Holding & Using The Glue Syringe

Now you’ve got a loaded syringe of glue it’s time to get started.  Like any tool, you need to learn how to hold it and use it and it’s no different with your glue syringe.  You need to hold the syringe firmly, so you have total control over the amount of glue being applied and the placing of the glue.

Hold it in your hand with the syringe laying across your palm, fingers wrapped around the tube of the syringe and your thumb firmly on the plunger.

Use your thumb to press down on the syringe so you can accurately apply the glue. E6000 is quite a thick glue, so you
need to press firmly.  You have two options when applying the glue.  The first is to use a ‘dotting’ motion, where you
apply a small dot of glue where your stone will go, then continue adding dots of glue where the stones will be positioned.
This is our preferred method, mostly because it should prevent over gluing. Using too much glue, or over gluing’ as we
call it, isn’t good! To start with, it’s a waste of money and glue, it makes the surface very slippery for the stones, and it
doesn’t look the best! Of course, not using enough glue can result in not enough bond, and stones falling off! Don’t panic,
you’ll get the hang of it easily and within a few minutes, you’ll know how much glue to apply!

The second way you can apply the glue is to do one thin line of it.  Don’t glue too large an area because E6000 does set up
quite quickly, just glue enough so you can lay a few stones at a time. (You’ll also work out quite quickly, how many stones
you can lay before the glue sets.)

Once you’ve applied the glue, gently pull backward on the plunger.  This will stop the glue oozing out while you’re laying the stones. Syringes are manufactured to be disposable items.  We try to get maximum usage out of every syringe we use, so we treat them with care and always try to empty them of glue when we’ve finished working on a project.  There will be times where it’s unavoidable and glue will be left in your syringe.  If this happens, close the end off by using a sewing pin, a ball of blu-tack or anything that will completely close off the blunt tip. Eventually the glue will set up if it’s not used, so try and use it within 24 hours max.

E6000 dries like rubber, so when you’ve finished with your syringe, gently pull out the plunger.  Wipe the rubber tip to clean that off and set the syringe aside.  Within a short period of time any glue left inside should be dry, and all you need do is to grab a wooden skewer and poke around inside the syringe releasing the dried glue.  (We actually find it quite fun cleaning our syringes and seeing how many times we can use one!)  Shake the dried glue out and leave the syringe without the plunger for next time.

Always make sure your blunt tip is cleared of glue also.  Easy to do by using a sewing pin or needle.

Neither the blunt tip, nor the syringe will last forever, but with a little bit of care, you should get a few uses from them.  We do however, always like to have a few spare in our kits!  Syringes and tips are available from our shop here!