By Pam Teel
In 1968, the Japanese chemical company Toagosei began selling a fast bonding glue called Aron Alpha. The chemical name was cyanoacrylate. An executive playing with the product was shocked at how fast the glue stuck as he almost fused his fingers together causing him to shoutout, “This is one crazy glue.” The product eventually hit the market in 1973 and was named Krazy glue. They dropped the C and added a K for the sake of securing a trademark.
Even though super glue, which was made from another company, hit the market first, Krazy glue is one of those names that just jumps off the shelf. All the advertising for it helped boost sales. Who can forget the commercial where the construction worker glued his hardhat to an I beam and the crane picked him up and gave him a ride in the air as he was holding on to his hardhat. This non-toxic, colorless, extremely fast-acting, strong adhesive in its pure form, can lift 2000 pounds per square inch.
The glue became a cultural phenomenon complete with urban legends and some legends that were true to fact such as the man who thought the Crazy Glue stick was actually Chap Stick and glued his lips together or the prankster that put glue on the toilet seat at McDonalds thus gluing a customer’s tuckus to the seat.
The brand doesn’t need to worry about recommending new uses to its customers; they do it for the company. Over 300,000 uses for glue were sent in by customers. An example of one usage was when a college student cut their hand and should have gone to the hospital to get stitches but instead they used Krazy glue was used to seal the skin up. Not so farfetched because during the Vietnam War, cyanoacrylate was proven valuable to military surgeons. Under battlefield conditions, they used it to stop bleeding and even close wounds. Today cyanoacrylate is used in specific formulas developed for medical use. Note: Krazy Glue products should not be used for wound care.
For those whose fingers get stuck, no worries just soak acetone or ordinary nail polish remover containing acetone on the bonded area. The bond will break but be sure to rinse the area thoroughly after de-bonding. If you don’t have acetone handy, have a little patience! Soak the bonded area in warm, soapy water. Carefully peel or roll the skin apart gently and slowly. DO NOT PULL APART; Krazy Glue® creates a VERY strong bond that’s nearly im- possible to break by pulling straight up and down. If you gently roll the skin, you will gradually diminish the bonds between the Krazy Glue molecules themselves and be able to get your fingers apart.
You can go online at: http://www.krazyglue.com/krazy-big-fix#.XfBiIM57mzc and submit your fix! Be the 300,001 person to tell how you used Krazy glue in your household. You can win monthly prizes by entering your submission.