Since we now have a Fancywork sub-forum (
THANK YOU, Moderatii!), I thought I'd start a post and let others chime in as they see fit as to where to get supplies for doing FANCY WORK knotting. This would include small line, glues, varnishes and the like, or anything else useful that would appeal to we fimble-fungered fools.
Please don't post actual pricing and please don't post if you have an interest in the concern. Let's keep this as a neutral informational post, not an advertizer's jumble.
To start: Cyanoacrylate Glue in bulk.
As many of you know from my past drivels, I am a proponent of using cyanoacrylate glue for many purposes (*)in doing small fancywork, but getting some at a decent cost has been rather difficult. Every time I find what I think is a "good deal", the company goes out of business or the prices escalate and getting it in bulk from sources in the UK is economically unsound by the time I pay shipping, customs and packing charges. Indeed, I run a good chance that the dunderknopfen in US Customs will unilaterally decide that Ca is a WMD and never deliver it at all.
Finally I found a good US source for this stuff and thought I'd share...
Woodenwonders (
http://woodenwonderstx.com/WWBlue/NewGlueWS.html) is a master distributor for EZ Bond CA glues, and you can really get some nice pricing on 16oz bottles of the stuff. They also have smaller bottles into which you can decant the glue for convenient working sizes, caps and "wicking tips" which are just a super idea, as well as 2oz bottles of the glue if you don't need a big bottle. (
Edited 08-26-08)
I use this stuff (the THIN formula) to "tip" my lines for weaving turksheads, to prevent the end of a line from "fagging out" while being tucked or braided (especially in squareknotting) and for a dozen other little things. (**)
They also sell "De-bonder" (
GET SOME! It's really helps to be able to get this stuff OFF a surface if you have an 'oopsie'!) as well as accelerator to speed up drying, although nine times out of ten you won't need it with the thin formula and cotton/linen lines.
Anyway, check out the website for more info or send an email to Mannie at the site.
Vince
(*) I will take a line I'm going to use for a turkshead and "tip" the end (about 1/2 inch or so) with CA, let it dry (a matter of a minute at most with cotton / linen / flax / hemp lines, then clip the line at a 45 degree angle giving me a hard end with a chisel point for weaving multi-strand turksheads, doing larger needlehitch, anything where you have to pass the line multiple times thru the body of the work, thus eliminating the need for those brass threading needles. Unlike them, it adds almost nothing to the weight of the line and will easily stay stiff for as long as the job takes. To prevent fagging, just a wee drop on the line's end and it'll stay secure through just about any contortion you may put it thru
(**) I also use CA in place of other preservatives for coating things like a tool handle or anything that will receive hard usage. The CA bonds with the ropework and makes the finished product pretty "bulletproof"; in fact, you'd better be pretty (censored) sure that the fancywork is exactly where you want it before coating, because once you do, it AIN'T moving again!
A lot of people like varnish. (I like the look) The way it coats the work and makes the surface smooth is very traditional, while CA penetrates the fabric of the line and does not give a 'smooth" surface finish. But the CA surface gives a far superior 'grip' to the handle, so it's really (as Daedalus said to Icarus) a matter of a pinion
as to which is better. It also dries in a very brief time by comparison.Anyhoo... for those who may be interested, there it is.
More to follow.
