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Discussion > A Very Useful Little Tool: The Glue Looper

http://www.creativedynamicllc.com/the-glue-looper.html

If you use CA glue on your models -- any models, not just cardstock -- I highly recommend the Glue Looper. It applies just the right amount by capillary action. Unlike X-Acto blades, which the Glue Loopers resemble, they're designed to be reusable. I bought a set over a year ago, gave a couple away, and I'm still using the first loopers I removed from the sprue. I think I have three I haven't touched yet.

The biggest advantage: I've cut waaaay down on the number of times I've glued my fingers together since I started using these. (It still happens, but not regularly.)

I use them like this:

1. I make a tiny tray out of thick aluminum. I cut mine from Dollar Store baking pans. I chop them up into roughly 1" squares, then fold up the edges slightly to make a dish shape. I stick this to my work surface with a little dab of poster tack, so it won't spill or wiggle around. I put a few drops of CA into this tiny pan.

2. I put the appropriately-sized Looper (they come in Fine, Medium and Large tips) onto an X-Acto handle, dip the tip sideways into the CA to load, and then touch the tip lightly right at the joint of whatever I'm assembling. (Then I often breathe onto the joint, since moisture cures CA glue, and at the scales I work, liquid or spray CA kickers would really be overkill.)

3. When I'm done, I burn off the excess CA from the Looper with a match or a lighter, and store it for re-use.

4. The glue can sit there just about all day, but if I'm all done for the day, I put a few drops of water from an eyedropper into it. This cures the CA, and then I can toss it in the trash without getting my fingers stuck.
February 27, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterDan H
BTW, I often use CA glue from the Dollar Store. I don't notice the slightest difference between the cheap stuff and the expensive stuff found at hobby stores. I read somewhere that CA glue is marketed by different companies, most of which purchase their stock from the same source. I don't know if that's true or not, but the cheap stuff will bond your fingers together just as nicely as the expensive stuff.
February 27, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterDan H
Great tips Dan,and clearly written .
February 27, 2017 | Registered CommenterDave