Optic fiber breakout assembly with bonded tube assembly and methods and apparatus for manufacturing the same

A method of making a furcation tube assembly, comprising the following steps not necessarily in the order described:

• stripping rearward end portions of furcation tube jackets from a plurality of furcation tubes to expose portions of strength filaments and portions of a plurality of inner tubes;
• retaining the furcation tubes together in a plurality of sub-bundles using tape, each sub-bundle comprising at least two rows of furcation tubes;
• cutting the exposed portions of strength filaments to shorten lengths thereof;
• arranging, and retaining the exposed portions of the plurality of inner tubes in grouped individual rows that correspond to the rows of the furcation tubes of the plurality of sub-bundles;
• stacking the sub-bundles together in a single assembled bundle and coupling the stacked sub-bundles together;
• applying a first bonding substance to the exposed portions of strength filaments and the exposed portions of the plurality of inner tubes to form a bonded tube portion;
• covering the bonded tube portion with a flexible member;
• pressing the bonded tube portion into a forming tool to shape the bonded tube portion;
• removing the forming tool from the bonded tube portion;
• removing the flexible member from the bonded tube portion;
• trimming the bonded tube portion;
• threading optic fibers into the inner tubes in the bonded tube portion;
• and
• coupling the bonded tube portion to a housing.