Why Matching Is Important

Brand Matching Is Crucial 

Brand matching amongst hydraulic hoses and hydraulic fittings is a hugely debated topic, you will often encounter assemblies utilizing one brand hose and another branded hydraulic fitting, these hoses will often fail. Failure of an assembly often is not linked to the misuse of brands, thus leading to room for debate. Hydraulic hoses are created from rubber and steel typically, there are hoses that are created from different materials, however, when we discuss hydraulic hoses in this blog we are discussing hydraulic hoses made from steel and rubber. Hydraulic hoses created out of these materials are known to perform well with regards to durability and pressure, this is because of the material layering engineered within the hydraulic hose. For example, one wire hydraulic hose has the inner tube component, where the fluid travels through, and then it has a layer of steel that is braided to protect the inner tube and then covered in rubber to protect both the steel braiding and the inner tube of the hose from abrasion, and other elements it may be exposed to. As you may have imagined there are different levels of rubber hydraulic hose but they all have a similar engineering concept behind the design, transfer energy from one place to another efficiently, and safely.

When a company engineers and manufactures the hydraulic hose, they are engineering the hose to correspond with SAE standards, these standards allow for the company to follow SAE developed guidelines but also remain competitive inside the hydraulic hose industry. With each brand of hydraulic hose the manufacturing company can determine what size they should make the inner diameter, inner tube, of the hose. SAE standards allows ten thousandths of an inch difference, therefore, often you will see these hose manufacturers creating to their own set I.D. that is within tolerances provided to the industry by SAE.

It is very important to match brands when creating a hydraulic hose assembly. When a company makes hydraulic hose they will test the hydraulic hose and various branded fittings to determine compatibility. These results are then reported by the manufacturer of the hose to allow insight for the end user on what hydraulic fittings are best for that brand of hose.
Typically, you will find that the hydraulic hose manufacturer and the hydraulic fittings manufacturer look to each other to determine size standards, but again these can vary by the thousandth of an inch. Therefore, you will see companies test crimping different brand onto the manufactured hose to determine if there is acceptance for other brands. After testing the hydraulic fitting brands on the hydraulic hose the manufacturer of the hose will provide information regarding what brand safely correspond with the hydraulic hose brand being used.

When crimping a hydraulic hose the machine is set to specifications that have been determined by the hose manufacturer, these specifications can only be made after determining the best branded, and fitting hydraulic hose end. Without this information available a hydraulic hose assembler should not progress with the task cause unknown crimping specifications cause more issues then they will correct. 

As a key player in Charlotte, North Carolinas industrial fluid power market we have seen all kinds of examples of hydraulic hoses that have been outfitted with different branded hydraulic fittings typically, when we see a hydraulic hose the hose has critically failed. Here at Custom Hydraulics and Design we utilize Eaton hose and Eaton hydraulic fittings to minimize the risk of hose failure. By using a hydraulic hose fitting that is a different brand than the hydraulic hose itself the assembly has an increased risk of experiencing: 

• Shortened Lifespan of hose

• Insufficient crimp

• Over crimping 

• Complete Failure Of hose

To prevent these issues from arising with hydraulic hose assemblies the best precautionary step the hose assembler can take is to create a hydraulic hose assembly is using the hydraulic fittings that are approved for a certain brand of hydraulic hose. By completing this the efficiency and safety of the hydraulic assembly will be improved.

In conclusion, the best way for a hydraulic hose to operate efficiently, safely, and reliably is to ensure that the manufacturer of the hydraulic hose you will be utilizing has approved the manufacturer of the hydraulic fittings that you wish to use. By ensuring these things the risk of component failure, loss in energy and liability is greatly reduced.