Soft Grip Neoprene? Anyone ever use it? and Project Questions

VultureParade

VultureParade

Joined
Apr 25, 2003
Messages
369
Hey everyone,

I have an idea for a wild project and I was thinking about getting some of this stuff since it is advertised as "warm and soft". Now I don't know what I'm doing and have no experience with this material. How does it come? The Texas Knifemakers supply says it comes in pieces. Are these like blocks of the stuff? Is it easy to cut with say, a hacksaw, and then finely shaped up with sand paper?

http://www.texasknife.com/store/s-pages/TKS_MainframeStore.htm

There's the link.

The project idea is to make keychain fobs out of this stuff, I figured it might be nice to grab out of the pocket and give me a chance to work with some material. Should I sandwitch something with two layers of Neoprene? What should I sandwitch, some type of metal I'm assuming. How would I attach the Neoprene?

Haha, sorry for all the questions, if anyone has any info it will be unbelievably appreciated. :)

-Bryan
 
Wow, lots of questions, and I can't help on hardly anything. One application for the stuff is in using a hydraulic press to form thin metals into various shapes, but this has nothing to do with key fobs. You may end up being your own R & D division. Keep us posted! We'll probably see you in the Wall Street Journal in a few months, riding high!
 
We'll probably see you in the Wall Street Journal in a few months, riding high!
Click to expand...

haha, that would be a nice change from "The Poor Press" :) I think I might just end up buying some of this stuff as an experiment and see how it goes. Maybe if it doesn't work out in the application I have in mind I can use it for something else.

Thanks for your reply, I liked reading it regardless of the lack of questions answered :) take care.

-Bryan
 
You might look at www.mcmaster.com and see what they have. There are many types of rubber and plastic and they are available with different hardness .The neoprene I have is too soft for your project , you can cut it easily with a knife and you wouldn't sand it.
 
I bought some thin self stick sheet from MSC. It's nice stuff for when you need a little cushioning but the applications are kind of limited. I wouldn't use it on the handle of a knife for instance because I wouldn't be able to trust the adhesion. I mostly use it around the shop for small things.
 
The neoprene I have is too soft for your project
Click to expand...

Do you have any idea what your's rates on the Durometer scale? Thanks for that link by the way, they have a lot of stuff to offer.

I wouldn't use it on the handle of a knife for instance because I wouldn't be able to trust the adhesion
Click to expand...

Would it be possible to make rubber into a knife handle with some other method of attachment? I need a reliable way to bond this rubber to metal keeping in mind that I'm not looking at any kind of press at my disposal. Could I expoy it on? I'm not very well versed in the relationship between metal and rubber and what can be used to put the two together securely so the hold lasts a long time.

-Bryan
 
Peter, that may be a neat idea as a cushion for a belt grinder platen. Sometimes having the belt run against the metal platen doesn't help out with sanding some things, for instance a convex grind. Steve Sando posted a picture of a "soft" platen he made for his grinder, using a mouse pad, and a piece of graphite. This stuff your talking about may even be better. Just a thought.
 
My neoprene is FDA grade,medium hard [~60 durometer],off white. They have adhesive coated stuff too. You can always email them , they're very good for info and quick response.
 
I have used the stuff from Texas Knifemakers in the past. It came in 1/4 thickness by 1.5 x5......they suggested it be pinned with linen micarta rods and I think the suggestion at the time was to use superglue as the adhesive...it worked ok...but not great.

You can cut it with a shap knife or saw....and grind it on a 60 grit belt and not go much higher in grit with sandpaper.

I still have 2 slabs of it and it sees use on every knife as the best sanding block I have ever used....no kidding.

I am pretty sure that it is marked Goodyear Neolite
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top