Art Word of the Day: Hot glue gun

artopium (66)in #wordoftheday • 6 years ago

Term: Hot glue gun

Definition: A hot glue gun is

a hand-held, pistol-like device that heats a round stick of solid adhesive, so that when it melts, and a user pulls the trigger, the melted glue can be squirted out of the nozzle at the gun's tip. Hot glue guns (also called hot-melt glue guns) are used to bond a broad range of materials. Most hardware stores and many department stores carry hot glue guns and glue sticks. Many brands are sold, varying in quality and price. Some accept nozzles having openings producing extrusions of different sizes and shapes. Most are electrical, some use batteries, and some burn butane gas. The sticks can vary in width and length (from 4-12 inches), color, translucence, and viscosity, as well as in the temperature required to melt the glue. Although lower melting point guns and glues are safer to use, the strongest glues are those with higher melting-points, and set rapidly, bonding in 30 to 60 seconds.Hot glue guns are reasonably safe to use. However, the gun nozzle and the glue itself become very hot. Hot enough to burn even careful users. As unpleasant and common as this experience is, this kind of adhesive is very popular for good reasons. People who like hot glue guns tolerate occasional accidents, and learn to have fewer and lesser ones. Users should plan ahead for the moment they have a burn, by working near a source of cold water ? from a sink or a bucket. Quickly immersing the affected skin in cool water can minimize both pain and damage. One experience with a hot glue burn should be enough to convince any skeptic of the wisdom of this advice. Another way to prevent burns is to wear cloth gloves when using a glue gun. In the area where you and others will be using a hot glue gun, display a printed copy of an enlarged version of the notice seen here. see thumbnail to rightThe heating element in a hot glue gun wears out over time. Fortunately many guns are inexpensive. This and their convenience recommends them for many applications. They are frequently used in manufacturing, packaging, stage-set, and other common crafting applications. Hot glue may be a good choice for many well-supervised school and college work, but it is less likely to be appropriate for many fine art applications, unless its relative crudeness is not objectionable. Hiding the look of hot glue in a piece of work can be difficult. If this is a problem, either use it with tremendous care or use a different adhesive or another joining method.Related links: Gluegunsdirect.com offers numerous specially formulated glues and a variety of guns for highly demanding applications. Also see hazardous.

Art Word of the Day

Every day I make an attempt to add a little bit more art knowledge to the Internet, one word at a time. Realizing there aren’t many comprehensive and complete online art dictionaries, I set out on a mission to compile my own.

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