Archive for the ‘DIY’ Category

RC Modelers Use Threadlockers To Reinforce Screws, Nuts, and Bolts

February 24th, 2010

Plane Threadlockers

[PHOTO CREDIT:  RC Universe Greg Covey article]

Threadlockers are very helpful anaerobic adhesives.  They come in a wide range of strengths, and varieties that work best on specific substrates (non-metal, plastic, and metal), but the most common are blue (removeable) and red (permanent) threadlockers. 

Threadlockers are very handy.  They prevent threaded metal fasteners, nuts, bolts, and screws from loosening.  It only takes a second to squeeze a drop of threadlocker into any screw, nut or bolt and the reinforcement it provides is incredible.  Nothing is more frustrating than when fasteners are the cause of breaks and lost parts.  Using threadlockers is a great, simple, preventative measure that really pays off in the end.

Check out this article by Greg Covey, in RC Universe.  He uses Pacer Technology’s product Pacer Z-42 several different times to keep nuts, bolts, and screws locked in place while building this awesome Filton Inspire Mini!

2010 Winter Olympics Musings

February 24th, 2010

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[PHOTO CREDIT:  www.vancouver2010.com]

What would this month have been without the Winter Olympics to watch on tv each evening?  All of the gifted, committed athletes gathering together, in Vancouver, from around the globe, hoping to achieve their personal best and maybe even bring home a medal!  Each event is exciting and each personal story so inspiring.  All of the daily effort, hard work, drive and support it takes to reach this pinnacle of excellence is truly motivational.  The side story to all of this is what impacts everyone who watches even just one of the events or hears just one of the personal stories.  Events like the Olympics remind us that passion and focus are critical to success!

So many of the athletes talk about how, when they were youngsters starting out in the sport, they followed their Olympic heroes and  dreamt of the day when they, too, might participate in the games.  Suddenly, around town we witness increases in attendance at the local skating rinks.  Four year olds know the names of Shaun White,  Shani Davis, Apolo Anton Ono, Lindsey Vonn,  Bode Miller and so many others.  They begin to emulate their style; climbing the hillsides pretending to snowboard down on a sheet of plywood or plastic sheeting like them; dressing like them; reading about them; following them.  And suddenly a new batch of heroes emerge.

The new heroes might not be athletes though.  They may end up being teachers, doctors, engineers, inventors, parents, writers, landscapers, scientists, electricians, or artists.  But the same sticktoitiveness, passion and focus, that takes an athlete to the Olympics, fuels all of the creative producers in the world.  It’s exciting to witness all kinds of passion and focus and we, as consumer product manufacturers and distributors, get to see lots of it in action ourselves. 

Many of the consumers of our products here at Super Glue Corporation are extreme hobbyists, crafters, artists, engineers, and technicians who, each in their own way, model the same characteristics as Olympic athletes.  They are focused achievers who are driven by passion to create, invent, design and improve.  They are risk takers who use their imagination to envision things that they then set out to bring to fruition.  It’s quite impressive.

One interesting fact (also connected to the Winter Olympics – I warned you there were musings in this post:)) is that snowboarders use epoxies and super glues to build and repair their boards.  This makes perfect sense.  Epoxies and super glues are super strong and work really well with substates, involved in building snowboards; like woods, metals, fiberglass, kevlar, etc.  We even have a waterproof epoxy that will hold up under the most extreme wet, winter conditions.  Chips, dings, and other repairs can be fixed in minutes using these inexpensive, readily available products.

For fun, check out the The Adventures of John blog for some details on how to make your own snowboard. 

Through research for this blog, and from the consumers who write in to us at info@supergluecorp.com, we get to see passion, focus and creativity in action.  We get to connect and link into how real, talented people are using our products to meet specific challenges which, in turn, helps motivate us to improve, advance, and deliver more choices and better products.  We all share a kind of  Olympic spirit. Our motto is “Adhering to Excellence”.  What about you?  Do you have a passion and focus in your work or career that you feel is similar to an Olympian’s desire to be at the top of their game?  Tell us about it.

We love hearing from you, and we love working with consumers to ensure that you have the right products for all of your adhesive needs!

Gotta go now …. need to finish up with my work so I can catch some USA hockey in a few … SCORE!

Magnets Make Super Glue A Temporary Solution

February 17th, 2010

UBS port and Zap[Photo Credit:  IdShed blog]

As many people know, or find out, super glue is an awesome problem solver, but it involves good news and bad news.  Good news = it’s a pretty permanent solution, and sometimes, bad news = it’s a pretty permanent solution.  We recently came across a great, creative blog post by Id where he combined magnets and super glue to design a temporary, permanent fix for adding extra USB ports to his desktop PC while enabling the ports to also be easily transfered to his laptop as well.

The blog post is titled, “Home Office – Pimp Your Rig“  and the post begins:

“I wanted to add some extra USB ports to my desktop PC, so I bought a cheap, generic 4 port USB hub. Excellent value, works perfectly, but – it’s another piece of clutter on my already busy desk.

I didn’t want to glue the hub to my PC, it felt too permanent a solution, I may want to use the hub with my laptop. Fortunately my PC has a pressed steel case- the perfect subject for magnets …”

By using Zap-A-Gap super glue to attach the magnets to the USB port, Id was able to increase the number of USB ports on either his PC or laptop making for a very clever temporary permanent solution!  We can think of several other situations where super glue combined with magnets might be a great way to benefit from the great strength and holding power of super glue while also maintaining some flexibility for easy removal.  Great idea!

