<instead of the vinyl, would a small section of heat-shrink tubing work? Ni <it a little longer than the thickness of said ferrule, then hit it with I presume over the gummy roller. The problem is the ferrule for the tu58 is 0.435 od, the roller is 0.625 od. The gummey material does not hold shape in the advanced cases of rot. The tygon tubing has a 0.385 ID and when stretched over the ferrule has a od of 0.610 after grinding. This is adaquate as the tape speed is servo controlled via read back data. Having worked with machines used to produce pharmaceuticals I have a better than average appreciation for various elastic materials. There are many of them to choose from and the urethanes or neopyene are a good choices but Tygon(aka Vinyl) thick wall tubing is a easy one to obtain and use and proven satisfactory. The later ease of availability and use are key in the selection. Allison Allison