ISO 29862
Peel Adhesion Test for Self-Adhesive Tapes

Downloads: ISO 29862 Tape Peel Adhesion Fixture – Universal Grip Data Sheet (PDF)

Written by Chris Thomas, Universal Grip Company · Reviewed by Frank Bertini · Updated October 31, 2026

ISO 29862 is the international test method for measuring the peel adhesion of self-adhesive (pressure-sensitive) tapes: the force needed to peel a strip of tape from a standard stainless steel panel, from its own backing, from a liner, or (for double-sided and transfer tapes) from either adhesive face, at a fixed angle and a fixed rate. Tape manufacturers, converters, label makers and the engineers who buy tape for automotive, electronics, medical and packaging assemblies all use it, usually alongside or instead of ASTM D3330. The test looks simple, but small things move the number: a panel cleaned with the wrong solvent, a roller pass made too fast, a dwell time that drifts from one minute to five, or a 90° peel whose angle quietly opens up as the tape comes off. This guide covers the current edition, methods, test pieces and panels, conditioning, machine requirements, the Universal Grip 90° peel sliding table, tester choice, procedure, a worked calculation, reporting, common errors and related standards.

ISO 29862 at a glance

• Current edition: ISO 29862:2024 (third edition, December 2024), prepared by ISO/TC 61/SC 11 with CEN/TC 193 and adopted unchanged in Europe as EN ISO 29862:2024. It replaces ISO 29862:2018, which replaced the 2007 first edition; the EN ISO version superseded the older EN 1939.

• Scope: four 180° methods (peel from stainless steel, from the tape's own backing, double-sided and transfer tapes, and release of the liner), plus normative Annex A (peel at low temperature) and Annex B (peel at 90°).

• Test piece: a strip of tape about 300 mm long; earlier editions specify a 24 mm width for Method 1, with narrower tapes tested at their own width. Confirm widths in the 2024 text.

• Standard panel: stainless steel 1.4301 to EN 10088-2, 2R bright annealed finish (published editions specify roughness and minimum panel size; see below).

• Application: a rubber-covered 2 kg roller passed twice in each direction along the strip at a controlled speed.

• Peel rate: 300 mm/min (5 mm/s).

• Atmosphere: 23 °C ± 1 °C and 50 % ± 5 % RH unless otherwise agreed; the 2024 edition adds a 16 h conditioning time for test samples.

• Result: mean peel force over a defined length of the trace, expressed per 10 mm of width (N/10 mm, numerically the same as N/cm).

• Related standards: ASTM D3330, AFERA 5001 and EN 1939 (historic European tape methods), FINAT FTM 1 and FTM 2 for labels, ISO 29863 (static shear), ISO 29864 (breaking strength and elongation), ISO 8510-1 and ISO 4578 for adhesive bonds.

What ISO 29862 measures and who uses it

Peel adhesion is the force per unit width needed to separate a tape from a surface at constant speed. Adhesive wetting and tack, cohesive strength, backing stiffness and peel geometry all contribute. That is why the standard positions these methods as quality-control tools: they show whether adhesion is uniform within a roll, between rolls and between production lots. The standard itself cautions that the measured peel force is not normalised to a fixed stressed area, so the numbers are not a sound basis for ranking one manufacturer's tape against another's, or for predicting how a joint will behave in service.

• Tape and label manufacturers use ISO 29862 for release testing, lot certification and data-sheet values.

• Converters and die-cutters check incoming rolls and verify that lamination, slitting and storage have not changed adhesion.

• OEM buyers in automotive trim, electronics, appliances and construction specify a minimum peel value on drawings and supplier agreements.

• Adhesive formulators compare coat weights, tackifiers and cure conditions, often with the 90° and low-temperature annexes.

The four methods and two annexes

• Method 1, peel from stainless steel at 180°: the reference test. Tape is rolled onto a clean steel panel and peeled back on itself.

• Method 2, peel from its own backing at 180°: tape is applied to the backing of another strip of the same tape that is bonded to the panel, which matters for tapes that are wound or overlapped in use.

• Method 3, double-sided and transfer tapes at 180°: one adhesive face is covered with a film so each face can be tested in turn.

• Method 4, adhesion of the liner at 180°: the force to remove the release liner from the adhesive.

