PATCHING RUBBER WORK GLOVES
by Thinkenstein in Workshop > Repair
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PATCHING RUBBER WORK GLOVES
I do a lot of construction work with cement and need to protect my hands with rubber work gloves. Invariably there are accidents, where the gloves snag and tear on wires, or sharp areas of cement. Leaks in the gloves are not good, because cement can dry out and eat little holes in your skin.
When one glove in a set goes bad, I use the remaining good glove in combination with other remaining good gloves. The bad gloves eventually get repaired or thrown away. This instructable shows the way I repair them.
When one glove in a set goes bad, I use the remaining good glove in combination with other remaining good gloves. The bad gloves eventually get repaired or thrown away. This instructable shows the way I repair them.
CLEAN THE AREA
To get glue to stick to anything, you need to get the surface clean. I use sandpaper to clean the area around areas to be patched.
CUT THE PATCH
Some gloves are beyond repair, but still good for donating patch material. Flat patches can be cut from the cuff area. Finger tip patches can be cut from the thumb, or fingers larger than the diameter of the finger to be patched.
Remember to clean the patch with sandpaper also where the glue needs to stick.
Remember to clean the patch with sandpaper also where the glue needs to stick.
SELECT YOUR GLUE
After experimenting with the other glues I have, this is the glue I use now. To avoid promoting a commercial product, the name of it escapes me at the moment -- Ape glue, or something like it.
I have tried contact cement, rubber cement, epoxy, and silicone without great success. This stuff sticks well, is waterproof, and has some flexibility, but nothing is perfect. This glue foams up some, expanding when it hardens.
If the hole to be repaired is in an area of the glove that is used for spreading cement (edge of the palm), you might want to cover the patch with a piece of wax paper and hold it in place while the glue expands and hardens. That way the glue will harden up flat. The wax paper can later be removed.
I have tried contact cement, rubber cement, epoxy, and silicone without great success. This stuff sticks well, is waterproof, and has some flexibility, but nothing is perfect. This glue foams up some, expanding when it hardens.
If the hole to be repaired is in an area of the glove that is used for spreading cement (edge of the palm), you might want to cover the patch with a piece of wax paper and hold it in place while the glue expands and hardens. That way the glue will harden up flat. The wax paper can later be removed.
APPLY THE GLUE
The glue applies easily from its squeeze bottle. Rub a small amount on both the patch and the area to be patched and stick them together. Weight the patches down or use clothes pins as clamps, if need be, while the glue sets. Use wax paper as a barrier to protect things from the glue.
Small pin holes need no patch, just a dab of glue over them.
To put on a finger tip patch cut from another glove (kind of like a condom), it helps to fill the finger of the glove to be repaired with something to keep it inflated. In the picture below, I used a small plastic container that fit inside the finger nicely. The end of a broom stick might work, or something else finger-shaped. With the finger stuffing in place, the patch will fit better until the glue hardens.
Let the glue set and you are done.
Small pin holes need no patch, just a dab of glue over them.
To put on a finger tip patch cut from another glove (kind of like a condom), it helps to fill the finger of the glove to be repaired with something to keep it inflated. In the picture below, I used a small plastic container that fit inside the finger nicely. The end of a broom stick might work, or something else finger-shaped. With the finger stuffing in place, the patch will fit better until the glue hardens.
Let the glue set and you are done.
BONUS
After sacrificing a glove for patch material, you can squeeze a little more utility out of it by cutting rubber bands from the cuff and the fingers. Rubber bands have lots of uses.