I tried Plastidip a while ago and wasn't very impressed. I bought a spray can, and although it worked fine, the fumes were very strong and the can was very expensive (about $60 AUD). It also didn't last me long, painting about 4 rods... could have been to do with the number of layers I did, but it was within the recommended minimum (3 or 4 layers). I wanted to get something cheaper, and some of you suggested shrink wrapping tools.

Well, I haven't tried shrink wrapping, but have tried a simple idea: using paint designed for painting metal (car paint!). It's also an aerosol, and is 90% less smelly than plastidip, but is $12 a can. I did about 2 coats and it each coat dries in about 1/2 hour (in the sun outside). It works just as well for covering/painting the rods, though I need to practice spraying to get it right. When the rods were dry, the paint didn't flake off at all, and didn't scratch on the way to the PO office (I haven't done a proper scratch test, but the paint holds up well)

Anyway, if anyone wants to try it for themselves, I bought a can of 'Rustoleum', flat black paint:

http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=182&sid=245198

Sounds great to me!



Ron G.

Kind of on topic, but just a little bit off -
I have been using these:
http://lawn-and-garden.hardwarestore.com/77-482-plant-supports/plant-prop-support-120910.aspx

That I bought at Menards for  $0.59
They are already dipped, but they are dark green and not black.
They have a circle at one end that makes them easy to hold on to.
They are also flexible enough if you want to bend the circle flat instead of perpendicular to the rod.

Has anyone used liquid rubber ? commonly used in mold making. Could you dip the handles in the rubber liquid?
http://www.rubbermoldcompounds.com/liquidrubber.htm

Billy D.

Yeah pasti dip is messy and expensive.  It wasn't a fun experience for me.  The shrink tubes are amazing though.  They're easy to put on and look great on a good arm rod. Oh and the most important part is they're cheap.

Just to clarify... we're talking about arm rods with wooden handles at the gripping end, right? Because the benefits provided by heat-shrink tubing or Plasti-Dip aren't just in their ability to cover and protect bare metal, but also in the cushioning and grip-enhancing properties that they offer. Some arm rod designs call for wooden or similar handles at the end, but I've seen some that call for bending a loop in the end of the rod and using that for a grip. The looped-rod style handles might be enhanced by using something more than paint.

My 2¢

Ron G.

I was using it in this case for shadow puppets. There is a metal rod slotted into a piece of dowel, similar to what you'd use for a muppet. I agree that more grip and cushioning is probably needed, but most of my sales are going to school teachers so far, so at this point the paint is more for aeshetics than for proper professional performance. Having said that I want my puppets to work just as well in pro performance settings; when my can of paint runs out I'll look more in depth at shrink wrapping (it just so happens that I ran out of plastidip a few weeks ago on my last order, and don't have time to ship a new one from out of state. So this paint was more of a short term solution)

For my second puppet I used plastic covered coat hanger wire, a bit amateur I know but it's pre covered for you! then I "camouflaged" the wrist by gluing on matching fur. Particularly as I bent in a piece that runs down the back of the hand to give more leverage and control over the hand. Comes up across the back of the wrist, down across the front, and back half way up the back before turning towards the fingers. (make sense? I'll try and post pictures soon of the bend.) Of course you have to make a left and a right bend...
Sorry got off topic.
That sounds like a much better option for the colour of the rod. I've been think about different ways to mount push bike grips on to the end of a dowel (I can think of quite a few but  I haven't tried any yet) This would give great grip, cushioning and leverage, but would end up very heavy, only good for the main hand. At that price I'd save the Plasti dip for making animal noses!

Actually, I used plastic covered coathangers initially but found it's been getting harder and harder to find good ones in shops: sometimes the wire is too tough to bend into shape, and sometimes they are too thin to be sturdy enough. Plus, I also found that the plastic has an all too easy tendency to split when you bend the wire. I also make rods for a variety of purposes, some for shadow puppets, some for muppets. This means I need to bend the wires into different shapes according to my needs.

I think I understand what you mean about adding a wire to the hand for more leverage. Sounds like something similar to what I've done before.

Yeah, $60 for an aersol can is a little much - all to do with the fact that it's specially shipped from QLD... and when I mean specially shipped, it's also to do with the fact that they have to courier it because it's not something that can be sent through the post. :P

If you want something that gives good grip, and might also be comfortable, you could look at the rubber mesh material that they put under carpets so they won't slip.
Like this:


It should be pretty light.
I don't know what colors it comes in though.