CA Glue

Fiddleback

Fiddleback

Knifemaker
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Oct 19, 2005
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I have always bought my CA Glue from the knife supply houses. They had the same glue (same bottle and label) that the Hobby Lobby by my home had, and their price was generally better. But then I ran out and my house of choice was out so I went looking at Amazon. Whoa. Game changer. I now use Starbond CA Glue. You get a 16 oz bottle for ~$30 rather than an 8 oz bottle for same price at knife supply houses. Half price is good, BUT HERE IS THE KICKER. Each time you order they send you a bag of small plastic bottles, and a dozen or so really nifty little pipettes to apply the glue. These do 2 things for you. Firstly they apply the glue to very small spots extremely well. Second, they clog and save the glue for you after each use. I've never run out of the little extra accessories they send. We use the bottles in the shop for tons of things.

One other thing they have is dyed (black and brown) CA glue. That is nice to have. I love filling pores in burls with them.
 
Thanks for the tip! My wife has a prime membership and we use Amazon all the time for e-books, movies, and of course, purchases. Because we get prime shipping, most of the time I can order something and have it shipped to the door cheaper than going out to pick it up. It's amazing. I love Amazon!
 
I found CA glue at an online boat wholesaler for $32/gallon, plus shipping. But it didn't come with the pipettes, that sounds nice.
 
Cyanoacrylate Glue. More commonly known as super glue.

BTW, the glue you mentioned isn't available for prime shipping. Kinda lame, but I may get some anyway when I need more.
 
Interesting.


I'm not sure how bad of an idea this is, but I CA'ed the scales (maple over black corion spacers) on the very first knife kit I did back in 2009' and it has held solid since then. I wonder how long it will last....
 
schmittie said:
Interesting.


I'm not sure how bad of an idea this is, but I CA'ed the scales (maple over black corion spacers) on the very first knife kit I did back in 2009' and it has held solid since then. I wonder how long it will last....
Click to expand...

Some of the top makers use CA to adhere their scales along with mechanical fastners.

Some will tell you not to use it....but they are not nearly as famous :)
 
AVigil said:
Some of the top makers use CA to adhere their scales along with mechanical fastners.

Some will tell you not to use it....but they are not nearly as famous :)
Click to expand...



In the subhilt video with Steve Johnston, he shows using CA glue on liners and scales with Loveless bolts

It works for him, but CA will not seal the steel from moisture like epoxy will.


It would matter more or less depending on the steel type, handle type and use the knife would get.


Epoxy makes sense to me.
 
Fiddleback, Thanks for the info. I have been happy with "Stickfast" to glue bolsters together before sanding them and "Zap-a-gap" for filling burl holes but the prospect of black and brown Ca glue sounds wonderfully useful to me. I will order some tonight . Thanks again. Anything that makes a better knife is great! Larry Lehman
 
12345678910 said:
In the subhilt video with Steve Johnston, he shows using CA glue on liners and scales with Loveless bolts

It works for him, but CA will not seal the steel from moisture like epoxy will.


It would matter more or less depending on the steel type, handle type and use the knife would get.


Epoxy makes sense to me.
Click to expand...

There are many other well known makers I have talked with that use CA as well. They have been using it for years and it has worked well for them.

But it does have to me done correctly and with the good CA and not the cheap stuff. Of course epoxy works great. But if you want the thinnest glue line and a glue that does not generate heat like epoxy does, that can cause some material to warp the CA is a another option.
 
It's great for instances where a very thin viscosity is needed like on leather. I've found I can soak it into a stack of leather washers and then sand it off. Doesn't have quite the feel of natural leather, but it stabilizes it very very well. I've also used it to stabilize fiber liner material and that has worked well.

I buy big packs at HF and keep it in a tiny plastic tub that they also sell. Probably a good idea to buy a bulk container though.
 
lastbrunneng said:
I found CA glue at an online boat wholesaler for $32/gallon, plus shipping. But it didn't come with the pipettes, that sounds nice.
Click to expand...


I always glue my finger together,
Can you imagine the mess from spilling a whole gallon jug ?


Where did you find it ?
 
I've never used CA glue on any scales (finishing). I have some burlap micarta I just got from Shadetree and was thinking of trying CA glue on them. Anyone ever done this? If anyone can give me a quick rundown on how to do it I'd appreciate it. I'm assuming you just put it on, let it dry, sand and repeat. What grit sandpaper will give a high gloss finish?
 
Might ask fod if his stuff is compatible. CA does weird things to regular old fiberglass resin. I know he uses better stuff, but I'd run it by him, or test a scrap.
 
I use the CA glue to glue to liners to the scale material. I can't imagine the stress involved with using an instant glue to glue scales to steel. I've seen that done temporarily, for drilling though. But for final glueup. Sounds terrible. A nice 45 minute set time on that G-Flex epoxy is the nicest luxury in knifemaking. But no reason to wait that long while glueing up liners and scales. This and filling gaps is how we use CA glue.


LARRYZ10 said:
Fiddleback, Thanks for the info. I have been happy with "Stickfast" to glue bolsters together before sanding them and "Zap-a-gap" for filling burl holes but the prospect of black and brown Ca glue sounds wonderfully useful to me. I will order some tonight . Thanks again. Anything that makes a better knife is great! Larry Lehman
Click to expand...

Excellent. Glad to help.

12345678910 said:
I always glue my finger together,
Can you imagine the mess from spilling a whole gallon jug ?
Click to expand...

I can picture the authorities finding a dead body glued to the floor a pace from its glued down shoes. LOL.

crocogator106 said:
I've never used CA glue on any scales (finishing). I have some burlap micarta I just got from Shadetree and was thinking of trying CA glue on them. Anyone ever done this? If anyone can give me a quick rundown on how to do it I'd appreciate it. I'm assuming you just put it on, let it dry, sand and repeat. What grit sandpaper will give a high gloss finish?
Click to expand...

I have been using shadetree and CA glue for years. No issue there.



Now, I am still looking for that actual price on a gallon. I tried the marine stores and you can't add it to the cart. I tried getting a quote from EZ Bond. Specifically asking for the gallon price. They responded immediately with a price list that did not have the gallon price. The 16 oz bottle was $45.

I saw those 5 gallon containers, but I can't store that, and I'm not clear on the viscocity on them either. I haven't seen one that said "thick" on it. $45 for 5 gallons would save me a few hundred dollars a year, but I worry about exactly what the count said about spills. Glued down and dyeing from the fumes isn't on my bucket list.

So, up to now I am still buying the starbond. It stinks only having single knifemaker buying power.
 
Just curious: what do you guys use it for? Finishing, or actual construction (such as hand to blade or tang.). Stabilize grip blanks?

I love it vs epoxy, unless I need a gap-filling glue.

In my wood turning days, we used it to finish pens, using dabs on a paper towel. You knew it was dry when you felt the hairs in your nostrils being singed off:-)
 
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