Whip tip tips!
Issue 220 July 03, 2014
Whip Tips are for pinpoint gluing. These are skinny little tube-tips, but sometimes you want them even skinnier. Elliot John-Conry of EJC Guitars squashes, cuts and modifies tips and pipettes to get drops of super glue and accelerator exactly where he wants them.
- Smashing: fret bending pliers make a small tip even smaller
- Cutting: lopping off pipette bulbs creates extra-long whip tips
- Spraying: filling replacement glue bottles with accelerator
- Inventing: a neat idea for tool handles from Frank Ford (Mr. Frets.com)
Video Transcription
[on-screen text reads: Stewart-MacDonald - Trade Secrets!]
Gluing fret slots
Elliot John-Conry: This is a Whip Tip [on-screen text reads: Elliot John-Conry, EJC Guitars]. It's a flexible plastic applicator tip. It fits on the top of your Super Glue bottle. It allows you to control and accurately deliver glue wherever you want it. I'm trying to glue a fret in right now, and this whip tip won't quite fit down in the slot the way I'd like it to. It's just not getting in. I'm going to gently crimp it flat with a smooth bladed plier, and then it'll go right in the slot all the way to the bottom, getting the glue where you want it. Sometimes this is just too flexible, so sometimes I'll clip it back a little shorter where it's stiffer. Then I can come back and still put a crimp on it, and that's a lot more rigid.
Applying accelerator
Another thing I really like to use a whip tip for is for applying accelerator [on-screen text reads: Speeds up glue binding - StewMac Accelerator]. I'll use a replacement Super Glue bottle. I'll just fill it up from my aerosol can. I'm going to do this outside because this is flammable and it smells really bad. I'll just cap it off and put my whip tip back on, and you've got a really great accurate Accelerator Applicator. Accelerator is water thin and, even with a whip tip, it can come out pretty fast. Again, I like to crimp the tip, gives me a little bit more control.
Pipettes for applying glue
Another thing I like to use for applying glue are Pipettes [on-screen text reads: The right amount every time - Pipettes from StewMac]. They have a little squeeze bulb on one end and you can siphon glue right out of the bottle, kind of like a turkey baster. I also like to just cut the bulb off and stick the applicator right on the bottle. This gives me an applicator tip that's about two inches longer than a whip tip and can reach places a whip tip can't. It's something I find myself using quite a bit.
Pipette squeeze bulb uses
Don't throw these squeeze bulbs away. They're great and they have tons of uses. I like to use them for cleaning out an airbrush, so I save them. Here's one more great tip for these little squeeze bulbs. This comes from Frank Ford at frets.com. Frank will just fill these little squeeze bulbs full of epoxy and shove a tool handle on them. I've done that with this little razor saw here and it's a really nice permanent handle. I think I'm going to do that to this file here.
