I saw the discussion on cement pots and would like to present the way I am storing my cement. Inspired by painters that store their brushes in a solvent I came up with the following approach that has served me well for many years.
I use one large glass bottle with a large opening to store the brush in the appropriate thinner for the cement. (I use Renia Schnellkleber Verdünner). The large bottle has a large opening so that I can fish out the brush and has a lid that keeps the thinner from evaporating. An additional small glas (previously used to store anchovies) just contans the cement.
The larger bottle is filled about 1 cm with cement solvent, that is sold together with the glue. So when I need to glue something, I take the brush from the large bottle, dry it with a piece of kitchen towel, use it to apply the cement from the small glass jar and throw the brush back into the bottle. Since both containers have lids, I don’t waste any more brushes and in the small glass jar the cement always stays fresh.
@Customboots you’d asked about glue pot options a few days ago. Interesting option here.
I’ve been trying to think of something sold in really tall, skinny jars here in the US. Stuffed olives come to mind.
One improvement might be to wrap the jars in clear packing tape or something like a foam can coozie. Something to minimize mess if they fall off a bench and crack or shatter.
Damn the solvent thing is smart! I just got this little silicone cup with a really handy lid and some brushes. Great to use the little cup lid to hold the brusher, cotton daubers, whatever. Haven’t cleaned it out yet, hoping stuff pops out easily once hardened. Deborah has the big Rennia Col de Cologne at her place, but I just have some of the water-based temporary stuff in a spare glass jar and some Fiebings Leathercraft Cement that I haven’t tried yet. It would be a dream to figure out what construction methods I like that don’t involve relying on solvent-based glues, I hate having to care about ventilation (I say, becuase it’s winter and I also don’t know much about optimal operating temperatures for adhesives).
Yes I also don’t like the solvents. When its warm enough I use cement outside. Now I have the same problem like you that it is too cold outside.
If you have a strong exhaust over the stove which sucks the air from the kitchen and delivers it outside of the house, you could use the cement there - Just make sure your partner is not at home :-)) .
(In order to avoid any mess I get scold for later I cover the stove with baking paper…)
It helps to let it run for a few minutes after the job is done. It’s also important to close any windows. The fume hood will have an exhaust vent somewhere on the outside of the building. You don’t want fumes just coming back in.
For mess, I’m really glad to have found this very cheap plastic cutting board with a grab handle:
Deborah was just using the Rennia outside in the cold and said it didn’t bond right! She had to rip off a sole and redo it.
I don’t have a jug of my own yet, but I have a small tube of the toluene-free Barges cement to sole my next pair and see hwo much I use…this Sailrite video argues persuasively for 2 coats always of contact cement for soles.
I would like to chime in and say that there are some very cheap glue pots on ebay from China (shipped via speedpak so they take a week or two to be delivered) and while they are sufficient they are not as nice as the $25-$45 ones that shoe supply shops sell. Usually it’s a problem with the lid not fitting great and having a horrible burr on the edge, and they also don’t come with a brush.
Edit: this is all to say that if you don’t want to spend $25 plus shipping on a nice italian glue pot, the chinese ones are fine for 1/3 the price but they aren’t identical and they have minor drawbacks.
Coming back to this thread months later because I used my same little silicone glue pot with the A315 and it’s kept it usable…indefinitely? Weeks at least, but I think the A315 is just not at all the same as CDC. And the dried A315 peels just as well off the silicone on the brushes and pot itself. So I double down on my endorsement!
