Reader [James] told us about a new product developed with hackers in mind. Sugru is a silicone-based adhesive that cures at room temperature. It is moldable and once hardened it remains slightly flexible. You can see in the picture above that it has been used to create a hook but the inventor shows off a slew of other uses such as replacing missing feet on a chair, molding hand grips, and waterproofing. One of the most enticing aspects is that Sugru will create a chemical bond with smooth metal.
The product reminds us of the two-part earplug material used to ruggedize electronics from a while back. The difference is that Sugru is one part and is an adhesive. It comes as a satchel full of individually-sized packets. To use it, choose how much you need, cut open the package to reveal the product, then knead and mold the chewing-gum-looking substance to fit your needs. Check out the demonstration video after the break.
Want to try some out? Yeah, so do we but it seems they’ve already sold out of their initial supply (good for them, bad for us) and we haven’t seen word on pricing. We’d love to use this to mold enclosures, and for about a billion other things.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeJsH5WL9IE]
impressive! i want some!
I was lucky enough to order sugru while their stocks still lasted, and the pricing is pretty good: 7 GBP per hack pack:
The Multi-hack pack of sugru contains 5 × 5g pieces and 5 × 10g pieces.
The Big-hack pack of sugru contains 3 × 20g pieces, 2 × 10g pieces and 1 × 5g piece.
The One massive-hack pack contains 1 × 100g piece of sugru.
Seems fair to me.
Could anyone who already used it let me know wrt to mech properties how it is different from the hand moldable epoxy putty stick?
Brilliant. I live in britain, so it should deliver quite quickly. I can’t wait for stocks to replenish, this sounds like some good stuff. I’m guessing they’re not giving out samples :P
This looks interesting. Must get some when they can sell continuously.
Sounds kind of ironic considering where I saw this product first, but it would have sounded a lot less tacky and more professional if they hadn’t used the word “hack” in the promotional video
It’s made out of silicone and remains slightly felxable after it sets? So I assume one could make sex toys out of it, right?
@HIrudinea: Not food grade stuff so I wouldn’t recommend you put it inside you. Towards the bottom: http://sugru.com/instructions/
That stuff looks pretty awesome. I remember there was another product similar to this I saw online, it was like granular plastic that melted at very low temperatures (like 150 F) which let you mold shapes easily. Anyone know what it was called?
DAMN!!!!
@MS3FGX: Polymorph? http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=35511
@GaryC
Looks identical to the more popular product line ShapeLock.
http://shapelock.com/
Yep, polymorph is the stuff I currently use currently for all sorts, but it’s not adhesive and it’s rigid when set, whereas this stuff is less rigid when set and is also apparently able to chemically bond to un-keyed metal/glass etc. Possibly too good to be true, but I can’t wait to try some!
Polymorph is a neat product, I’ve used it myself and still have some granuals, it’s difficult to mould into place sometimes because it can cool too quickly when you’re dealing with pressing it into metal parts that absorb the heat, similarly drilling/sawing/filing it can prove difficult because the friction causes it to heat up, melt and get stuck to the drillbit/saw/file.
Quite curious to see what this substance is like to work with.
Sounds like the perfect diy bong adhesive…
@HIrudinea
diy sextoys was my first thought too, lol
DIY dong-bong hybrid?
@GaryC,packrat
Yeah, it was one of those two, thanks. Though Haku makes some good points about working with the finished product. Maybe I’ll request one of the “free” samples from ShapeLock.
I managed to get several jars of a two part rubber putty from a warehouse that was throwing them out. It is pretty cool stuff; it’s not adhesive like Sugru but sometimes that is a good thing. You get several minutes of work time and it only takes 10 minutes to finish curing. It is a little pricey though.
http://www.flexbar.com/reprorubber.htm
@ the pervs thinking about sex toys, just throw a few condoms on the finished product… duh!
Yay for safe sex… with silicon…
I swear.. if someone makes a robot with this stuff…
I dunno if this stuff is any good or not but her accent is hot. Makes me want some sugru.
Is there a US version of that polymorph? It sounds like it would be really useful to have around but not sure where to search for it.
@aw Shapelock: http://shapelock.com/page2.html
Please send to me MSDS for Sugru. Wholesale price please .
@Ali: hackaday isn’t the manufacturer nor the seller for this product… I love that you have left no contact information as well.
@aw: I doubt it as polymorph is manufactured by a university as one of their “smart products” so you will probably have to ship it from UK unless they have a US distro now
A couple major differences between this and epoxy: epoxy is two-part, and does not bond directly to ceramics/metals in the same way. Epoxy responds much differently to high temperature than silicone does. Silicone releases acid (usually acetic, but for some products hydrochloric etc.) as it cures, while good epoxy releases almost nothing.
Sugru:caulk::epoxy putty:2-part epoxy
Hey guys, I’m giving away a couple packs on my website if you want to try the stuff out but didn’t order before they sold out.
Is Sugru foodsafe; certified or otherwise?
I want to use it to make a removable plug for a moisture vent hole(about 2″) in the top of my electric oven. It will be inserted and removed, quite frequently, in the process of baking bread.
Do you think it would be good for this?
Thank you.