Rubber Cement Tape - a UGlu comedy of errors

I have used rubber cement but not rubber cement tape. The rubber cement I use is very liquid until it cures. 

   There are various fabric glues. My wife sews a lot . I will ask her.  Don

I worked in the Bell system for 30 years.  We had product we called DR tape.  A double sided self sealing tape.  I was told the glue on it was a rubber based cement.  If you see a bell system bucket truck or Verizon ect.  ask the guy if he is a linesmen or splicer if he has an extra roll on board.

We used the product in the Navy to keep electrical connections dry. Seems like it was rubber tape and you put glue over it with a brush in a can.

Rob

$35 a roll huh?  Well, that rules me out!

Darn, I just have a Verizon guy to the house a few days ago.  Day late, dollar short - or in this case $35 short

oldrob - the articles that I read lead me to believe it was not what you described.  All of the articles talked about peeling off the protective 'back'.

I did see something in JoAnn Fabrics when I re-visited this morning.  It wasn't called "rubber cement tape" but the picture of how to apply it, and the one showing how to remove it, made it look like it could be this product.  Sadly I forget what it was called.

- walt

I went to their website and found the product that I described above.

http://www.joann.com/uglu-adhe...rips/zprd_01813898a/

- walt

Walt,

I believe I saw the DR tape that Rob mentioned at Home Depot.   I also worked for the telephone company for 35 years and went thru a bunch of this tape In my time.    I don't know what the application you are needing but I can tell you the DR tape is extremely good at making water tight seals and lasts a very long tme out in the elements.  For our use outside we always covered it with a wrap of friction tape.

Ed

Ed: I don't have specific targets for use at this time, but from what I've read that modelers did with it, I could see it as a very good replacement for gluing things where I might currently use GOO or GOOP, which I'm slowly starting to dislike.

I'll check out and see what the DR tape is.

Someone from micromark must have seen this because I got an email (one of those where you can't do a 'reply to' and I'm assuming it came from someone there) showing me a product.  It sounded 'comparable' by reading the definition.  It's called "Adhesive Transfer Tape".

thanks - walt

Walt,

it soinds like it is the same stuff.  They just called it DR tape in the bell system but all it is is a very rubbery type tape that will stick to itself on both sides.  We used it for making slices on exterior cable lines that go from the pole to the house.   As some else said if you see a phone person working outside ask him if he can spare a roll or 2 of either DR or rubber tape.  If I had a dollar for every person who stopped and asked me for a roll of tape over the years I'd be rich.  

Ed

Thanks Ed.  I haven't made it to Home Depot yet to check it out.

- walt

Walt,

Now that it's been described, it sounds very similar to a product called "Glue Dots". They are small gobs of glue stuck to a smooth carrier sheet. You press the dot to an object and it adheres. Then you can place another object on the dot and adhere the two pieces to each other.

Useful for placing figures temporarily on the layout, although the dot is a little hard to remove later from some surfaces.

There is a similar system on a larger scale called a "Zyron" machine. It is a roller device that transfers adhesive onto a material, so that it can be glued onto something else.

It is big among the scrapbookers who are always gluing diecut pieces of cardstock, photos, etc. to an album page.

The machine can also be used to laminate business cards, etc. with a protective plastic sheet.

What I'm not sure of is whether the glue used is classified as "permanent" or "peelable". Most times permanent is preferred for scratchbuilding. 

Not to get too long-winded here, but there is another similar product that is very permanent. It is a two-sided adhesive material that is used to hold ceramic tile in place on vertical surfaces until the thinset mortar sets.

Like the glue dots, you transfer the adhesive to a surface. Then peel the protective carrier and place the tile on it. It is great for holding rock castings in place until you can grout around them.

I have also used it to attach building flats to a Masonite backdrop, to attach small tiles to MDF in constructing retaining walls, etc. A package goes a long way since you will only use small portions of  sheet at one time.

It is found next to the ceramic tiles at HD or Lowes.

Jim

Thanks Jim.

There were several products at Michael's and also at JoAnn Fabrics, which had more than Michael's, that sounded comparable.  Having never used any of them though I have no idea what each is like.

I'm surprised that you say that glue dots sounds like the description given for 'rubber cement tape'.

BTW: the articles that I saw it mentioned within all were for permanent applications.

thanks again - walt

Walt,

They are the same in that calling it "adhesive transfer tape" as you did, makes me think that the tape is just a carrier for the adhesive.