• Annex A (normative): peel adhesion at low temperature, for tapes used in cold service.

• Annex B (normative): peel adhesion at 90°, which reduces the influence of backing stiffness and is the method the Universal Grip sliding table is built for.

Test pieces and test panels

Sampling discipline is written into the method. Published editions tell you to discard the outer three to six wraps of a roll, unwind the test piece at a fast, steady rate (around 500 to 750 mm/s, or as close as the unwind force allows) and apply it to the panel within five minutes of unwinding, so the adhesive surface has no time to pick up dust or relax. Cut test pieces with a precision cutter that has parallel blades; earlier editions call for cutting widths of 12 mm and 24 mm with blade spacing held to ± 0.1 mm. The 2024 edition amended the cutting device description, so check the current wording before you buy or make one.

For Method 1 the test piece is a strip about 300 mm long, 24 mm wide in earlier editions. Tapes narrower than the standard width are tested at their own width and the width is reported. Never trim test pieces with scissors.

Stainless steel panels

Earlier editions specify panels of stainless steel 1.4301 to EN 10088-2 in 2R (bright annealed) quality, with a surface roughness of 50 nm ± 25 nm, at least 125 mm long, 50 mm wide and 1.1 mm thick, and flat. Panel surface is one of the largest sources of lab-to-lab scatter, so buy panels to the specification, mark one face as the test face, and retire panels that are scratched, dented or stained. When you order the Universal Grip sliding table, give us the plate size and thickness you use so the table and clamp bar match.

Panel cleaning

Panels are cleaned with a sequence of solvent wipes using lint-free tissue, finishing with a volatile solvent such as acetone or methyl ethyl ketone, then left to dry for at least 10 minutes before use. Earlier editions also require panels unused for 10 hours to be cleaned again, and new panels to be wiped ten times with the final solvent. The 2024 edition revised the permitted solvent list, partly for occupational safety, so take the list from the current text rather than an old work instruction.

How many test pieces?

ISO 29862 is written per test: you remove one test piece for each test you perform. The published text does not fix a minimum number of test pieces per roll, so the number belongs in your product specification or customer agreement. Most labs test three to five pieces per roll and report the mean and the spread; a single value is rarely enough to judge a lot.

Conditioning and test atmosphere

Unless the parties agree otherwise, condition and test at 23 °C ± 1 °C and 50 % ± 5 % relative humidity. If your lab cannot hold those tolerances, use the closest conditions you can and report them. The 2024 edition added a 16 h conditioning time for test samples in 5.4.1, which removes the old ambiguity about how long a roll must sit in the lab before testing. Many PSAs change noticeably with temperature, so lab drift shows up in control charts. For Annex A, the panel, tape and roller are conditioned and the test is run at the specified low temperature, which calls for a temperature chamber around the test space.

Test speed and machine requirements

The method calls for a constant-rate-of-extension (CRE) tensile tester that separates the clamps at 5.0 mm/s ± 0.2 mm/s (300 mm/min ± 12 mm/min). Earlier editions limit the force reading error to 2 % and require at least one force reading per millimetre of peel, which is only five readings per second at 5 mm/s. In practice you want much faster sampling: tapes that stick-slip produce sharp peaks and troughs that a slow logger averages away.

• Force range: most single-coated tapes peel at a few newtons to a few tens of newtons on a 24 mm strip; foam and high-performance acrylic tapes can be higher. Choose a load cell so the test force falls in its upper range, not its first 2 %.

• Travel at 180°: the crosshead moves twice the length peeled, so 75 mm of peel (25 mm ignored plus 50 mm measured) needs about 150 mm of crosshead travel plus slack in the tab.

• Travel at 90°: with a sliding table the crosshead moves about the same distance as the length peeled, and the table moves sideways by the same amount.

• Rate check: verify crosshead speed with a stopwatch and scale or a calibrated displacement check; a frame running at 280 mm/min will read low on rate-sensitive adhesives.

The Universal Grip ISO 29862 90° peel sliding table

The Universal Grip ISO 29862 peel fixture (part ref. UGC-ISO29862-PF) is a 90° peel sliding table for self-adhesive tapes, built for the Annex B method. The test plate rides on bearing rollers, and a cable linked to the crosshead moves the table as the tape is peeled, so the peel point stays under the load cell and the peel angle remains 90° throughout the test. That is the point of the design: a 90° peel on a fixed plate turns into a shallower and shallower angle as the peel front walks away from the load line, and the force changes with it. See all our peel fixtures and the peel testing overview.

