Synthetic Filaments covers 30 brush materials with continuous service temperatures from 70°C to 260°C. The material narrows the shortlist; filament diameter, free trim length and density then set the contact pressure the brush actually applies.
What makes Synthetic Filaments different from other material categories?
Short answer: this category groups 30 materials used as brush fill or brush components, spanning 22 material classes: aramid fiber filament, bio-based nylon, branded polyamide filament, flagged polyester filament, fluoropolymer filament, functional polyamide filament and others.
Continuous service temperature across the category runs from 70°C to 260°C.
Water absorption at 24 hours spans 0.01% to 10%, which is the figure that decides whether a brush holds contact pressure in wet service.
In brush terms: the category narrows the shortlist. It does not set the stiffness. Diameter and free trim then set the stiffness, and they are chosen after the grade.
Which filament materials are available in this category?
The 30 materials in this category, with the behavior that decides each one:
| Material | Key behavior | Best suited for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antibacterial Synthetic Filament | Defined by carrier polymer, diameter and trim | Hygiene-oriented hand, bottle, food-equipment and sanitary brushes using a named treated resin and test method | it does not prove sterilization, antiviral activity, odor prevention or whole-brush hygiene |
| Aramid Fiber | Flexible high-strength fiber | Heat-exposed wiping and wear-resistant flexible contact where metal wire would damage the surface | — |
| Corrugated Filament | The apparent brush body becomes fuller, while actual filament stiffness still comes from polymer, diameter, trim and crimp geometry | Dense rollers, washing brushes and liquid applicators where crimp increases face fullness and fluid carrying | Cannot be selected without the underlying polymer, diameter and crimp specification |
| DuPont Nylon Filament | Medium to firm across available brush-filament grades | Hand, strip, tube, roller and machine brushes made with a named DuPont polyamide grade selected for the service | The commercial phrase cannot by itself support authenticity, food contact, stiffness, heat, chemical or lifetime claims |
| Fiberglass Filament | Firm and dimensionally stable | High-temperature dusting, electrical insulation cleaning and specialty applicator brushes | Brittle under sharp bending and can shed glass fragments |
| Flagged Polyester Filament | Soft to medium | Fine dust pickup, wash brushes, coated panels, vehicle surfaces and delicate equipment | Flagged tips load with sticky residue and are not used for aggressive cutting |
| Flame Retardant Nylon | Set by the specific grade, reinforcement and additive package | Cable-entry, enclosure, appliance and transport brushes built around a named flame-retardant resin grade | — |
| HDPE Filament | Shore D 60–70 | Industrial cleaning and custom brush configurations requiring the stated material properties | — |
| Hollow Nylon Filament | Soft to medium with reduced mass and flexible contact | Gentle washing, liquid transport, foam generation and surface-safe cleaning | hollow sections can retain residue if not washed and dried |
| Nylon PA | Medium to firm | General wet and dry cleaning, conveying, wiping and scrubbing where resilient contact and wear life are both important | The nylon family spans several grades, so heat, moisture and chemical limits should follow the selected PA resin rather than a generic nylon value |
| PA11 Nylon | Shore D 65–75 | Industrial cleaning and custom brush configurations requiring the stated material properties | — |
| PA12 Nylon | Medium to firm | Flexible wet-service, fuel- or oil-contact and low-moisture brush applications where impact resistance matters | PA12 is more flexible and has less heat margin than firmer PA66 grades, so it is not the default choice for high-load hot scrubbing |
| PA46 High-temperature Nylon | Material-specific | Hot-air equipment, drying lines, heated machine cleaning and high-cycle industrial brushes | — |
| PA6 Nylon | High for general brush use | Economical industrial scrubbing, tube cleaning and strip-brush contact in moderate wet or dry service | PA6 takes up more moisture than long-chain nylons, which can reduce stiffness and dimensional stability in continuously wet service |
| PA610 Nylon | Medium to firm | Wet-process rollers, tube brushes and cleaning heads that need lower moisture uptake than PA6 or PA66 | — |
| PA612 Nylon | Medium to firm | Long-life wet cleaning, precision tube brushing and premium roller or strip brushes where stable trim geometry matters | — |
| PA66 Nylon | Medium-firm to firm | Firm industrial rollers, floor scrubbers and strip brushes that need strong bend recovery and wear resistance | — |
| PBT | Medium-firm | Bottle, appliance, electronics and wet-cleaning brushes that need stable stiffness after repeated water exposure | Not for heavy rust removal or high-cutting deburring |
