Fittings
What is a sleeve coupler?
A sleeve coupler joins two scaffold tubes end to end, fitting externally over both. It is used where a tube has to be extended in line.
Use this diagram+
Free to use on your own site, in training material or in a course handout, as long as the credit link stays on it. Paste this where you want the diagram to appear.
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<img src="https://scaffoldoptix.co.uk/glossary/sleeve-coupler/diagram.svg" alt="sleeve coupler — scaffold diagram from ScaffoldOptix" width="880" height="620" loading="lazy">
<figcaption>
<a href="https://scaffoldoptix.co.uk/glossary/sleeve-coupler">What is a sleeve coupler?</a> — diagram by
<a href="https://scaffoldoptix.co.uk">ScaffoldOptix</a>
</figcaption>
</figure>An external fitting, which means it works on tube ends that are damaged or out of round where an internal pin would not. It also means the joint is thicker than the tube, which occasionally matters for clearance.
The alternative for an in-line joint is a joint pin, which sits inside the tubes. The two are not equivalent: the external sleeve can carry more than the internal pin, which is why it is used on standards where the joint has to carry load.
Joints in adjacent standards are staggered rather than made at the same lift, whichever fitting is used.
What goes wrong on site
- A joint pin used where a sleeve coupler was needed to carry load.
- Joints in adjacent standards lined up at the same lift.
- Sleeves used on tube whose ends are too damaged to seat properly.