Our barb fittings are made out of the same high quality 304 stainless steel that we use in our line of brew kettles. This hose barb connector allows you to attach tubing directly to your ball valve. Our barb is specially designed to have a 5/8" OD. This stretches the 1/2" silicone tubing over the barb and thus will not require a hose clamp to stay securely attached to the barb.