Sunday 29 January 2012

Using suitable dispensing tips for handling Cyanoacrylate glues and adhesives.

Cyanoacrylate (CA) adhesives and glues will generally bond rubbers, metals, certain plastics, card, felt and other materials in seconds. When dispensing these "superglue" adhesives, great care must be taken to handle correctly to avoid damage to persons or parts.

One frustrating area for concern is usually where the needle tip clogs during a dispensing process. To avoid clogging, try to use Teflon, Teflon Lined or Polypropylene plastic tips. Metal tube tips do not work as efficiently and therefore can be a false economy. These lower cost tips might need to be replaced much more frequently than Teflon, Teflon Lined or Polypro tips. With small bore metal tips, the tubes can block due to the moisture content on the metal surface which the CA adhesive will quickly react to. Small bore metal tips can block quite quickly.

Use Teflon Tips in either 0.5" or 2" long tubes here.
Use Teflon-Lined Tips in either 0.5" or 1" long tubes here.
Use Polypro Tips in either 0.5" or 1.5" long tubes here.


We recommend using the above tips for longer 'clog-free' dispensing but it is also worth considering the quality, age and grade of the Cyanoacrylates being dispensed and how and where they are stored. Also, changes in temperature/ humidity, etc can affect the performance of these glues. We can provide samples of both suitable tips and CA adhesives.

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