Flexco Hawk vs. Peanut Butter: An Identification Chart for the Flexco Alligator Line

I reject about 1 in 12 incoming deliveries

I'm a quality/compliance manager at a material handling company. I review every inbound order before it goes into inventory—roughly 250 unique line items a month. In 2024, I rejected about 8% of first deliveries. The cause is rarely manufacturing defects. It's identification.

A carton shows up with the right part number on the label, but the purchase order used a nickname. Or a crew lead calls for a “Hawk” and expects a “Peanut Butter” because both live in the same Flexco catalog. You'd think that would be simple to avoid. It isn't.

The most frustrating part? The fix is cheap. A little time with an identification chart, and the whole problem disappears. Here's the framework I use: compare the confusing names across three things—function, location, and how a wrong order shows up. Then check the identification chart below.

Flexco and Alligator are not the same level

Flexco is the manufacturer. Alligator is a product family under Flexco. When someone says “Flexco Alligator,” they're usually talking about mechanical belt lacing—hinged, wire-hook fasteners that join belt ends in the field. When someone writes “flexco - alligator” in a search, they probably want the rest of the Flexco line: belt cleaners, lagging, tools, and maintenance materials.

The history matters. Flexco has been in Grand Rapids for over a century. The Alligator brand became so dominant that a whole generation called any wire-hook lacing “Alligator.” That was understandable in the 1950s. It's a problem today, because a brand name is not a category.

So when I see a purchase order that says “Flexco Alligator” and nothing else, I flag it. Which Alligator product? Lacing? Staple lacing? Hinge lacing? The product family name gets you into the right aisle. It doesn't get you to the right shelf.

The Hawk/Peanut Butter confusion is real

Why compare a bird and a snack? In Flexco's catalog, they're not related. But in a receiving area, they end up on the same order, and people use the names interchangeably.

A Hawk is a secondary belt cleaner. It mounts on the return side of the conveyor and scrapes carryback off the belt.

Peanut Butter is a lagging seam sealer and rubber repair compound. It's thick, sticky, and used to fill joints between pulley lagging sheets or repair small cover damage.

One is hardware with a blade. The other is a material that comes in a cartridge or pail. They don't do the same thing. The problem is that they're often on the same maintenance budget line, so a rushed shopper treats them as interchangeable. They aren't.

Hawk vs. Peanut Butter: Three ways to tell them apart

1. What they do

A Hawk removes material from the belt on the return side. It reduces carryback and keeps spillage from building up along the structure. A Peanut Butter, on the other hand, is not a cleaning tool. It's a sealing and repair material. You use it to close gaps in lagging and keep material from migrating under the rubber.

Conclusion: if the goal is a cleaner belt path, you need a Hawk. If the goal is a smoother lagging surface, you need Peanut Butter.

2. Where you see them

Look inside a conveyor transfer area and you'll find a Hawk mounted below the head pulley, with blades pressed against the belt. It's mechanical, visible, and usually bolted to a cross member. Peanut Butter is more likely to be in a toolbox on the floor, inside a caulk gun or a pail. It's applied to a lagged pulley during scheduled maintenance, at the seam between two sheets of lagging.

Conclusion: if it's bolted in place, it's a Hawk. If it's going on as a bead or a trowel patch, it's Peanut Butter.

3. How a wrong order reveals itself

When someone ships a Hawk to replace Peanut Butter, the receiving team sees a box that's too light and contains no compound. When someone ships Peanut Butter in place of a Hawk, there's no blade, no frame, no spring tensioner. The mistake is obvious—after you open the carton. Before you open it, the label only says “Flexco.” (Note to self: this is why we scan packing slips, not trust window labels.)

This is why I check the product family on every line item. The family code or the product page description is more reliable than the common name. Per Flexco's product literature on flexco.com (as of January 2025), Hawk is described as a belt cleaner and Peanut Butter as a lagging seam material. The descriptions don't overlap.

The identification chart I post by the receiving dock

Here's the short version I give to new employees. It isn't exhaustive, but it catches the three biggest mistakes.

• Flexco—the company. Not a product. If the order says just “Flexco,” treat it as incomplete.
• Alligator—mechanical lacing product family. Hinged metal fasteners for belt ends. If you see teeth or wire hooks, you're in the right family.
• Hawk—secondary belt cleaner. Steel frame, spring tension, replaceable urethane or ceramic blade.
• Peanut Butter—lagging seam sealer and rubber repair compound. Thick, adhesive, applied with cartridge or trowel.

That chart has caught more order mistakes than any training session I've run.

What should you order?

It depends on your problem, not on what's familiar.

Use Alligator when you need a mechanical splice that can be installed quickly and removed for maintenance. Use Hawk when carryback is creating safety, housekeeping, or tracking problems. Use Peanut Butter when lagging seams are opening up or you have a small rubber cover repair that's too minor for a full splice.

I have mixed feelings about nicknames. On one hand, “Alligator” and “Peanut Butter” prove that a product earned trust. On the other hand, they create returns and downtime. The compromise I use: write the common name in the comment field, but always put the full part number on the purchase order. And when you buy through a Flexco safety supply listing, ask them to confirm the product family code before they ship.