| PE Polyethylene | LDPE is more flexible, while HDPE is the stiffest common PE family | Gentle wet wiping, light sweeping, product guiding and corrosion-resistant brush backing at modest load and heat | Creep, low heat margin, limited cutting action and stress cracking can rule out PE for high-load cores, hot processes or aggressive chemical contact |
| PEEK Filament | Medium to firm | High-temperature process, electronics and chemically demanding specialty brushes where ordinary polymers lose strength | Not needed for low-cost general cleaning where PP/Nylon is sufficient |
| PET Polyester | Medium to firm | Outdoor washing, carpet agitation, brush plates and general cleaning where weathering and low water uptake are useful | Avoid heavy metal deburring or high-temperature wire-brush jobs |
| PPS Filament | Medium to firm | Hot chemical-process rollers, strip brushes and tube brushes that need dimensional stability beyond nylon or polyester | — |
| PTFE Filament | Medium to firm | Chemical-process, laboratory and specialty cleaning where low friction and broad chemical resistance outweigh cutting action | Not ideal when high mechanical cutting or aggressive deburring is needed |
| PVC | Available as rigid board, semi-rigid profile and flexible wiping element can all be PVC formulations | Wet sealing, light wiping and corrosion-resistant strip or board backing where load, heat and solvent exposure are moderate | — |
| PVDF Filament | Material-specific | Chemical-process equipment, acid/alkali washdown, tank and pipe cleaning | — |
| Polyester / Nylon Blend Filament | Soft to firm according to blend ratio | Wet/dry combination brushes, wash brushes and mixed wiping-scrubbing contact | — |
| Polypropylene PP | Soft to firm by size | Washdown, chemical cleaning, food-process and wet sweeping applications at moderate temperature and abrasion | Avoid high-temperature brushing or heavy abrasion where nylon/abrasive nylon is needed |
| Polystyrene Filament | Medium to firm | Dry dusting, low-cost strip brushes, static applications and disposable cleaning tools | Limited heat, impact and solvent resistance |
| TPEE Elastomer Filament | Shore D 35–72 (Grade Range) | Industrial cleaning and custom brush configurations requiring the stated material properties | — |
| UV-resistant Anti-aging Filament | Defined by the carrier polymer, diameter and weathering condition | Solar-panel, outdoor sealing, road-sweeping and exterior machine brushes exposed to repeated sunlight and weather | accelerated weathering does not automatically equal a fixed number of outdoor years |
How do I choose between Synthetic Filaments materials?
Start from the three conditions that separate these grades: working temperature, whether the duty is wet or dry, and what chemistry the brush meets. Those three eliminate most of the 30 before stiffness is even discussed. The table below is derived from the published figures of the materials in this category:
| If your service condition is… | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Hot service, above 80°C continuous | PTFE Filament or PEEK Filament | Highest continuous service temperature in this category |
| Wet, humid or washdown service | HDPE Filament or PE Polyethylene | Lowest water absorption, so contact pressure holds when soaked |
| Heavy residue, aggressive scrubbing | PVC or PPS Filament | Highest filament hardness for point pressure |
| Delicate or coated surfaces | PA46 High-temperature Nylon or TPEE Elastomer Filament | Softest filament in this category, lowest marking risk |
| Fine bores, narrow slots and precision work | Aramid Fiber or PA66 Nylon | Can be drawn to the smallest filament diameter here |
In brush terms: a fine filament of a hard material can be softer in the hand than a thick filament of a soft one. Moisture uptake is the usual surprise: nylon grades absorb water, lose stiffness and gain diameter, so a brush specified dry can be noticeably softer in service.
What brush types use Synthetic Filaments?
Short answer: 9 of the brush constructions in the catalogue are built with materials from this category.
- Custom Handheld Detail Brushes
- Custom Tube & Pipe Bore Brushes
- Custom Roller and Conveyor Brushes
- Custom Polishing Buffing Wheels
- Custom Bottle & Container Brushes
- Custom Strip Seal Brushes
- Custom Floor Scrubber Sweeper Brushes
- Custom Machine Table Brush Plates
- Custom Wheel Brushes
The construction and the service condition together decide the material. Once temperature and wet-or-dry are fixed, this category usually narrows to two or three grades.
How do I specify Synthetic Filaments for my brush?
Provide these together: give the grade, not the family: “nylon” covers PA6, PA6.6, PA6.12 and PA11, and their moisture and temperature behavior differ enough to change the result. With 30 grades spanning 70°C to 260°C, this is the category where two materials that look interchangeable on a datasheet behave very differently once they are wet, hot or in contact with a detergent.
Where food contact applies, say so at the enquiry: it restricts the grade and the colorant, not just the material family. It is not automatically included with every brush.