Kitebuilder.com

[kitenerd]

not for me for applique - i am a hot tack guy

i do youse spray glue when cutting strips of fabric (i have this great strip jig made by Lindsey Johnson) i spray the surface of the jig, spread the fabric out and then i can cut strips without any slipping. Great thing is you have sticky strips, which makes it super easy to fold up edge binding!!!

messy cleanup when your done though

A
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Without wind - i lack direction!

[Stan]

Spray glue fills the air with fumes and needs masking and lots of room.
I do use 3M77 for building Orcon and Mylar fighters, using a Q-tip as an applicator. Tapes can't do curves so I quit using them.

I use Beacon Fabri-Tac glue for lots of things. It has one drawback, viewed up close it shows a slight hand-drawn line through the seam. Other than that it's clear, cheap and won't gum the needle if used sparingly. You can see how much is left in the clear bottle.
Piercing the nozzle with a needle assures a thin bead that is less visable but grips well enough until sewing is done. It's handy for gluing standoffs into their fittings to prevent loss. Won't work for Mylar as a tape substitute though.
The lowly Glue-Stic is handy for detail work or layered applique and washes away with water.

And off on a hijack tangent:
Armstrong Vinyl flooring adhesive is sometimes useful for use without sewing. It costs so little for a large container that it's worth a try. I use it for sticking bamboo fighter spines on the sail, and my quart of it should last for a gazillion fighters. It probably gums up needles like crazy, so I haven't even tried to sew through it.

For epoxies, one way to save money over the small tubes is West Systems fast setting epoxy. It comes in two ketchup-squirter sized bottles and costs less per ounce. It is high quality stuff made for boatbuilders and is available from West Marine or other boating suppliers.

Boy, I sound opinionated this morning!
Stan

[KiteSquid]

One caviet on epoxys

you have to be accurate in measureing the two parts. the smaller the batch, the more accurate you MUST be to get a good bond.

I like the dual syringe type 5 minute epxoy I buy at Wall Mart on the cheep. I stock up OFTEN as the shelves are not always full.

I guess you could clean out the applicator and refill with bulk epoxy but they are about $2 at Wall Mart... $5 at a hobby shop.
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VR/
KiteSquid
AKA TakoIka
AKA Harold
King George VA


P.S. Yet another post by the Squid..... Doesent he ever shut up???

P.P.S. The wind is like the air, only pushier.