gluing issues!

[stiqman]

What type of glue is best for foam based puppet making? 

"the Foam Book" seems to suggest a glue gun......but then most other peppet makers use contact cement.

What are the pro and cons of each and what are your over all thoughts on what lasts the longest???

If contact cement is used then what are the safe ways of using this product and will I need a mask to wear all the time using it.

I was in looking at masks and I have two options one is for  pesticides ect... and the other is for asbestus ect...(sp?).  Which would be better?

What are some hints at making the contact cement more pleasurable to use when using it with foam?
How long does it take to dry? Should I use a hair dryer to speed up the process of building the puppet?

Anything else I should know about this stuff before using it?

Thanks for your time

Daryl H.

[Andrew]

Hot glue is terrible. The problem with it is that it's very thick, which makes for poor seams when gluing foam. It also doesn't make a permanent bond and if it is ever reheated it will come apart again. The one advantage it has is that it's non-toxic.

Contact cement is toxic, but it can be worked with safely if you glue in a well-ventilated area (not inside your house!) and wear a respirator. You need to have an organic vapour mask it is extremely important to check and make sure you have the right mask. All toxic products like contact cement have Material Safety Data Sheets that explain how the product can be used safely. A store carrying contact cement should have the MSDS available, or you can download them from the manufacturer's web site in most cases.

Most contact cement dries to the point where it's "tacky" (dry enough so that none comes off on your hand, but it's still sticky) within 10-15 minutes. I have a tutorial with info on how to cut foam and glue cement at http://www.bear-town.com/backstage/tumbles_pg1.htm

[stiqman]

Andrew,

Thanks for a great reply!

I was reading your article you attached to my post.

It seems that you are using the Lepages "green" contact cement.

Are you still haveing a great success with that type of glue.  Does it stand up to the same standards as the regular "toxic" brand.  I understand that it takes a little longer glue.....but as you say "a small price to pay."

We are starting to get the rainy weather out hear in Vancouver BC.  I really don't want to be freezing to death as I try to glue this puppet together.  So I would rather use something safer in our attached garage that won't send my kids to the hospital.  If you catch my drift.

Thanks again

Daryl H.

[searscr]

I agree with Andrew.  I have used contact cement and hot glue.  I prefer hot glue because it is not toxic; however, I make sure my puppets stay in cool dry places.  Contact cement is also easier to use in my opion, just remember to work in a well-ventilated room.

[Shawn Sorrell]

Daryl H,

I have used the water base (green contact cement) and aside from what Andrew mentions about it taking longer to get tacky it seems to work just as well. 

As an added not on working with contact cement... if you burp your application it can help.  Burping means that you apply to the glue to both surfaces, press them together and the pull the apart.  If you use a scrape piece of foam to apply your adhaesive you can "burp" while you apply by daubing your glue on to each surface.  With both products less is more.  Do not over apply.

[Miryana]

What do you guys have against contact cement? It's such a great stuff, makes me feel so happy!
Just kidding! It's an evil substance, so I use it only when I have to. My brother used to have a print shop, and he used some dyes and paints that had toxic fumes.I'd be helping him out, and after few hours of working with him, we'd start reciting haiky poetry!
Good old times. 

[Billy D. Fuller]

I have started to use the Delwood contact cement in the gel instead of the regular. The fumes are not as bad, and although it is a bit more expensive, I find that I don't waste it by it dripping all over the place. Which brings up Shawns point about just dabbing a bit on and burping it ( thats a new one on me ) burping glue  go figure it's messy enough, which buy the way " What type gloves is best to use with contact cement?" and if you don't will mineral spirits clean off your hands? or do you have to usesome thing else. I've been using dawn dish soap a scrubby pad and and picking off the rest.

Billy D.

[Miryana]

There is a contact cement thinner, at least for the regular contact cement. I use it to clean brushes. It's also a vile thing, but it does what it's suppose to.

[Ron G.]

Burping glue! 

When my mom was a Tupperware lady back in the Sixties and Seventies she taught people how to burp their Tupperware when putting the lids on.

I have a newbie question, since I've never tried making foam puppets before. When I use contact cement on materials other than foam, applying a coat to both sides or objects, and then sticking them together, they don't really want to come back apart.

Do you burp the contact cement after it has just been applied, before it has a chance to get tacky? Do you twist or slide it apart, rather than just pulling it straight open? I can just see myself destroying the foam while trying to burp it...

 

Ron G.

[Miryana]

I wondered about the same thing, but I think if you do it as soon as you apply the glue, you are pretty much safe, unless it's a very think layer on a very hot day and dries really fast.

[Andrew]

A couple of things about gluing and contact cement:

Contact cement creates a permanent bond. Don't glue something together until you're sure you want to!

Also, you don't have to use paint thinner to clean the brushes. In fact, you don't have to clean brushes at all. Just keep them in a jar in a little bit of water and they stay soft, moist and usable - no toxic chemicals necessary! Occasionally you just take the brush out of the water and peel off the gummy contact cement that's collected on the brush.

[Ron G.]

Burping means that you apply to the glue to both surfaces, press them together and the pull the apart.  If you use a scrape piece of foam to apply your adhaesive you can "burp" while you apply by daubing your glue on to each surface.

Okay Shawn... so does burping get air bubbles out of the cement, does it prepare the glue surface for better adhesion, or what? If using a foam applicator pre-burps the glue, then the two work pieces don't really need to be pressed together and then pulled back apart, before pressing them together for a final time, right?

Trying to follow this thread makes me feel like I've been inhaling glue fumes...

 

Ron G.

[stiqman]

WOW!!!!

I thought I would have words thrown at me for being such a Newbie at this sight and asking such a simple basic question (in my opinion).....however it seems to have taken on it's own life.

I have got a lot out of this thread and it has made me sooooo much more comfortable at posting simple straight forward question that most proffesionals would give a quick response to brush me off.

However you have all embraced it and made it become a more infomative thread.  I have never read anything on the internet about foam puppet making concerning "burping" the glue and how to do it.  This is great information!!

Thankyou all!!!!!!!!!!! 

I will keep following this thread.

Daryl H.

[Ron G.]

Fortunately people here are pretty patient and helpful, Daryl. Keep the questions coming - when you do you're also speaking for many people who come here with the very same question but don't bother to register and ask it. We get many, many more unregistered visitors looking for information here than we have actual registered members.

Welcome to the group!

 

Ron G.

[patti]

i'm glad to see this subject come up again. i just watched a segment on my local news. they do a kinda "does it really work" thing each week. this week it was on a product called TEAR MENDER. it passed the test! and i'm wondering would it work with foam, and other puppet building needs. it's not pretty when it dries, only drawback, BUT, it holds, can be used with your fingers, dries in minutes! i think i might just look for it at my local walgreens. runs about 9.00....kinda cool how they just did the segment and then i come to my computer to read the latest topics 
anyway, hope it works with foam cause that would just ROCK!!!!