• Bearing-roller carriage gives low-friction table travel, so the table adds as little as possible to the measured force.

• Cable linkage synchronises table movement with crosshead travel.

• Spring-loaded clamp bar holds test plates of different thickness.

• Knurled thumb screws allow quick plate changes between test pieces.

• Adapters included to suit your load frame, clevis pin or threaded.

• Load capacity: 500 N typical; other capacities on request.

• Construction: steel and aluminum alloy; the test plate sits on the low-friction sliding table.

• Compatible frames: electromechanical universal test machines.

When you order, specify the test plate size and thickness, tape width, required capacity and your test machine connection. Specifications are typical and may vary by configuration; we confirm them at the time of quote. For the 180° methods (1 to 4) you do not need the sliding table: the panel goes in the lower grip and the folded tab in the upper grip. Light-capacity pneumatic grips or vise grips work well, and pinch grips suit thin tape tabs.

Choosing a testing machine

Mark-10 motorized testers for QC

For tape QC, a Mark-10 F-series motorized tester is usually the right size. The F105 (100 lbF, about 450 N) covers almost all single-coated and double-sided tapes, and the F305 (300 lbF, about 1.3 kN) gives headroom for foam tapes or wide test pieces. Both have 457 mm of travel and a standard speed range of 13 to 330 mm/min, so 300 mm/min sits inside the standard range with ±0.2 % speed accuracy. Data is sampled at 5,000 Hz, which captures stick-slip peaks easily. The F505 is only needed if the same frame will also run higher-force tests. See all tensile testers.

Galdabini universal testing machines for R&D

A Galdabini benchtop UTM such as the 2.5 kN or 5 kN model suits development labs that run peel, shear, tensile and tack-related tests on the same frame, want full test-method programming and reporting in software, or need Annex A. Galdabini environmental chambers cover −80 °C to +280 °C. Tell us if you plan to run the 90° sliding table inside a chamber so we can confirm the fit and the cable routing at quote stage.

Extensometers and accessories

Peel tests do not need an extensometer or video extensometer: the result depends on force and peel length, and crosshead displacement is enough to locate the 25 mm and 50 mm zones of the trace. The accessories that matter are the right adapters for your frame, a load cell sized to the force, light-pressure grips for the tab, and a dedicated, calibrated 2 kg roller and cutter.

Step-by-step: ISO 29862 Method 1 and the Annex B 90° variant

• 1. Condition the tape rolls (16 h in the 2024 edition) and the panels at 23 °C and 50 % RH.

• 2. Clean the panel with the specified solvent sequence and let it dry for at least 10 minutes.

• 3. Prepare the roll: discard the outer wraps, then unwind and cut a test piece about 300 mm long at the standard width.

• 4. Make a tab: fold a short length at one end back on itself (earlier editions use 12 mm) so the adhesive does not touch the grip.

• 5. Apply the tape to the panel without stretching it, then pass the 2 kg roller twice in each lengthwise direction at the specified rolling speed (10 mm/s in earlier editions) to remove trapped air. Do not press with fingers.

• 6. Start the dwell clock. The standard dwell is 1 minute between application and test; record any other dwell agreed with the customer.

• 7a. For 180° (Method 1): clamp the free end of the panel in the lower grip, fold the tab back on itself and clamp it in the upper grip, aligned so the tape peels straight.

• 7b. For 90° (Annex B): fit the panel under the spring-loaded clamp bar on the sliding table, check the cable linkage is tensioned and the table moves freely, and clamp the tab in the upper grip directly above the peel front.

• 8. Zero the load cell with the tab clamped but slack, then start the test at 300 mm/min.

• 9. Peel until at least 75 mm has been separated, watching for adhesive transfer, splitting or backing stretch.

• 10. Evaluate the trace: ignore the first 25 mm of peel and average the force over the next 50 mm.

• 11. Repeat with a fresh test piece and a freshly cleaned panel area for each test, then report.

