Blanking plugs BP11 dark gray

PE is a tough and light material that suits this type of part very well. It takes oils, greases and most of the cleaning agents found in a workshop; it does not crack during fitting and it never corrodes. Unlike plugs in steel or aluminum, PE does not scratch the paint around the hole, and the matte surface hides the small handling marks that show immediately on glossy parts. Polyethylene is also the same material family used in cutting boards and food crates; it is easy to keep clean and does not take on odors. A normal indoor industrial environment is no problem for the material, and the exact temperature limits are in the manufacturer's data sheet.

The uses are concrete. Machine builders plug mounting holes that are left over when a component is dropped from the design. Maintenance departments cover holes after removed sensors, cabling and signs. In cabinet building and panel assembly the plugs close prepared holes that are not used in the current configuration, and in series production they are a cheap way to give the same basic chassis several versions without changing the sheet metal work. It sounds trivial. But a panel full of open holes lets in dust and chips, chafes against cabling and looks unfinished to the customer.

For maintenance there is one more point: the plugs are a quick way to restore a machine after a rebuild. Holes left open tend to become unofficial mounting points for cable ties and makeshift solutions; a plugged panel signals that the job is done. Many machine builders therefore specify blanking plugs in the parts list rather than letting the fitters improvise on the floor.

Fitting needs no tools beyond your thumb, or possibly a rubber mallet. The part is pressed into place by hand, done. If it has to come out again it is pried out with a plastic spatula and rarely takes any damage from it. Worth knowing is that PE stiffens in the cold; if the part has been standing in a cold place, fitting goes easier once the plugs have been indoors for a while.

Blanking plugs BP11 are injection molded protective parts in polyethylene (PE) that work as cover caps for socket head screws to DIN 912 and hide the screw head. The series comes from a Swedish manufacturer of machine elements and is used in the workshop industry to give frames, covers and panels a finished look without open holes. The surface is matte and the color is dark gray, which makes the part blend in against painted profiles and sheet metal instead of drawing the eye.

The series covers nine sizes that fit socket head screws from M4 to M20, with a main diameter from 7 to 30 mm. The overall height stays at 1.5 to 4.5 mm depending on the size. You pick the size as a variant directly on the product page, and the dimension designations follow the manufacturer's data sheet so you can check the fit against your drawing before you order.

A practical piece of advice when choosing a size: start from the thread of the screw, not from how big the cap looks. Every size is made for a particular socket head screw, from M4 with a 3 mm hex key size up to M20 with a 17 mm hex key size, and a cap forced onto the wrong screw size sits neither neatly nor safely. And order a few extra; small parts of this kind have a tendency to disappear in the workshop.

The pack size is stated in the manufacturer's data sheet. If you need several colors or sizes for the same project, the whole series is gathered in the category, with the dimensions specified per variant.

Do you need a data sheet or more dimensions before you order? Contact us directly.