO SJEW SJEOW SJEOOW SJT-R SJTO-R SJTOO-R SJTW-R SJTOW-R SJTOOW-R and 10-18 gauge with 2, 3 or 4 conductors.

Kalas Flex Cord 300V Wire and Cable

Kalas SVT & SVTO Cords

Bare copper conductor insulated with 105C PVC, twisted with or without fillers, and jacketed with 105C PVC to conform to UL and CSA. Rated for 300V. *18/2 and 18/3 fillerless enhanced with a micro poly strength member for mechanical strength.