Metallic velcro

Metallic velcro
metalVelcro_02.jpg

From a January, 2010 piece on DesignBoom:

Hook and loop fasteners have become commonplace features of both industry and households. However, they have one snag: they are too weak for many applications. Hook and loop fasteners made of spring steel have now been developed at the Institute of Metal Forming and Casting of the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM).

The device consists of hook tape and loop tape 0.2 mm thick. These fasteners are resistant to chemicals and can withstand a tensile load of up to 35 tonnes per square meter at temperatures as high as 800°C.

Metallic velcro: steel hook and loop fastener

10 thoughts on “Metallic velcro

  1. Matthew Wheeler says:

    There was an announcement about this in September of 2009. A quick google for metallic velcro would have revealed that.

    1. Gareth Branwyn says:

      This isn’t a news site, Matthew. The fact that a technology is ten months old is irrelevant to me. We recently posted a (popular) piece about a scrolling map watch from the 1920s!

      We cover what’s interesting to us, and the fact that 50 people have tweeted or posted this to FB in the last few hours indicates that I’m not the only person who finds it so.

      1. Matthew Wheeler says:

        Well the phrasing of the quote, “Have now been developed,” seems to indicate this just happened, that’s all. I’m aware that you regularly post older technology but this didn’t seem to be billed as such.

        1. Gareth Branwyn says:

          Fair enough. That’s a blockquote, taken directly from the DesignBoom piece back in January. I can see where not leading with something prior to the quote is confusing. I’ve added a lead in to make it clearer.

  2. Don Simpson says:

    Stainless steel hook and loop fasteners have been around for a couple of decades at least. The Velcro rep I talked to back then said the product was mainly used in aerospace and industrial applications. These new designs are very pretty, though.

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Gareth Branwyn is a freelance writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor to Boing Boing, Wink Books, and Wink Fun. His free weekly-ish maker tips newsletter can be found at garstipsandtools.com.

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