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Kirk Dietrich

Gluing foam sheets together

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It seems like you may have gotten your answers Kirk.. but for what its worth Ive done some with 3M 77 spray adhesive. Mostly for foam that I was putting into DIY Cliff boxes. It did ok but over time they all seem to be seperating. To be honest though Im not sure if its necessarily the adhesive failing or just the hooks in and out pulling the sheets apart.

 

If you do as Brad explained the stuff sticks. Just make sure you weight it down good until its completely dry.

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If you're not satisfied with 3M 77, you can go with 3M 90. If you want a really strong bond, go with 3M 08088 Automotive trim adhesive or 3M 08090 Super trim adhesive. The latter two can be found in auto parts stores.

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IME, the claim of water resistant as opposed to waterproof is mostly CYA stuff from the manufacturers in case something falls apart. Household GOOP isn't supposed to be waterproof, but I've been using it to attach eyes for 20 years, and never had it fail. For parts that are already cut, I mighty try brushing on GOOP thinned with xylene just to see what happens. (there is also a marine GOOP that is advertised as waterproof) If you're gluing the sheets beforehand and need to cut through the adhesive, that might be a different story. Goop might be too flexible for that. I really don't know - just a thought.

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Well, for the stuff where you cut a plug or block head where the sheets are perpendicular to the hook and look like barring/vertical stripes and the face of the bug is a sheet of foam, I think you don't have to many forces working on your layered joint except maybe fish eating it. I'm planning on gluing sheets together and cutting a plug or making block heads where the sheets would be lateral, i.e. white belly, green back. So, I'll be drilling my plug into the edge and when the bug is fished, there will be water being pushed at the face during the retrieve. On second thought though as I've become a fan recently of the Liquid Fusion as a soft foam bug coating, that would seal the seam pretty nicely.

Speaking of LF, I tried using that to glue the sheets together and you can't pull the sheets apart but found out it only dries along the edges creating a seal and preventing air from reaching the interior surfaces of the foam. When you cut the block in half after a day, the insides are still wet. No air getting to it I guess. Not sure how long it will take for air to permeate the sheets of foam and dry the LF on the inside.

 

Kirk

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I have tried both the spray adhesive and plain contact cement, and I have found that contact cement will not separate once dried and stuck together. Not at all. I have seen where the spray adhesive has lost it's grip but have never had that happen with contact cement. Plus, over-spray can be a problem with the spray adhesive, using contact cement, all you have to do is make sure you don't tip over the bottle/can of cement (yes, I have, but only once)

 

My best piece of advice about using contact cement, it that it is much easier to glue together foam sheets if they have been cut down from their full size. I usually get my foam in 8"x11" sheets, then cut I cut it in half, leaving two 4"x11". then I cut the long side in half again so you have pieces that are 4"x5.5", which are much easier to deal with when you are trying to align them. Trying to align two 8"x11" pieces of foam with a very non forgiving adhesive like contact cement can try your patience.

 

Plus, cutting your foam down to manageable pieces, allows you to mix and match colors to get some really funky raw popper bodies. Once cemented together, cut into equal squares, shape them with a Dremel and a foam sanding sponge, cover them in clear head cement or nail polish, and ta-dow...instant popper..

 

And those bent bass worm hooks make good popper hooks too. rockon.gif

 

Also, one last thing about contact cement, properly applied, no weight is needed....just place two pieces together and burnish the surface with a plastic putty knife to ensure total surface adhesion....

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when I do foam sheets together I use elmer's rubber cement it works great but be sure to put something heavy on them to dry

I wouldn't use rubber cement, it comes apart far too easily....contact cement is the way to go...but that is just my opinion...please do what works for you....

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I use the 3m contact cement, I dip a plastic putty knife into the contact cement and spread it over the surface evenly in a thin coat on both pieces, let sit til just tacky then place the pieces together and use a roller to seal them nicely after each layer is added. Make sure the pieces are squared up or even around the edges when you place each piece on top of the next. Once you put it down, you won't be able to move it around.

 

Some people use small dowels between the glued layers to line it up, then remove the dowels to allow the pieces to come together, much like laying down a formica counter top. You could add weight on top of them if you wanted, but not sure it's necessary. Just start rolling from the center to the outside or from one side to the other on smaller blocks to alleviate any air pockets between layers. Let the blocks sit for a few days to cure and voila! Drill or cut and shape then apply to hook.

 

I normally put super glue or crazy glue on the thread wraps before sliding the foam onto the hook and this helps hold it together more along the hook in addition to keeping it secure to the hook so it doesn't slide or roll. If you use a slit at the bottom to place it on a hook, ensure the foam is rejoined all along the slit after placing it on the hook to keep it securely where you want it

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Funny thing happened the other day. I was in my shop hand planing a paddle I'm making. I reached over and grabbed the Top Coat and sprayed my plane to make it glide easier. Imagine my suprise on the third push when it hitched up and stuck the the paddle. I pulled it off and looked at everything stuck the the bottom of the plane. I reached over and looked at the can and to my suprise... it was 3M 77. The two cans are the same size and have the same color printing. Oops.

 

Michael

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Flytire, I use adhesive backed foam sheets for two toned gurglers and never had any problems. I haven't tried it it with many strips to make poppers or other bodies as they are talking about though

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