Guide
How to specify a paper can or paper core
What to measure, and what to tell us, so we can recommend a specification quickly. Rough numbers are fine to start.
1. Inner diameter
Inner diameter (ID) is the distance across the inside of the tube, in millimetres. It is the most important number, because it decides what fits inside a can, or what shaft a core slides onto.
- For a can: measure the widest point of what goes inside (a stack of chips, a bottle, a jar) and allow a little clearance.
- For a core: measure the shaft, chuck or mandrel it has to fit on.
- From an existing pack: measure across the open end, inside edge to inside edge.
Our current ranges are 52–150 mm for composite paper cans and 25–120 mm for paper cores. Curling can diameters are made to order.
2. Height or length
For cans, the height is the outside height of the finished pack. For cores, the length is usually the width of your roll or what your machine requires. Both are made to order.
3. Wall thickness (cores)
If you know it, tell us the wall thickness. If you only know the outside diameter (OD), the wall is half the difference: wall = (OD − ID) ÷ 2. If you don't know either, tell us what is wound and roughly how heavy a full roll is, and we will recommend a wall.
4. What it's for
Tell us what is packed or wound and how it is handled: how it is filled, how the customer opens and recloses it, where it is stored and sold. This decides the inner surface, the ends and the closure.
5. Quantity and destination
An estimated monthly quantity, or the size of a one-off order, and the delivery country and city.
6. Anything you already have
A sample of your current pack, a drawing, or a photo with a ruler next to it saves time. You can attach files to the quote request or send them on WhatsApp.