FostaPEX trim question

Scott_Mountain_View_CA

I bought the Viega prep tool and tried it out on a 1/2" tube. Check out the pic....is it normal that the tool removed more outer layer than necessary? I fed the tube all the way to the stop on the 1/2" cutter.

Snowmelt

it doesn't look like its all the way in, look at the eye on the sleeve. the black is suppose to be covered all the way. in the picture it looks like its stooped. is it cut straight.

hot_rod

You can usually adjust that depth of cut with the screw that Holds the blade into the tool. I had to adjust mine to cut deeper to work on some TRV compression fittings.

If not put a sliver of the tube up into the tool to create a shallower stop.

Bob Bona_4

Yup its normal on the brass fittings. The EP fittings accept the skinned part down the crimp. In either case, look for the skinned black part Iin the crimp inspection holes. If it's there, you're bottomed. Don't stress if the tubing cut isn't machine shop true. Do the best you can. Using scissor type cutters?

the skinner tool will stop cutting once it'sreached the right depth. Chuck it up to a cordless drill.

in your pic, I would recut as square as you can and re-skin. Try to cover the crimp sleeve windows on both sides. You can just be at the edge of the deep part of the hole and it's good. You'll get the feel of when things bottom out.

I would not mess with the factory cutter depth. You'll be too shallow on the EP fittings. Accept that about a 1/16 plus exposed skinned edge will show on the brass fittings. This came about when Viega retooled the brass fittings to have the crimp sleeve integral with the fitting.

Scott_Mountain_View_CA

I used a tube cutter, same one as I use on copper. The cut is perfectly square. And the tubing was bottomed out in the brass fitting. Bob is correct, the problem is with the brass fitting...the seat is too shallow. Here's pic of the same tube inserted into a poly fitting. A perfect fit. Not sure why Viega has different specs for brass and poly. I guess for brass fittings I'll have to nibble with the prep tool to get the correct depth of cut for brass.

hot_rod

The small exposed black tube does not alter the integrity of the connection. Is it just a cosmetic issue?

I had this concern long before they brought the EP fitting over here? Maybe the strip tool was developed for the EP fitting in Europe first.

if you plan on using the tool for both types of fittings, a simple removable spacer could be used to limit the depth for the brass fittings, maybe.

Bob Bona_4

It's purely cosmetic. Before the integral sleeve, there were only brass everything, and the sleeves sold seperate. The seperate sleeves/brass setup let the skinned part get fully buried like you see with the current EP fittings. With the integral sleeve change, the knurling on the fitting hub changed dramatically too. The EP fitting hubs followed suit. Harder to twist after crimp for those minute adjustments but i suspect an even better joint.

In the beginning when the integral sleeve/brass stuff came out I was a little disappointed at the appearance, but I'm over it. More important things to obsess about

Scott, a rachet pex scissor would make your life much easier and things much faster!

Scott_Mountain_View_CA

I should have mentioned that I'm using FostaPEX...I figured any scissor type cutter would crimp and deform the metal layer.

Bob Bona_4

No, any slight deformation will come right out once you crimp.

hot_rod

Keeping the blade razor sharp is the key to cutting pex with a scissor cutter, especially the aluminum layer stuff. Drag a sharpening stone across the blade every now and then.