>I yield to the brilliant young designer on the gripper issue. <
Thank you Gprent. I’m a “frickin genius” after all - haven’t you heard ;)
>I agree, to use them, you would probably have to coat one side with contact cement, let it dry, and then bond it to the velcro. <
These erasers are probably cheap enough that you can experiment with bonding them to the Velcro and not go broke. Try it first w/out glue. It held just fine for me. You’ve probably noticed that the Velcro backing has a pretty strong adhesive on its own (its almost dangerous). A good rule to observe is to use a rectangle of Velcro that matches the proportions of the eraser as tightly as possible. This will minimize any “rocking” effect that can be created by using too small of a Velcro rectangle. It will also help prevent the Velcro rectangle from tearing loose from the eraser/rectangle when using too large a piece of Velcro.
>However, since the eraser is held statically in place, wearing out should not be an issue. <
But there is almost always some minor amount of slippage when hanging, even if it doesn’t effect the quality of your hang. Couple that with the extraordinary pressure of the cable clamp and there has to be some amount of wear on the rubber. Probably negligible in the short term, but annoying due to the “crumbs” it creates.
I arrive at this from experience I’ve had recently playing with this eraser idea. I notice that after hanging with the erasers as rectangles there is a super-fine layer of eraser crumbs on the side of my Theraband wrap. Not a lot, but never something you’d find with the Waxman product or a similar material.
Maybe a thin film of the Aquarium Silicone Pirate mentions would resolve this? I know that this stuff never “crumbles”.
The best results I’ve gotten so far with the erasers has been when I sliced a really thin layer of the “front-face” off of them. Imagine using a razor blade as you would a wood planer - you’re essentially “skinning” the surface face off. This creates a nice rough texture that adds a “tooth” to the eraser’s bite. again, the only problem with this is the crumbling effect caused by the the minor friction between the eraser face and the wrap. And this crumbling might only be increased depending on the type of eraser rubber someone is using. I’ve already noticed a huge variation in consistency from one brand to the next.
The more I think of it the more sense it makes to apply Aquarium Silicone to the front-face of the eraser rectangle, regardless of what brand eraser your using.
Gprent, thanks for the name of your erasers. It’s a different brand than the ones I’ve been trying (Faber Castell, Grumbacher) and could possibly hold better potential as a replacement.
>As far as color coordination, the black grippers are the only way to go. Pink erasers! Give me a break!!! <
Lol…. Go ahead make fun of Cap. But just imagine trying to explain to your wife why you keep applying Velcro to the backs of all these pink erasers.
Ah, the lengths we’ll go for length…..
—-Cap