Gripper ™ Restraining Gaskets

Instantly restrain Tyton Joint®¹ and American Fastite®² push-on ductile iron pipe, valves, and fittings.

9 Critical Questions You Should Ask Any Supplier of Ductile Iron Restraining Gaskets

1. What is your company’s primary business? At Gripper Gasket, all we do is design, create and produce the most advanced rubber products available in the market. The pipe manufacturer’s expertise is in ductile iron – not rubber! 
2. Where are your restraining gaskets actually made?  All Gripper Gaskets are certified “Made in the USA” in our own plants in California and North Carolina. We never outsource or purchase from private label companies! We do Not produce in Costa Rica, Vietnam not any NAFTA-affiliated country like the other “Buy American” manufacturers do!
3. Where do your gaskets ship from?  Our local Gripper Gasket distributors carry inventory in-stock; however we also carry large inventories in both our California and Tennessee warehouses.
4. How quickly can we get them in-hand?  In many cases you can Will Call them immediately from your local Gripper Gasket distributor, or we can overnight from one of our warehouses.
5. Are your restraining gaskets available for both types of Ductile Iron pipe?  Gripper Gasket manufactures gaskets for both Tyton Joint®¹ (3“ – 24“) and American Fastite®² joint (4“ – 12“) pipe.
6. Do you offer restraining gaskets in different elastomers? Gripper Gaskets are available in SBR, as well as in EPDM and Nitrile (NBR) rubber! In fact, we stock the most complete inventory of specialty elastomers (EPDM & NBR) in the entire INDUSTRY!
7. Have you ever had a warranty claim?  Yes! And in every case the cause of the failure wasn’t a Gripper Gasket, but contractor installation or a bad pipe or fitting – which the pipe manufacturer immediately acknowledged and subsequently took care of the customer with NO warranty fight whatsoever – even though it had a Gripper Gasket installed. Yes, the pipe companies WILL come to the job site and attend to any problem. They will honor your request to figure out the problem in conjunction with the 3^rd party pipe manufacturers. After all, you are their customer, and they want your repeat business. They will NOT leave you hanging. We’ve seen it time and time again. 
8. What would happen if you did have a valid warranty claim?  Gripper Gasket is an established company with sound financial footing and backed by a top-rated insurance carrier. Should there be a warrantied failure, we would quickly step in to correct the issue exactly as our warranty states.
9. How does the manufacturer back up their products?  We at Gripper Gasket are completely focused on producing the very best rubber products offered on the market – anywhere. It’s all we do! We have 100% confidence that our Gripper Gaskets are the very best product offered by anyone – and we back it up. 

Features:

RESILIENT
Stops joints from separating due to thrust forces.

BOLTLESS
Provides a boltless, integral restraining system eliminating nuts, bolts, clamps, thread rods, retainer glands, concrete thrust blocks and expensive labor associated with conventional restraining methods.

DURABLE
The molded bulb shape profile restraining gasket, with dual hardness elastomer in sizes greater than 12“, includes high grade stainless steel teeth vulcanized into the gasket.

CERTIFIED
Gripper™ restraining gaskets are certified to NSF/ANSI 61 by NSF International.

RECOGNIZED
GG Series restraining component is recognized by UL. Representative samples of this component have been evaluated by UL and meet applicable UL requirements.

TESTED
Boltless restraining gaskets (GG Series – similar to Field Lok 350®¹ / FT Series – similar to American Fastite®²) shall be rated to 350 psi and tested in accordance with ANSI/AWWA C111/a21.11.

RANGE OF SIZES
Gaskets are available in sizes 3“ to 24“ in the GG Series, and 4” to 12“ in the FT Series.

Availability of Different Rubber Materials

Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SBR) is our standard rubber compound. Nitrile (NBR) and EPDM rubber gaskets are available upon request. Review the product submittal according to rubber material:

• Gripper GG Series Submittal, please click here
• Gripper GG Series Nitrile Submittal, please click here
• Gripper GG Series EPDM Submittal, please click here
• Gripper FT Series Submittal, please click here

Find a Rep

Find your local Gripper Gasket™ Rep, please click here.

Municipal References

The following municipalities serve as references for Gripper Gasket™ Boltless Restraining Gaskets, please click here.

Field Cut Pipe

Bevel the edge of the field cut pipe ¼” at a 30° angle. Round the leading edge and remove sharp edges which could damage the gasket. When cut pipe with no assembly stripes is to be assembled. See Table 2: Assembly Mark and Deflection here.