Calculations and worked example

Peel adhesion is the mean force over the evaluation length divided by the test piece width, expressed per 10 mm: P = F × 10 / w, where P is peel adhesion in N/10 mm, F is the mean force in newtons over the 50 mm evaluation zone and w is the test piece width in millimetres. Earlier editions report to the nearest 0.1 N/10 mm.

• Test pieces: five strips, 24 mm wide, Method 1, 180°, 1 min dwell.

• Mean forces over the 50 mm zone: 17.6, 18.1, 17.2, 17.9 and 18.3 N.

• Mean force: (17.6 + 18.1 + 17.2 + 17.9 + 18.3) / 5 = 89.1 / 5 = 17.82 N.

• Peel adhesion: 17.82 × 10 / 24 = 7.425, reported as 7.4 N/10 mm (7.4 N/cm).

• Spread: standard deviation of the five forces is 0.43 N, a coefficient of variation of about 2.4 %.

• Converting for an ASTM comparison: 7.425 N/10 mm × 2.5 = 18.6 N/25 mm, or about 742 N/m. The conversion only changes units; results at different dwell times, panels or angles are still not interchangeable.

For the Annex B 90° test the arithmetic is identical. Expect 90° values on the same tape to differ from 180° values, because the backing bends differently at the peel front.

Typical results and what to report

Results depend entirely on the tape. Masking and paper tapes often fall in the low single figures of N/10 mm, general-purpose packaging and electrical tapes somewhat higher, and acrylic foam or high-performance tapes higher again, sometimes high enough that the backing stretches or tears before the adhesive lets go. The failure mode matters as much as the number.

• Adhesive failure: clean release from the panel; the normal, valid mode for Method 1.

• Cohesive failure (splitting): adhesive left on both surfaces; report it, since the value then reflects adhesive cohesion.

• Adhesive transfer: adhesive left on the panel; report it as anomalous behaviour.

• Stick-slip (zippy) peel: a saw-tooth trace; report the mean as specified and note the behaviour, and consider reporting peak and trough values separately.

• Backing stretch or break: the result is a lower bound on adhesion; report it.

Your test report should include a reference to ISO 29862:2024 and the method or annex used, identification of the tape and roll, test piece width if not the standard width, dwell time if not 1 minute, test conditions if not standard, the panel material, the individual and mean peel adhesion values in N/10 mm, any anomalous behaviour such as transfer or splitting, and any deviation from the standard.

Common errors

• Dirty or worn panels. Fingerprints, solvent residue and scratched panels are the number one cause of scatter. Clean every time and retire damaged panels.

• Old work instructions. Using the solvent list or conditioning practice from the 2007 or 2018 text after the 2024 changes.

• Rolling by hand pressure or at the wrong speed. Use the specified roller, mass and passes, and let the roller's own weight do the work.

• Uncontrolled dwell. A test piece left 10 minutes instead of 1 will usually read higher; time every dwell.

• Stretching the tape during application. Stretched backing stores energy and changes the peel.

• Angle drift in 90° tests. A fixed plate lets the angle change as the peel front moves; use a sliding table that keeps the peel point under the load cell.

• Misaligned 180° peel. If the tab is not clamped in line with the strip, the tape peels at an angle across its width and reads low.

• Averaging the wrong zone. Including the start-up peak or the end of the strip in the mean biases the result; evaluate only the specified 50 mm.

• Wrong load cell. A large load cell reading 10 N in its first 1 % of range adds error that dwarfs lot-to-lot differences.

• Slow data sampling. Undersampling hides stick-slip and makes zippy tapes look smoother than they are.

ISO 29862 vs ASTM D3330 and related standards

• ASTM D3330: the North American tape peel method, with several methods for 180° and 90° peel, own backing, liner release and double-coated tapes. It shares the ISO approach (stainless steel panel, 2 kg roller, 300 mm/min) but differs in panel specification, units, dwell options and reporting, so treat results as comparable in trend, not interchangeable. Our ASTM D3330 guide covers that method.

• EN 1939 and AFERA 5001: the earlier European tape methods that ISO 29862 replaced; old specifications quoting them usually map onto Method 1.

• FINAT FTM 1 and FTM 2: 180° and 90° peel methods for self-adhesive labels, common in the label industry.

• ISO 29863 and ISO 29864: companion tape standards for static shear adhesion and for breaking strength and elongation.

