Clyde Hollinger wrote: > Bob, > > I used to use CA to glue on the miscellaneous ivory keytop, because it was quick. > I stopped using it when I found some of the ivory heads popping off again in a > year or two, which caused me to think the bond was too weak. Maybe it was the way > I did it; I put the glue on the key and accelerator on the keytop, then held them > in position for ten seconds or so, and that was it. > > About six months ago I started using Weldwood Contact Cement, which I buy in a > little 3-ounce bottle at the hardware store. It comes with a no-good brush > inside, attached to the lid. I get cheap artist brushes from the craft store, > which cost aout 98 cents for a pack of five or six, and I use each one only once. > Put a thin coat of glue on the keytop and a thin coat on the key, and after they > dry a few minutes press them together. So far I've been pleased; in a year or two > I'll be able to tell better how this holds up. > > Clyde Hollinger > Perhaps "a thin coat" is "the ticket." I don't use contact cement, because I've often seen it leach into the ivory, leaving it an ugly, mottled gray (smells bad too). Perhaps this was because too much was used; I'm not sure. Last year I "accused" Steve Brady of advocating contact cement for this repair in his repair manual (pp. 56-57). He clarified that he advocated use of "Duco cement." I was confusing it with "Duro Contact Cement." He was right, I was wrong. I do use CA on occasion, but don't use "thin" -- it will eventually fail. I usually use medium viscosity. Patrick Draine
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