Glossary

Clear, practical definitions for wire, tube, strip, cable, and profile processing.

Technical dictionary

C terms

12 terms beginning with C

C

CaliberA gauge-type measuring instrument placed between the open straightening rolls to align all adjustable rolls on one line and set a reproducible zero line for the product to be straightened.

Carbon contentThe carbon content of a steel wire governs many of its properties: higher carbon raises tensile strength but lowers elongation to fracture; spring steel wire typically contains 0.4 to 1.0 percent carbon.

CassetteWICAS, the WITELS Cassette Straightening System, encloses the rolling elements of a straightening roll in a sealed housing with a labyrinth seal — extending useful life up to 30-fold and enabling higher speeds and freely designed straightening sheaves.

Causes of stressStress is a material's reaction to external load — an internal resistance force per unit area; plastic deformation leaves internal stresses in a workpiece, and the type of load (tensile, bending) determines the type of stress produced.

Chain-link shirtA protective garment of iron rings worn by knights in combat — an early large-scale application of drawn wire that replaced the coat of mail in the early 12th century.

ChecklistA blueprint for preventing mistakes: a checklist ensures nothing is forgotten and that set-up steps — such as the TMAA sequence of Testing, Maintenance, Adjustment, Action — are performed in the essential order.

Circular pulling throughA pull-off method in which the material is pressed against a driven pulley by a partial or full wrap, with movement produced by the interference fit between pulley and material.

Coarse wire drawingThe historical craft of drawing heavy steel wire, remembered through Johan Gerdes of Altena — the first manufacturer of steel wire there, credited with accidentally discovering the first lubricant for drawing steel wire.

CoilA coil is a wound bundle of endless material (wire, strip, rope) prepared for logistics — how it is laid and later pulled off directly affects helicity and the quality of the straightened product.

CoilerA coiler is a device for winding or unwinding a lengthy process material; it can also create tensile stress and guide the material through the process.

CurvatureCurvature is a deviation from the straight — the reciprocal of the radius of curvature, with the dimension 1/mm.

Curvature course during straighteningThe correct sequence of curvatures the process material passes through during straightening: initial curvature, counter-curvature, and the final curvature remaining after spring back.