• ISO 8510-1: 90° peel of a flexible adherend bonded to a rigid adherend with a structural or flexible adhesive, rather than a tape on a standard panel.

• ISO 4578: floating-roller peel resistance of high-strength adhesive bonds, the ISO counterpart of ASTM D3167.

• ISO/IEC 10373-1: the 90° peel strength test for identification card layers, a related low-force 90° peel geometry.

• ASTM D6862 and ASTM D903: 90° and 180° peel of adhesive bonds, often used when a tape is evaluated on a production substrate instead of standard steel.

Equipment summary

• Fixture: Universal Grip ISO 29862 90° peel sliding table (UGC-ISO29862-PF), 500 N typical capacity, clevis or threaded adapters. See peel fixtures.

• 180° grips: pneumatic grips, vise grips or pinch grips for the panel and tab.

• QC tester: Mark-10 F105 or F305 motorized tester.

• R&D frame: Galdabini 2.5 kN or 5 kN benchtop UTM with software.

• Low-temperature testing (Annex A): Galdabini environmental chambers, −80 °C to +280 °C.

• Machine connection: adapters for your load frame.

• More on adhesives testing: adhesives applications and the peel testing guide.

ISO 29862 FAQ

What is ISO 29862?

ISO 29862 is the international standard for determining the peel adhesion properties of self-adhesive tapes. It defines four 180° methods (peel from stainless steel, from the tape's own backing, double-sided and transfer tapes, and liner release) plus normative annexes for low-temperature peel and 90° peel.

What is the current edition of ISO 29862?

The current edition is ISO 29862:2024, the third edition, published in December 2024 and adopted in Europe as EN ISO 29862:2024. It technically revises ISO 29862:2018, adding definitions, a light hand roller, a 16 h conditioning time and a revised solvent list, among other changes.

What peel speed does ISO 29862 use?

The clamps separate at 5.0 mm/s ± 0.2 mm/s, which is 300 mm/min ± 12 mm/min, for both the 180° methods and the 90° annex.

What width should the test piece be?

Earlier editions specify 24 mm for Method 1, cut with a precision parallel-blade cutter, and about 300 mm long. Tapes narrower than the standard width are tested at their own width, and the width is reported. Check the 2024 text for the current wording.

How is ISO 29862 peel adhesion calculated?

Ignore the first 25 mm of peel, average the force over the next 50 mm, then divide by the test piece width and multiply by 10 to express the result in N/10 mm. For example, a mean of 17.82 N on a 24 mm strip gives 7.4 N/10 mm.

Is N/10 mm the same as N/cm?

Yes. 10 mm is 1 cm, so the numbers are identical. To compare with values per 25 mm (roughly per inch), multiply N/10 mm by 2.5.

What does Annex B of ISO 29862 cover?

Annex B is the normative method for peel adhesion at 90°. The tape is peeled at right angles to the panel, which needs a fixture that keeps the angle at 90° as the peel front moves, such as the Universal Grip sliding table.

How does the Universal Grip sliding table keep the angle at 90°?

The test plate rides on bearing rollers, and a cable linked to the crosshead moves the table as the tape is peeled. The peel point stays under the load cell, so the angle remains 90° throughout the test.

Is ISO 29862 the same as ASTM D3330?

No, but they are close relatives. Both peel tape from stainless steel with a 2 kg roller at 300 mm/min, but panel specifications, units, dwell options and reporting differ, so results are comparable in trend rather than interchangeable.

What dwell time does ISO 29862 use?

The standard dwell is 1 minute between applying the tape and starting the peel. Longer dwells are allowed by agreement and must be reported, because adhesion usually rises with dwell time.

What tester do I need for ISO 29862?

For tape QC a Mark-10 F105 (about 450 N) covers most tapes at 300 mm/min with 457 mm of travel. For R&D or low-temperature work, a Galdabini 2.5 kN or 5 kN benchtop UTM with an environmental chamber is the better fit.

Can ISO 29862 compare tapes from different manufacturers?

The standard presents its methods as quality-control tools for uniformity within and between rolls and lots, and notes that the peel force is not normalised to a fixed stressed area. Use it to control a product, and qualify competing tapes on the real substrate and joint design.

Need a fixture, grips or a complete test system for ISO 29862? Contact Universal Grip with your material, specimen size and machine connection and we will quote the right setup.