Note:  Debonders can also be helpful for removing unwanted super glue, but be sure to test the substrate to make sure that the powerful debonder won’t cause unwanted damage to whatever it is you are gluing/un-gluing.

Recycle Neckties Into Decorative Switch Plates!

January 13th, 2010

craftvol1_0040_fg[Photo & Project Idea Credit:  Matt Marananian via Quick Craft]

Looking for a way to recycle and reuse those old “70’s style” neckties?  Here’s a great Quick Craft project idea:

Supplies Needed:  Wide 70’s necktie, plastic light switch plate, scissors, pencil, contact cement, X-Acto blade and needlenose pliers or tweezers.

Cut, Glue and Finish by following the specific directions in this picture or go to the original source Quick Craft for more details.

This is a great idea and something that will add a creative decorator’s touch to any home while also putting out-of-date, but still treasured ties, to good use!

Happy Crafting!  Thanks, Matt Maranian for the great idea!

Practical Holiday Gift Basket Ideas

November 30th, 2009

2009 is a great year to come up with some creative, fun, PRACTICAL, inexpensive, thoughtful gift ideas for your loved ones! Here are just a few ideas we came up with for the gardener, the fashionista, the car detailer, the one who likes to “Be Prepared” and the crafter! … There are many more ideas out there! We challenge you to come up with some super ideas incorporating any of The Original Super Glue products, send us pictures and you may win free samples. We wish you and yours a happy December filled with love and lots of holiday creativity and spirit!!

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DSCN0015 Remember send us your practical holiday gift ideas using The Original Super Glue Products and you may win free samples!

Great Holiday “Good Deed” Project Ideas!

November 30th, 2009

Super Good Deed Cars Img1314 Awhile ago teacher, Robert Hazard, from Kennedy High School in Granada Hills, California sent us these super pictures. Robert’s Industrial Arts Classes made these amazing wooden cars and trucks using The Original Super Glue epoxies, wood and some hard labor! The class then donated the wooden toys to disadvantaged children in the Los Angeles area. We thought this was a super idea! Our hats are off to Robert Hazard and his students for their holiday spirit!!Super Good Deed Trucks Img1313

Robotic Pumpkins – How Cool!

October 9th, 2009

rovin pumpkin [PHOTO CREDIT: Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories]
Ok, just imagine this for a second … You have a display of carved jack-o-lanterns on your porch Halloween evening and a spirited group of young teens appears at your door to trick or treat … what fun to be able to have one of those carved jack-o-lanterns start roaming around the porch!! The self-proclaimed “evil mad scientists” blog gives all the details you need to create this awesome “rovin’ pumpkin”. According to the blog here’s what you need to create this awesome robotic pumpkin: “The platform itself was built from three Lego wheels and one standard size servo motor, modified for continuous rotation. Some cable ties and superglue were used to hold it together with a 3xAA battery box.” How cool is that?

Back to College Tip – Send Super Glue Along!

August 31st, 2009

Hot Tip! – Send super glue along with college students for quick dorm room repairs!  Many of our best product use tips come to us directly from our customers.  Here’s a great story, sent in by Josiah, demonstrating just how handy a tube of super glue can be:

“My story involves a college dorm room a broken towel rack and Super Glue.  Due to an unfortunate turn of events the towel rack in my college dorm room broke free from the wall.  It had two feet that held it to the wall and one side came off.  I didn’t panic even though I knew that I would be charged for the damage.  I knew that I had a secret weapon that could save me some badly needed cash.  I went for my Super Glue like a frat boy towards an unguarded beer can.  I carefully applied the glue to the wall and to the part of the rack that had come loose.  I pressed it up to the wall and held on to it like I normally hold on to my wallet.  When I was sure it was dry I let go and tested it.  By the grace of all that is sacred it stayed in place and I avoided a damage charge that semester. . .”

[Super Glue Blogger's note:  Great tip and we also suggest you send along a pack or two of  HandiTAK with college students.  Great for hanging posters, calendars, and pictures without damaging dorm room walls.  Just don't forget to knead the HandiTAK until it is tacky for super holding power!]

Super Glue – Reuse, Renew, Recycle!

August 1st, 2009

Making old thing serve new purposesHere’s a great idea [Photo Credit: My Technical Life, day by day] using super glue to make something old serve new purposes.  The author changed his old AT & T tilt charging/sync cradle into a charging/sync cradle for his HTC Fuze.

Twitter Sticky Question & Answer

July 29th, 2009

Many fellow tweeps, on Twitter, are posing this question on-line:  Why doesn’t Super Glue stick to the inside of the tube?  According to our on-site lab senior scientist the answer:  Chemistry.  Super Glue Corporation searches the world over to find metal tubes that are chemically compatible with our cyanoacrylates (also known as CAs or super glues).   As long as no air, moisture, or other contaminants are present, and the metal in the metal tube is compatible with the super glue, then the super glue remains liquid throughout its shelf life. 

Additionally, Super Glue Corporation uses custom resins for all super glue caps, tips, and bottles to ensure that caps won’t stick to the the super glues.  If they ever do stick (once in awhile this might happen after a first use, when excessive amounts of a thicker viscosity gel super glue overflows into the cap)  using a disposable towel moistened with acetone, to remove excess super glue, will quickly resolve that sticky issue, and the cap will twist on and off  like new.