Cable Tension Gauge For Correctly Tightening The Stainless Steel Rail Cables

Tensioning the cables of the stainless steel deck railing can be tricky. The cables must be tensioned in a specific sequence. They must be tight enough that a 4in ball cannot fit between the cables (with force) without overtightening and stressing the deck posts or deck to the point of failure and damage.

It is known that the tension required in the cables to meet the code requirements (4in ball test) is 150-300 lbs of tensile force. Wouldn’t it be much easier to tension the cables if the tensile force could be measured as you tighten? It would also guarantee that all the cables have equal tension.

Fortunately, there is a simple tool that can be used to measure the tensile force in the cable during the tightening of the stainless cable deck railing.

The gauge works for several different diameters of cable; 3/32, 1/8, and 5/32 diameter cable. For home deck installs, you will be using 1/8in diameter stainless cable. It’s primarily designed for 1×19 strand cable, and since that’s the ideal strand configuration for cable deck railing, it’s perfect for measuring deck railing cable tension.

The gauge is super easy to use. It is placed on the cable that you are tensioning.

I purchased the gauge on Amazon.

The guage may seem a little bit expensive for what it is. Since it is a quality tool made in the USA, you kind of need to give the price a break. It’s a worthwhile investment for your stainless cable railing install because it will more than payback for itself in time saved and peace of mind.

So, what can be done with the gauge when the stainless cable railing install is completed?

If you don’t have a use for it after the stainless cable railing has been installed, then I recommend reselling it on Amazon or Ebay.

Resell It On Amazon

Listing a used item on Amazon is very easy if there’s already a listing for that item. Goto the tension gauge page, and click on HAVE ONE TO SELL on the right side below the price and Add To Cart button cell.

Amazon Have One To Sell button

Give it a price that you want to sell it at, a short description of the condition, and post it. No picture needed. It’s that simple, and it probably won’t take long to sell.

Resell It On Ebay

Ebay’s a great place to resell something like this after you’re done using. It’s a tiny bit more work to resell on ebay, but the easiest thing to do is to search for one that is already for sale, and then select “Sell One Like This” and it will auto-populate most of the listing for you. Take some pictures, post it and sell it!

We will be happy to hear your thoughts

Leave a reply

DIY STAINLESS CABLE RAILING
Logo
Compare items
  • Total (0)
Compare
0