# Why Gorilla glue is better than CA for Tubes



## ctEaglesc (Dec 4, 2006)

*NOT!*







I'll stick with CA.


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## Penmonkey (Dec 4, 2006)




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## Firefyter-emt (Dec 4, 2006)

Huh, I personaly like the GG. Cheap, easy to use, no tubes that dry too fast and I don't have to worry if the CA does not fully glue the blank down. I have done both and also find that any GG that gets inside the tube is a LOT eaiser to clean up than the CA.


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## gerryr (Dec 4, 2006)

I've used epoxy, CA, Gorilla Glue and Sumo Glue for gluing in tubes.  I lost several blanks because the GG pushed the tubes out when it expanded.  I've also lost several blanks using CA because I didn't get the tube in quick enough.  I now use 30 minute epoxy for about 98% of my pens.  The others are done with Sumo Glue when I need a glue that's white when it cures, or I need something that doesn't dry rock hard or I'm only gluing up one set and mixing the epoxy is a waste of materials.  And, Sumo doesn't seem to expand as much and I haven't yet had it push the tubes out.


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## boadywoods (Dec 4, 2006)

Is there a reason for this post?


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## ctEaglesc (Dec 4, 2006)

Pen monkkey, Fire-fyter. GerryR-
Just venting frustraions.
I am so used to using CA I figured I would use up some GG because I had a bunch to do at once.Normally I only glue up the one I am going to turn right away.I am ready to turn with CA in 10 minutes.
GG is messy, stains, the top had solidified in the bottle and now I am waiting.
Like I said I'll stick with CA because it works for me.


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## bob393 (Dec 4, 2006)

75% CA
20% Epoxy
5%  Poly, I'm to cheap for GG


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## Rifleman1776 (Dec 4, 2006)

> _Originally posted by boadywoods_
> <br />Is there a reason for this post?



Expressing his opinion based on, presumably, his experience. Isn't that largely what this forum is all about?


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## bnoles (Dec 4, 2006)

I have found the 5 minute epoxy works well for me.  Still using up my GG when time permits, but I think the 5 min epoxy will become my staple of choice.


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## jeffj13 (Dec 4, 2006)

I've used both with equal sucess, but I prefer CA, for the very reasons given.

jeff


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## bjackman (Dec 4, 2006)

75% Poly (Elmers & Sumo)
25% Epoxy (5 min)
0% CA


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## angboy (Dec 4, 2006)

> _Originally posted by ctEaglesc_
> <br /><b>NOT!</b>
> 
> Boy I'm glad you tacked that on to this post! When I first saw the topic and who had made it, I thought something was misaligned in the universe! It's a relief to know it's not! [][]
> ...


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## Firefyter-emt (Dec 4, 2006)

Hmm, it's odd. I have only ever had one tube push out and that was on a corian that I used the kits recomended drill bit, but if I had just measured the tube like I normaly do and selected the right bit, that would never of happened. What I do is to leave them on a note pad while they dry, I then toss that sheet away and clean off the dried glue from the blank. I find the epoxy and CA to be much more effort to use.

I dunno, maybe it's just me, but I don't have tube push out problems and just find the ease of using it right out of the tube a lot better than mixing the epoxy togather.


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## Jamie (Dec 4, 2006)

For a oversized hole on a blank I don't want to throw away, nothing I know of works better than GG.


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## TellicoTurning (Dec 4, 2006)

I agree with Eagle.. I like CA best for tubes... unlike Eagle, I'll glue up 5 or 6 or more set ups at a time, then let them sit overnight... I know I can turn in 5 or 10 minutes, but have always set up a number at a time... I lay them on wax paper to set.. that way I can make notes on scraps of paper and slip under the paper and still read what I have set up.. the older I get the more notes I need to make.[]


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## ctEaglesc (Dec 4, 2006)

> _Originally posted by Jamie_
> <br />For a oversized hole on a blank I don't want to throw away, nothing I know of works better than GG.


The right sized hole.


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## cozee (Dec 4, 2006)

I use GG if I do not need the blanks right away and exclusivelly on antler glue ups. CA if needed right away. Epoxy if needed later that day. Never had a problem with GG pushing a tube out. Have wasted a blank or two due to CA setting up to quickly. I find epoxy and GG easier to clean up than CA. And I have experimented with other adhesives, some available everywhere and others that are not. I like GG and other poly types since they do expand/spread so there is less reason to be concerned with saturation of adhesive along the tube/blank. I do keep Q-Tips handy to help spread GG and Epoxy throughly within the blanks and wiping down the tubes. No matter what glue I use, everything gets placed on wax paper.


