Supergluing your fingers together

I suppose if you didn't want something permenant, it might work well.

Is that a clue to your usenet nick?

When dried, it's non-toxic. In liquid form, the volatiles are a problem if they get to the mucus membranes. Repeated use can also cause one to develop an allergy, with flu-like symptoms:

I've glued a few cuts together without much difficulty. It stung a bit when applied, but that went away rapidly.

Hmmm.... looks like the common adhesive (methyl 2-cyanoacrylate or ethyl-2-cyanoacrylate), is different from the veterinary glue (n-Butyl cyanoacrylate), which is different from the surgical glue (2-octyl cyanoacrylate).

I have to agree on the brittleness problem. It's so handy, that I tend use it on items where urethane, RTV, or epoxy would be more appropriate.

Where I've used SuperGlue successfully are:

1. Custom rubber o-rings
2. Glass and ceramic repairs. I think my coffee cup has had the handle superglued in 3 different places.
3. Hard plastic parts where the break is clean and has not been stretched or bent. If the plastic is soft and/or bends, CA will not work.
4. Tacking large parallel surfaces together.
5. Tacking SMD components to a PCB before soldering. A toothpick works well as an applicator.

I collect stones. When something breaks, superglue works very well.

Thee are some newer formulations on the market which are intended to be less brittle, and thus able to handle more impact that the standard formulas. The one I bought (Gorilla brand) says that it's reinforced with rubber particles. I infer that the rubber both reduces stress within the adhesive during compression or tension (thus reducing the tendency for cracks to start) and also helps prevent cracks from propagating through the material once they do start.

I've made my first experimental use of the Gorilla rubber- reinforced variety, gluing a set of hardwood scales to a pocketknife handle. I'll be quite interested to see how the knife holds up with time. I know I'm taking a risk, not fastening the scales to the handle with small screws... but the scales are hand-finished olive burl and I just couldn't bear to drill holes in it.

When I worked at a hi-fi store, we used to super-glue tone-arm bases onto the metal surface of the Lux turntable arm mount (rather than cutting screw holes into the surface). This allowed the mount to be reused for a different arm, simply by holding a block of wood against the tone-arm base and striking it with a hammer.

I use it to splice "O" rings into custom sizes. If done properly [clean single edge razor blade, square cut] holds up well as a VCR drive belt, even in a swimming pool vacuum line leaf trap. Using a telfon "v" block would help alignment but I've managed without. .

The square cut (butt splice) doesn't work well. The problem is that the hardened super glue goes across the diameter of the rubber o-ring. If this diameter is compressed in any way, the superglue cracks, and the o-ring falls apart. This is especially important for internal o-ring seals, which use o-ring compression to maintain pressure. I've done bench tests on various methods and found butt splices lacking. It will work with a flexible adhesive, such as RTV, but not rock hard CA glues.

Instead, try a 45 degree bevel cut. If you have an old 1/4" magnetic tape splicer, there's usually a form and guillotine blade suitable for the purpose. I do it without any alignment aids, which is good enough. My favorite cutting device is a safety razor or surgeons scalpel.

When glued at a 45 degree angle, you get a larger surface contact area for the glue. The joint is also less in tension and more in shear, which does make it slightly weaker. I haven't noticed any measureable difference when I did some stretch tests. The 45 degree splice also allows the o-ring to be compressed in almost all orientations, without cracking the CA glue joint.

I dropped my "Arkansas white" stone while putting the finishing touches on a kitchen knife. The break was right across the middle of the 7" long stone. I put a bit of superglue on the broken surface and pressed the parts back together. The pieces went together so well that you can't see, much less feel, the break. And the stone is still going strong after more than fifteen years.

Isaac

Sure. It worked fine for me gluing carbide to tool steel. Far from brittle, it was the most compliant of the three materials. It held a ton or so of force in another application, gluing stainless tapers together (for an ultrasonic drill tip).

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How do you use "just a little" with the viscosity almost of liquid helium and coming in aluminium tubes of a gauge almost the same as tin cans it seems impossible to squeeze out a small drop, only. I must adopt the storage in small airtight bottle with (non cotton) sachet of activated silica gel inside. Hopefully then it will be more amenable to squeezing out just enough to wet a needle point to transfer to the intended.

There's a trick. I use bottles with a stainless tube for dispensing cyanoacrylate adhesive. Something like this.

As soon as you use it, the stainless tip will clog. No problem. Find a cancer stick igniter, and heat the stainless barrel. There will be a small puff of noxious smog as the CA burns off, and the tip is clear.

It's quite easy to dispense just one drop with a stainless tip and quite difficult with a CA encrusted plastic tip commonly found in the hardware store CA products. If you want a smaller drop, try a smaller dispenser barrel.

Noted. I will try to upgrade my technique.

Easy; you just smear it on with your finger 8^}

Isaac

Some newer formulations can be brushed on; they don't go off as fast, and it's a lot easier to get the joint properly aligned than it used to be.

Also, some formulations will work fine with things like paper or cardboard, too.

Isaac

You put a drop of it on a bit of scrap plastic, and apply with a toothpick--just like epoxy. If you use too much, the free surface outgasses like mad and you wind up with white plastic snow all over everything. There are 'low outgassing' PMMA formulations, but they're only low by comparison.

Cheers

Phil Hobbs

If you had posted to one of the model plane club groups you would have felt very much at home - in that hobby it is endemic

David - with glue free fingers at the moment

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I think I will try introducing a dot of dye to the next tube I open ,as well as store in airtight bottle with silica gel. Won't be able to change the viscosity (lack of) but at least I might be able to see it. I was melding part of one socket into another to make a match to a non standard plug and a nice tight fit but that super capilliary action took the unknowing excess of glue about half an inch travel to where there were holes to the outside, where my fingers were.