CA "fires" REALLY quickly!

Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad

randyrls

Member
Joined
Feb 2, 2006
Messages
4,823
Location
Harrisburg, PA 17112
I recently thought my CA was getting old, so I decided to retire the bottles and get fresh. Satellite City brand is available at the local Woodcraft so I bought some bottles. Last night I started to make some slip tubes for a new pen style I will be trying.

That stuff sets so quickly, if you stop moving the tube while inserting it, that is where it will stay!

Has anyone else had this happen? I have used "Great Planes Pro" glue from the local hobby store, and it has a much longer set time
 
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad

Daniel

Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2004
Messages
5,921
Location
Reno, NV, USA.
Randy, not all CA is the same but I cannot tell you one from the other. I do know as a rule of thumb thin sets faster than thick. slow set is stronger than fast. slow set is less likely to have problems from clouding or outright turning white. and I never have problems with CA of any kind because I buy from Manny. Products bought from IAP Members are blessed with flawlessness. That would not be considered false advertising would it? Since it not really a claim but more of an opinion.
 

Brooks803

Member
Joined
Sep 13, 2009
Messages
5,632
Location
Aiken, South Carolina
I've had this same situation myself. A different brand of CA also. I used medium and the tube stopped about 1/2" from the end of the blank. I've tried the CA debonder with no sucess. So not only do I have to buy some spare brass, but also not be able to use my blank! There may be others with more advice but all I can say is don't waste a second pushing in your brass.
 

RDH79

Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2008
Messages
1,547
Location
Rimersburg, Pa, USA.
I have had happen to me a couple times also. I just cut off the piece that is sticking out and glue it in the other end. I have only done this on slims though. Be sure to make that section the cap section.
 

1080Wayne

Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2006
Messages
3,340
Location
Brownfield, Alberta, Canada.
Johnathon , cut off what is sticking out and glue it in the other end . Mill both ends down to get the correct tube length . The finished pen won`t know that the tube isn`t continuous , and you save the blank .
Wayne
 

ElMostro

Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2007
Messages
1,940
Location
San Antonio, TX.
Another thing to have in mind is the material of the blank. For me (I also use Monty's MED CA) when using alumilite I have plenty of "play time" since the tube does not stick as fast BUT when using coffee blanks (it seems the coffee works as an accelerator) if I stop that is where the tube ends, then with tight grain dense wood it allows more time but with not so dense flame box elder I have less time.

Eugene
 
Last edited:
Joined
Sep 24, 2006
Messages
8,206
Location
Tellico Plains, Tennessee, USA.
I used to have that problem when I lived in Houston area... and it may have to do with the type of wood you are using and I was going to say the humidity, but we have quite a bit of humidity here in TN, especially when it is raining...I know some woods will react faster with CA.. I seemed to have most problem with the ebony and rosewood type of woods.... I now buy all of my CA from Monty and haven't had this happen since, nor did I seem to have problem once I moved to TN. I glue tubes with thick CA and finish with medium.... rarely use thin much any more... I have a bottle that I got a while back and it's probably more like medium now than thin.... don't know what's happening to it, but it seems to be thickening up.
 
Joined
Apr 30, 2009
Messages
50
Location
Albuquerque, NM
To saving a blank that I got a tube part of the way in, before it grabbed, I decided to use a set of reamers and ream the tube out. To my surprise, I was reminded that cured CA does not like heat. As a result of reaming the brass, it heated up which caused the CA to release and the tube just came out. The hardest part was to removing the tube from the reamer. I wonder if one heat the tube up with a soldering iron, a torch or the like and if one could get the CA to release.
 

CSue

Local Chapter Leader
Joined
Jan 16, 2007
Messages
2,368
Location
Laveen, AZ, USA.
I have had happen to me a couple times also. I just cut off the piece that is sticking out and glue it in the other end. I have only done this on slims though. Be sure to make that section the cap section.


I've done this with one half of a cigar pen and a few Sierras. I have a round file I run through the inside to make sure everything is smoothed out and won't catch anywhere. Never could tell the difference.
 

fstinard

Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2009
Messages
46
Location
Ct shore
I have found that certin materials hold heat from drilling longer then others so if you go straight from the drill press to glueing you'll have tubes getting "stuck"
 

its_virgil

Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2004
Messages
8,101
Location
Wichita Falls, TX, USA.
A simple solution is to use two part epoxy for gluing tubes into pen blanks. I consider epoxy to be a much better choice for tubes than CA. But, that is just my opinion. I really don't understand why CA seems to be the glue of choice for gluing tubes, but almost all of the literature seems to use CA for this chore. Sign me perplexed.
Do a good turn daily!
Don

That stuff sets so quickly, if you stop moving the tube while inserting it, that is where it will stay!
 
Top Bottom