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## kent4Him (Dec 4, 2006)

I've never lost a GG blank from a tube coming out.  I have lost CA tubes from not getting it set quick enough.  I have also seen CA tube come out.  I'd rather have the stain on my hand than sticking my fingers to the blank.  I only use CA on my Antler pens.


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## Dario (Dec 4, 2006)

I use GG 95% + of the time...no problems.  I used CA once and and never repeated it cause the tube froze in between while inserting it.

Whatever works for you is good but please do not generalize that it is NOT better than CA because for me (and others) it is.  They all have their advantage/disadvantage.


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## alamocdc (Dec 4, 2006)

> _Originally posted by boadywoods_
> <br />Is there a reason for this post?



If you are referring to yours, I have the same question.

Boady, many of us have vented about the frustrations of trying something that works for others, but failed for us. It's nothing new. And as evidenced by the responses, not everyone shares the same frustrations.

100% 5 or 30 min epoxy for me. I've tried GG and don't like it for the same reasons that Eagle posted. For those who use and like it, I'm truly happy for you. I didn't have the best experience with it. I also have had bad experiences using CA to glue tubes. More than once the tube stuck before I got it seated. [!] I've yet to have a problem with epoxy. But that's just me.


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## Geo in Winnipeg (Dec 4, 2006)

I use 5 min epoxy - never any problems. I've tried GG and other poly glues and don't like them - too messy although I didn't have any trouble with tubes moving. I tried CA once and srewed up the tube. Maybe I should have given the CA a better chance.
The best method is whatever you're happy with as long as it works for you.


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## RussFairfield (Dec 4, 2006)

I was an advocate of Gorilla and other polyurethane glues until I started teaching classes and making videos a couple years ago. I needed instant pen blanks without waiting overnight for the glue to dry. 

One day I had a tube stick about 1/2 way into the hole. No sweat, CA glue joints are weak and I could break it out with a hammer and save the wood. WRONG!!! I pounded on the tube until it was mushroomed over the end of the wood, and the CA glue joint was still holding. I kept pounding with a bigger hammer until the wood split, and the glue joint finally let go.

Just for kicks, I tried the same thing with a Poly-glue joint. The tube broke loose with one blow. I haven't used it since.


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## ctEaglesc (Dec 5, 2006)

LIke I said in an earlier post I started this post just to "vent"
Compared to other wood working projsect,making pens is"instant gratification".Using CA makes it "instanter"
I won't say I have never had a tube get stuck half way in blank using CA but I can say I Don't remeber the last time it happened to me.
Perhaps it is because I Use THICK CA and I don't insert it pull it out and then try to put it in again.
I plug the tube with parafin, I put a nead of glue INSIDE the blank and less on the tube.I once decicisive move I insert and twist at the same time.I spray the "exit end" with accelerant and then spray the "entrance end" I twist the insertion tool pull it out and set the blank aside for a few minutes.I clean the wax out with a drill bit that fits in the tube.I make sure there is no glue residue left.If there is I "Shave it off" with an exacto knife.
I mill and start tuening in less than 10-15 minutes.
Yesterday I had 7 wood cores for bcasing pens I was going to turn today because the tops had not been finished I Was in no hurry to get them done.I may not get to them until tomorrow.
The point of the post was meant to be tongue in cheek humor.I could have used epoxy since I have a syringe version but i didn't think it was worth using it for only 7 blanks.
I could have used CA but cleaning off the insertion tool can be a pain.(I don't do it all the time but since I made myself 2 insertion tools I don't use the same one  for both halves of a pen)
The point is I am not used to GG.
Everything I touched got"sticky".It's just too messy for me.Because I can spray accelerant on the ends of the blank, the CA for me is not messy at all and since I usually glue up the tubes in the same area of the shop,that section of the floor has a nice plastic finish.[]
I have posted I used CA for ninety-five % of the blanks I glue up.Yesterday covered the other 5% for this year.


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## penodr (Dec 5, 2006)

In my very short ( 4 completed pens ) time making pens I have been using Duco on the tubes. I like it because its cheap, strong and sets up in a few minutes and I can reposition the blank within the first 30 seconds of insterting if needed. I have yet to have one come out.

Dave


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## angboy (Dec 5, 2006)

When I use GG, I put a rubber band wrapped over the holes at each end of the blanks. I started this after having one tube push out on me, even though I'd done a lot at that point and none did that. But I wanted to avoid it in the future. I didn't think that up myself, someone suggested it- I think I remember who, but am not sure. Anyway, since then, I've had no tubes push out.


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## Rifleman1776 (Dec 5, 2006)

My experience with Gorilla glue, and other polys, is that they are messy, hard to store, not as strong and don't always set properly. Might have uses for things other than pens. I use 5 min. epoxy, works for me.


