Best neoprene glue for smoothskin?

[apnelia]

Hi all!

I've ripped my lovely elios smoothskin and tried to glue it with two different kinds of neoprene glue (egyptian ones - probably not the best quality!), and they're all coming apart again.
Before trying a third time - maybe someone knows which kind works best on Elios smoothskin/freedown neoprene?? (I can get "black witch" and "aquaseal" here).

 

[immerlustig]

the best one is undoubtly the one that won't come apart after a full inhale.

rofl

...sorry, r.

 

[Donna]

Ouch.... I know exactly how you feel. I caught my suit around the bum area of my freedown suit and it burst open rofl rofl

ANyway - I repaired it using black witch and it's still holding now. I have had to do a couple of minor patch ups on it, but its mainly ok..... Just do the repair slowly and a bit at a time This is how I did mine - put black witch on both edges of the tear and make sure you get the tear lined up properly before you push the edges together. Once you've repaired it, place the suit on a flat surface with some paper on the inside and outside of the tear and then put a weight over it, this ensures it repairs flat. Leave it as long as possible and then soak the paper off.....

Oh and before you attempt the repair, make sure the suit is completely dry....

Hope this helps!

Donna

 

[Huan]

Try and get a tube of Picasso wetsuit glue.
It is black in colour and is by far the best I have used better than Black witch and not as thick as Aquaseal.
It is reasonably priced around 8-euro a big tube.

 

[Yidaki]

maybe inflatable boat patch glue,, just opinion, might work but not sure...

cheers,
Burak

 

[dave]

Bostik 2402 or Dunlop S200 are the best glues, but the picasso stuff is ok. WHATEVER YOU DO, DONT USE AQUASURE, and Black Witch is pretty crappy too!
You probably dont want to hear this, but you have unless you can get ALL of the glue you have tried previously to repair it with off, you are going to have real problems doing a permenant repair
Smoothskin is easy to glue so long as you follow a few simple rules
ALWAYS clean the area to be glued with solvent
Use the right glue (a contact adhesive)
Put a thin coat of glue on each surface and allow to try
Put another thin coat on each surface and allow to dry
Press the 2 pieces together making sure they are lined up and and then press them together hard (preferably using a roller)
cheers
dave
www.spearo.co.uk

 

[apnelia]

Thanx for the good advices!
Dave, what is a good solvent to clean with?? Maybe I didn't get all the old glue of, and that was the main problem...

I looked over all the seams of the suit, and it looks like they're coming half-open at many places. Have any of you had the same problems with a previous freedown? Do you know what glue Elios recommends? I'll e-mail them anyway..

 

[naiad]

WHATEVER YOU DO, DONT USE AQUASURE, and Black Witch is pretty crappy too!

I used Aquasure. :waterwork
I couldn't get hold of anything else. I agree that it's not very good, it's hard, difficult to use and not too durable. Next time I'll use the Picasso if I can find it.

Lucia

 

[Narsil]

Picasso glue is awesome stuff, used it for a number of years. Kept my last suit going for an extra season I'd say.

 

[PoseidonSv]

I think many gles is the same SeacSub CressiSub you name it, they all look different on the tube but the black glue inside is the same, i repaired a rip nad used needles that i stick through from one side to the other, then it is easy to align it all and get the surfaces to come in excactly right position.
Then i glue both sides and let dry for a while then push the pieces edges together with the needles than let it dry, this way i can press the surfaces together and controll any excess glue. i saw a suit glued using paper on both sides and it look AWFUL you will not get a seal that is almost invisible but you get anoying white pieces with paper that will never wash of completely so please try to stay awya from paper use something plastic that will be easy to remove without adhesibg to the glue too much.

 

[irtubes]

Neoprene gluing often fails when the adhesive doesn’t chemically match the foam’s surface energy or when the rubberizer/plasticizer migrates. Neoprene-specific adhesives (chloroprene/contact cements) typically work best, especially when surfaces are lightly abraded and degreased first. Industrial formulators also add thickeners/fillers to control flow. Technical suppliers like I R Tubes (https://irtubes.com) carry polymer additives used in bonding and adhesion applications.

 

[Irishdiver]

Black Witch is not too bad. I've used it a few times. Fixed a hood with it about 2 years ago and it's still holding up. Aquasure sets way to hard for neoprene. It'll be uncomfortable against the skin and potentially lead to future tears as it's stiffer than the surrounding material. I'd use it only on wellies or the like, maybe on a drysuit in a pinch.