Should I varnish my blade?

StuartMarquis · Sep 3, 2016

I'm really struggling with glues at the moment. I've tried several different brands of table tennis glue and none of them seems to hold the rubber securely. At first I thought I was just being unlucky with dodgy batches of glue, but the longer this goes on it must be something else. I've even just tried donic blue contact glue based on the fact it's supposed to be extra strong.

My blade is varnished and I've started to notice that whenever I peel a rubber off of the blade, there is never any glue left on the blade itself; the blade layer of glue is always stuck to the sponge layer of glue which is stuck on the sponge. So basically it seems that the "week link in the chain" is the bond between the blade layer of glue and the blade. My assumption is that a varnished blade has a weaker bond with the glue than a non varnished blade. Is this correct and would I be better to ditch the varnish to get a stronger bond?

Thanks

Stuart

StuartMarquis · Sep 3, 2016

I should add that my current blade is a donic sensor appelgren all play (v1)

Epid3xia · Sep 3, 2016

You are right. A varnished blade has a weaker bond than a not varnished blade. But if you don't varnish your blade you run into the risk of a too strong bond and ripping off small bits of wood when your ripp off your rubber which can easily happen. So I would varnish every blade.

One other thing that makes the bond weak too is a smooth blade surface. The smoother the surface the weaker the bond. You can try to roughen up the surface of your blade. But be carefull to not ruin your blade. I would start with 300+ grit first and then go down. 300+ may be too high but I would not want to take any risks.

StuartMarquis · Sep 3, 2016

So do you recommend that I varnish a blade and then use sandpaper, or sandpaper the blade and then add varnish? Obviously my current blade is already varnished but I plan on getting a new blade in a month or two.

rokphish · Sep 3, 2016

Probably too much seal/varnish on the blade causing that problem. I have been sealing blades for years and so far don't have the problem.

If it's too much seal/varnish on the blade, follow the above suggestion, just very lightly sand the head.

I would advise sealing any and all blade very lightly at the minimum to lightly seal it for safety and piece of mind.

Epid3xia · Sep 3, 2016

Normaly the rubber can be glued to the blade without much trouble if you varnish it and then don't sand it.

Now the question arises in me why it is different in your case.
Two things come up in my mind:
First, using curled or domed rubbers. I have heard of normal tensors being hard to glue on because of their small dome. But especially boosted rubbers can be a big problem because they curle up realy hard.
Secondly, too thick varnish or varnishing multiple times. Do you know if your blade was already factory sealed when you varnished it?

StuartMarquis · Sep 3, 2016

I don't belive my blade was sealed when I bought it...but I put three coats of varnish on it myself, which appears to be far too much in hindsight!

Baal · Sep 4, 2016

There your problem. 3 coats!!! Way too much. A single light coat is enough to protect your blade against TT glue. Three coats will completely change the way a blade plays as well as cause your problem.

StuartMarquis · Sep 4, 2016

Thanks guys, lesson learned!

Gjayesh · Sep 4, 2016

Moral of this post varnish makes problem, dont varnish also problem [emoji23]

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chuckjordan2 · Sep 4, 2016

Light sand with 300+ (500-1000 grit beter) until the gloss is gone (if glossy). And use a block (very flat object) with the sandpaper. I normally wet-sand.

On your next blade, buy a can of 'sealer' as that's better for the purpose. Sealer seals the pores (1 light coat will do nicely). If you want to varnish, do the edges.

Baal · Sep 4, 2016

Gjayesh said:
Moral of this post varnish makes problem, dont varnish also problem [emoji23]

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Actually there are some other tricks. Somebody mentioned a very light coat of sealer. You can buy them at TT stores. What works for me just as well as old-fashioned hair spray, the very strong hold kind. Spray it on the blade and let it dry (should dry quick or you can use a hair dryer) right before you apply your glue each time.

UpSideDownCarl · Sep 5, 2016

StuartMarquis said:
My blade is varnished and I've started to notice that whenever I peel a rubber off of the blade, there is never any glue left on the blade itself; the blade layer of glue is always stuck to the sponge layer of glue which is stuck on the sponge.

So, the basic issue that 3 coats of sealant is definitely more than you need or want has been covered.

But there is something here that it seems you should know anyway.

ANY TIME you take rubbers off a blade, the glue is pretty much ALWAYS supposed to be on the rubber and not the wood. That is how it is supposed to be. When the glue won't separate from the wood, you are going to be in trouble.

So, this is just to make sure that your problem is that the rubber doesn't stay on, and not that when you take it off the rubber the glue is only on the sponge. Because if the rubber stays on, then there is nothing wrong.

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Should I varnish my blade?

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