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## LanceD (Dec 5, 2006)

I always use 5 min epoxy and can glue up four sets of blanks before it hardens. When I have to glue up lots of blanks and won't be turning them until the next day or later I use a rod building 2 part paste epoxy called Rod Bond. It is very slow curing and fills gaps and loose tubes really well. It won't push your tube out while it cures and theres no glue seeping out while curing. You have at least an hour of working time with it and most of the time even longer. Another good attribute to this glue is that you can tint it with just about any dye you use with polyester resin.


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## Sylvanite (Dec 5, 2006)

Personally, I use thick CA glue, for two reasons:
1) It's what I started with and I never had a compelling reason to change, and
2) Lack of patience.  I turn pens in the evening so that after a long day at work, I can feel some sense of accomplishment, lol.  I want to complete the project - start to finish - in one session.  CA, both as glue and finish, allows me to do that.

Regarding those (rare) times when the glue sets before the tube is in place, I have a couple of ways to save the blank.
1 - if I'm quick) I do my gluing at the same bench where I keep a 1-ton arbor press.  Even after the glue grips, there are a few seconds when I can still yank the insertion tool out, stick the blank under the ram, and force the tube the rest of the way in.  Sometimes it works, and sometimes it simply breaks the glue joint and I am free to try again.  Surprisingly, it doesn't seem to buckle the tube.  Then again, if it doesn't immediately work, I move on to:
2 - if I'm not quick)  I cut the protruding brass tube off with a hacksaw and glue it (or a spare piece of tube) into the other end of the blank.  I don't push it quite all the way in, as the hacksaw took a little length out of the tube, but leave enough of a gap inside the blank (where the tube pieces meet) so that I can mill the blank down to the right length and have brass at both ends.  This method obviously won't work for a closed-end pen, and may fail if you depend on the tube for structural integrity, but it might salvage a valuable pen blank.

That's just my method - do whatever works for you.

Regards,
Eric


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## wade (Dec 5, 2006)

I actually like using CA myself.  I have wound up getting tubes stuck halfway in tho, mainly because I was trying to get the CA on my fingers and didn't move it fast enough.  I would up making a "tube inserter" which is just a piece of woood turned down so that a tube slips over it real easily.  I also put a very small taper on it so that when I use it to insert a tube into a blank, the tube is pushed a little further into the blank than just flush with the edge.

I also apply the CA fairly liberally.  It doesn't seem to set as fast when there is a lot on the tube.  It basically is its own lube for a few seconds more, allowing me time to position the tube properly.  Granted, the CA gushes out at one end, but I just rub that end on a flat surface (usually the underside of my workbench &lt;grin&gt to smooth it across the end of the blank.  After that is done, I hit it with some accellerator on each end, and i'm ready to turn.

Never had a problem in over 100 pens so far.

Wade


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## Grizzlyss (Dec 14, 2006)

In my short time of making pens I use Gorilla glue only, and so far no problems ever. I always lay the blanks on there side to dry, and check them about 1 or 2 minutes later for any shifting problems, have only had one problem, but the tube end didn't stivk out padt the end of the blsnk but moved right up to the edge, so I pushed it bak into the middle and it stayed there. Might try CA later on when I also try that for a finishing method too.

Sheldon


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## lwalden (Dec 14, 2006)

> _Originally posted by kent4Him_
> <br />I've never lost a GG blank from a tube coming out.  I have lost CA tubes from not getting it set quick enough.  I have also seen CA tube come out.  I'd rather have the stain on my hand than sticking my fingers to the blank.  I only use CA on my Antler pens.



I've found that a quick application of DNA to my hands, after using GG when I do a large volume of glue-ups, cleans the GG right off. I've always done this in less than 30 minutes from the start of the glue up, so don't know at what point this is no longer effective.....


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## Kaspar (Dec 14, 2006)

CA for acrylics, GG for woods.  Just had to destroy a pen to get the kit for something else.  Those barrels didn't give up easily because GG is mighty strong stuff.  I buy only the smallest bottles, and put a nail in the top each time to keep it clear, and seal it when I put the cap on.  I use very precise amounts with glue tips.


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## ctEaglesc (Dec 15, 2006)

CA for everything,been doing it for over two yearse without any problems.


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## ctEaglesc (Dec 26, 2006)

I tried GG again for a tube.
The stuff still sucks.


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## GBusardo (Dec 26, 2006)

I have tried them all and have had problems with them all.  CA is my glue of choice, because I have had less problems with that than all the others combinded.  As far as stregnth goes, I think it's way over rated, as far as pen turning.  
What ever works for you.


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