Materials from The Stick Man

You can get just about all the materials you need at http://www.thestickman.co.uk
Shanks, horns, carving blanks, ferrules, collars, epoxy etc. etc.

Keith.

Hi Keith

Thanks for the link.

I wonder if you have anything to desolve epoxy resin. I keep getting it on my fingers and its got to a point where I cannot type emails anymore due to the build of resin. There are of course other disadvantages such as trying to clear ones nose, but I expect the forum readers will not want to know about that.

I have tried waiting till the resin dries and then holding my fingers against the sander, but it gets hellish hot and starts to smell a little. A good friend of mine suggested I crack the lumps of resin in a vice and he volunteered to tighten the vice jaws while I placed my fingers between the jaws. It did not work. I spent two weeks with bandages on my sore resin fingers.

I am at a loss as to what to do. Nothing seems to shift the stuff once its on my fingers, and the worst of it is that I had a commission stick to finish and that got stuck to my fingers and I never managed to free it in time for the post. You know its real difficult trying to sleep with a full sized crook sticking out of the bed, you just cant turn over, never mind going to relieve yourself in the dark.

So please Keith I hope you can help. It would mean a lot to the wife to get her kettle back after I got adhered to it while steaming a shank.

Cheers Viktur.

You can get a tube of glue remover from many DIY shops that will dissolve epoxy and superglue - trouble is you have to leave it for about ten hours to work! You could always try the Vinyl Gloves I sell for the purpose of stopping you getting glue/paint etc on your fingers - look here http://www.thestickman.co.uk/blanks.htm

or you could just be a bit more careful!

Keith.

Hi Keith

Thanks for the reply.

Thats a realy good idea. Now why didnt I think of that. Its gloves for me from now on. If I put the gloves on after gluing up I shouldnt stick to anything ever again.

Thanks Keith, your are a pal.

Cheers Viktur.

I keep a spray bottle of window cleaner near my workbench and use it to clean fresh epoxy off of my hands. I does a good job if used immediately.

Marvin Little
Pell City, Alabama

I use the vinyl/rubber/surgical gloves when I'm using an epoxy or super glue. I have had my fingers stuck together with super glue:) Had to use a razor blade to cut them apart.....hence the bias towards the gloves

I have used a soldering iron to dig out epoxy. It breaks down at about 300 degrees C.
(It does tend to leave blisters if you apply it to your fingers, however!)

Hi Keith

Viktur here.

I like the title "Vikturs problem" the stories I could tell you all. My life has just been one long succession of problems, and it all started when I was first born. But thats another story.
Yes the soldering iron. Good idea. I never thought of that one. Not often do you need to remove epoxy resin from a job, but the occasion must arise sometimes. The great thing is that the soldering iron is so precise due to its size and shape.
Of course the other used for the iron is to detail horn work, like the scales on a trout. I have never used it because I would just get stuck to another object, and despite my earlier posting regarding chisels, this is just where I would use a small chisel.
Alan Bateman uses the soldering iron a lot on his videos, well not actually on the plastic, but on the horn he is using as a demonstartion within the videos. Its not even video now is it. Its DVD. I dont much like these DVDs as they dont seem to work in my video player, the shape seems to be all wrong. But thats just another minor problem.
Well Keith thanks for the tip, could be useful in the future.

This is Viktur signing off, sayonara.