Press in place, remove backing tape and adhesive remains so something else can be glued to it. That was the similarity I saw.

Not the glue dots, but that tile backing stuff is really permanent!

Jim

Walt, there's a tape by 3M called "adhesive transfer tape 465". a lot of HO modelers use it particularly for applying rolled roofing materials or corrugated metal to structures. It is not double sided, but leaves a glue residue after application. You can see it and a description on Foslimited.com under the glues/adhesive tab. But again, at $27.95 it is not cheap although many modelers swear by it. 

Jerrman

walt, I just saw adhesive transfer tape on micro-mark for $12.75. you might want to check it out if that's what you're looking for. 

Jerrman

Thanks Jim and Jerrman!

I also enjoy finding a new modeling product.  I am in the middle of building my son's house and might use one of the above mentioned products, instead of GOO, when doing the shingle sheets.  I have a wood roof base and typically use GOO to adhere the shingle sheets to it.

That's one application where this "rubber cement tape" got my attention.

Jim, you said something that is probably plain common sense to you but it never struck me til you made your statement, and then it clicked.  "Adhesive Transfer Tape" - when I saw that in JoAnn Fabrics I was wondering what 'transfer' meant.  It never occurred to me that it is the adhesive which is being 'transferred'.  So, thanks for making what you most like thought was a simple comment - it explained it to me!!!!

love learning about new products!

- wlat

You're welcome, Walt.

The key to the usefulness of adhesive transfer is the thickness of the adhesive deposited. Many I've seen leave too thick a layer of adhesive to make them useful for precision scratchbuilding. You'd have very lumpy shingles with some products.

That Zyron machine the scrapbookers use is very good, but very expensive. It basically turns any piece of paper or cardstock into a self-adhesive label with very thin adhesive backing. It would be great for shingles or siding papers, etc.

My wife has one somewhere from her scrapbooking days. I may have to dig it out and see if there are any supplies for it left over.

Jim

btw, Walt, the most common uses I've seen posted for transfer tape is to add rolled roofing to a sub-roof as well as adding corrugated metal to a wall siding or roof. makes sense as both can be a little messy and time consuming with traditional glues. certainly worth a try. 

jerrman

I went to HD this morning but did not see anything like it - I asked customer help if they carried "DR tape" but I guess it's not called that assuming they carry it.

- walt

Walt,

 

Not to get too long-winded here, but there is another similar product that is very permanent. It is a two-sided adhesive material that is used to hold ceramic tile in place on vertical surfaces until the thinset mortar sets.

 

Like the glue dots, you transfer the adhesive to a surface. Then peel the protective carrier and place the tile on it. It is great for holding rock castings in place until you can grout around them.

It is found next to the ceramic tiles at HD or Lowes.

 

 

Jim

I looked for it this morning but didn't see it.  This time I'll jot down the name of the product and if I can't find it I'll ask by name.

thanks - walt

Walt,

Last time, I found it pretty well-hidden between bags of thinset mortar at the end of the ceramic tile aisle. I don't think it is universally accepted yet among the pros, so it isn't always easily found right up at the front of the display.

Jim

I landed up buying a roll of 'UGlu' from JoAnn Fabric.  It seemed to me to be the most practical way to package the material.  It's described as "a liquid adhesive turned solid" or something like that.

After I bought it I got to thinking about one of its characteristics that I'm thinking might make it impractical for me to use - instant adhesion.

Right now I only envision using it to attach the shingle sheets to the wood roof support structure.  In ALL of my prior builds I used GOO or GOOP.  So why am I concerned now with this new product?  Because on all of my prior builds I can easily remember having to slide the pieces around just a hair to mate all the edges perfectly.  Instant adhesion kind of throws that adjustment step out the window.

I am considering this option though: use GOO on the upper part of the peak only.  Attach the 2 mating pieces of shingle sheets and adjust them accordingly.  After that dries, use the UGlu for the rest of glueing process.

As mentioned above I'm no longer a big fan of using GOO for roofing applications (bubbles).  That's why I still want to use the UGlu.

- walt

Walt,

You could try an old trick used by installers of laminate like Formica... put a piece of waxed paper in between your glued surface (ie: the roof) and the material you want to finish the roof with (ie: shingle material).

When the shingle material is positioned where you want it, SLOWLY slide the waxed paper out from between the two surfaces as you press down on the shingle material, starting at one edge.