When deflection is required at the joint, the spigot should not be completely homed.

Pipe Diameters

Assembly Mark and Deflection

Special Notes Regarding the Use of GRIPPER™ Restraining Gaskets

1. Do not use Gripper Gaskets™ to provide electrical joint conductivity for thawing purposes.   Such use may damage the gaskets.
2. Use Gripper Gaskets™ only in push-on joints which have the trademark Tyton®, Trim Tyton® or Tyton Joint®¹. Use in other joints may result in joint separation.
3. Gripper Gaskets™ should not be used in above ground installations.
4. Do not use Gripper Gaskets™ with corroded pipe.
5. Gripper Gasket LLC has not conducted tests with gray iron or plastic piping products and, therefore, cannot recommend or warrant the use of Gripper Gasket™ with gray iron (pipe, fittings, or valves) or plastic (pipe or fittings).
6. Always make sure the gasket is properly placed in the socket with the sealing bulb or thickest portion of the gasket being deepest in the socket.
7. Use in casings:  Pipelines restrained with Gripper Gaskets™ may be installed in straight casings by pulling, not pushing, the pipe through the casing. Assembly of the joints must be controlled, such as with come-a-longs or cable hoist, to prevent fully “homing” spigot to base of the socket to allow for joint deflection.
8. Do not reuse Gripper Gaskets™.
9. Do not use Gripper Gaskets™ with Tyton Plugs¹ since it is not possible to remove the plug after the joint is assembled.
10. If the maximum joint deflection is necessary, do not push the pipe to the bottom of the socket.
11. For cold weather assemblies, keep the temperature of the Gripper Gasket™ above 40° F.
12. Approximately twice as much assembly force may be required to assemble a Gripper Gasket™ joint as is required for a conventional Tyton®¹ Gasket push-on joint.
13. The Gripper Gasket™ should not be used on pipe and fittings which have thick coatings or tape wrap on the outer diameter of the pipe. In general, if the peen pattern is not visible on the pipe surface, the asphalt coating may be too thick for proper penetration of the teeth of the Gripper Gasket™. The thick coating should be removed from the end of the pipe or fitting before assembly.  The coating must be no more than 2 mils thick for asphalt coating and 6 mils nominal thickness for 2-part epoxy coating on the plain end of the pipe. 
14. Concrete Thrust blocking or other means of thrust restraint is not required to be used with Gripper Gaskets™ when Gripper Gaskets™ are used in a designed thrust restraint system.  The Thrust Restraint Design for Ductile-Iron Pipe published by the Ductile-Iron Pipe Research Association (DIPRA) is one method used to calculate the required length of restraint at a change in direction.  This program is available online at www.dipra.org.
    Pressure Rating:  The working pressure rating of the Gripper Gasket™ Restrained Joint System does not exceed that of the working pressure rating of the pipe in which it is installed.
15. If Gripper Gaskets™ are used in vertical installations, provisions must be made to keep the joint extended and not allow the teeth to become disengaged from the pipe.  Failure to keep vertical joints extended can result in joint separation.
16. For cut pipe, select pipe with diameters or circumferences at the cut location which conform to Table 1: Suitable Pipe Diameters for Field Cuts and Restraint Joint Field Fabrication here.
17.  For cut pipe, ensure that a tapered bevel similar to the one furnished with the pipe is ground on to the end of the pipe.
18. Measure the socket depth and make a mark on the pipe spigot that distance from the end of the pipe.  This mark will indicate when the joint is fully “home”.
19. Keep the joint in straight alignment during assembly, especially when handling fittings.  Do not fully “home” the joint if maximum joint deflection is required.  Set the joint deflection after the assembly is made.
20. Check for correct positioning of the Gripper Gasket™ by inserting a feeler gauge in the space between the bell and the pipe OD in several locations around the socket, to assure that the gasket is in proper position in the socket.

1. “Tyton® & Field Lok® are registered trademarks and properties of United States Pipe and Foundry Company, LLC. Gripper Gasket, LLC is not affiliated in any way with United States Pipe and Foundry Company, LLC.”  2. “American Fastite® is a registered trademark and property of American Cast Iron Pipe Company. Gripper Gasket, LLC is not affiliated in any way with American Cast Iron Pipe Company.”