Patent ID: 7334336

Claim:
A method for producing a polymer sleeve for mounting on a mandrel having an outer diameter and a length to produce a blanket cylinder or an image cylinder for use in an electrophotographic process, the method comprising the steps of: a. providing a rotatable mold having an inside diameter and a length, the inside diameter of the mold being equal to a desired outer diameter of the polymer sleeve; b. injecting at least one of a thermoplastic, a thermoset, an elastomeric and a polyurethane polymer and blends thereof into the rotatable mold in a quantity to produce the polymer sleeve having an inside and with a desired sidewall thickness upon heating and rotating the rotatable mold, the inside of the sleeve having a diameter from about 1 to about 20 percent less than the outer diameter of the mandrel; and c. adjusting the length of the rotatable mold to produce the polymer sleeve of a length, which upon positioning on the mandrel is equal to the length of the mandrel.