The process works well when installing laminate and I don't see why it wouldn't work in your case.  Some installers use 1 inch wide, 3 feet long furring strips and others use round dowel rods when installing large sheets of laminate and simple slde each strip or rod out as they press the laminate down from one end to the other.  The strips or rods keep the surfaces from touching until the laminate is positioned exactly where the installers want it.

Hope this description was clear enough and is of some help to you...

Best,

Dave

Thanks for the tip Dave.  I'll try it on scrap pieces first to make sure that the 'instant bond' rule doesn't apply to waxed paper.

I want the adhesive, whether GOOP or UGlu, to be at the very apex of the roof so as to solidly hold down the very top edge - for both pieces.

thanks - walt

Walt....

I actually work at a craft store, specifically in custom framing, but what you are looking for is in the scrapbooking section of a craft store.  it comes on a roll i beleive it is made by 3M, i can get you the exact name tonight, but the way that it works is you roll it on through a dispenser there is no backing to remove and it goes on like curred rubber cement meaning that it is tacky when you apply it but doesnt drip or anything like that and you can rub it off of a surface with your finger.  we use it alot in custom framing to adhere the backing paper to the frame.

Thanks for that info Salvagni!!!!

Just last night I was thinking of returning the UGlu roll that I got because I'm not comfortable with the INSTANT bond, even given the tip that Dave listed.  if you can provide the name of the product that you use then I'll pick it up when I return the UGlu.

thanks again - walt

Went to Michael's looking for it.  I found a tape made by 3M called "scrapbooking tape", double sided.  It appears to be not much more than 2 sided scotch tape.  It's even on a dispenser like regular tape uses.  Certainly nothing like "rubber cement tape".

They also had another "version" of the scrapbooking tape claiming it was stronger.  Not made by 3M though.

I don't know if it was called ATG tape though - I'll jot that down and check again the next time I'm there.

Having fun yet?

thanks - walt

Thanks for checking and getting back to me.  I'll look for that exact item.

BTW: my JoAnn Fabric has more craft stuff (along with just about everything else) than my Michael's does.  I guess I'm lucky to have 2 great stores 1/2 mile apart from each other.

- walt

I went to JoAnn Fabric and found it.  Didn't buy it but I did find it.

Definitely better than 2-sided tape, even the one labeled for scrapbooking.  But the kit cost of $39.99 is too steep for me for the very few and widely spaced apart times that I would use it.  If it can be applied without the 'glider' device then a roll is still $10, which isn't too bad.

It does look like it would be an excellent adhesive for usage in the places that I thought the rubber cement tape would be good for.

- walt

Amazon carries 

Scotch CAT 085 Advanced Tape Glider with 2 Rolls of 1/4-Inch by 36-Yard Acid Free Tape,Cure Pink  for $16.38 and they have refill rolls of tape for as little as $6

Al

amazing at times what JoAnn and Michael's charge, huh?  Sure they often offer the 40% coupon but for those without the coupon, OUCH big time.

- walt

I tried using the UGlu roll of adhesive last night.  It was funny - would have made a nice humorous utube video!   Ever watch those slap-stick comics that start something, say glueing something, and they get some on their fingers and then their fingers stick to something, etc. etc.?

Well that was me! 

If you haven't seen this stuff, let me explain it's packing.  The glue strip has a backing on just one side when it's unrolled.  So as soon as you unroll a length, the "top" of the glue strip is exposed.

My first effort was to try to cut a piece to length.  I tried an exacto - seemed like a sharp blade would make a clean cut.  Well, that was a joke!  This UGlu instantly to sticks to anything it touches.  Then when I tried to pull it off of the blade, the remaining glue strip stretched and then it touched my hand so it stuck to that too, and the game was on

So then I tried using scissors to snip of that ruined part of the glue strip.  Well, if you haven't guessed, it instantly stuck to the scissors and after more stretching and again sticking to my fingers, the 2nd quarter of the game was on

Reading the directions, it said that it can be cut to length using sharp scissors.  Yeah, right.

So I tried again, but tried using the tip above about waxed paper not sticking to it.  WRONG!  More stretching, etc.  3rd quarter of game began.

So in desperation knowing there has to be some way to cut it, right, I took a piece of the backing from the ruined part and laid it across the exposed glue strip.  Now there was backing on top and the bottom.  I used scissors and was able to cut a piece.  Game over!

- walt