Sticky Rubber

[Norman_E]

I have a power drill on board which has rubber grips which have gone sticky. Is there anything which will clean rubber and remove the stickiness?

 

[MoodySabre]

I asked that question here once in relation to binos. French chalk was suggested but nothing else. When the grip on my outboard tiller went sticky I wrapped it in self-amalg tape and worked well for several years.

 

[Plum]

I have a power drill on board which has rubber grips which have gone sticky. Is there anything which will clean rubber and remove the stickiness?

I have had success on other items. A rag with white spirit on it. The sticky did not just wipe off, I had to rub vigorously keeping the rag damp and frequently changing to another area of fresh cloth. Keep rubbing in one spot until the sticky goes before moving on. Took a while but it worked for me. Let us know if it works for you.

Www.solocoastalsailing.co.uk

 

[Norman_E]

Thank you. I have some white spirit on board and will try it once I have all the rigging taken down and the other essential winterisation done.

 

[MonniotC]

Not sure if it will work on rubber, but I had a kitchen knife with a plastic handle that had gone sticky. I looked on the web, and someone said that they had had success by making baking soda into a thick paste with water and rubbing that in vigorously. I tried it and it worked. Took a bit of elbow grease, but it worked.

 

[cpedw]

I had to rub vigorously keeping the rag damp and frequently changing to another area of fresh cloth. Keep rubbing in one spot until the sticky goes before moving on. Took a while but it worked for me.

Not sure if it will work on rubber, but I had a kitchen knife with a plastic handle that had gone sticky. I looked on the web, and someone said that they had had success by making baking soda into a thick paste with water and rubbing that in vigorously. I tried it and it worked. Took a bit of elbow grease, but it worked.

There's a common theme here - never mind the chemicals, vigorous rubbing is the answer!

Derek

 

[greeny]

There's a common theme here - never mind the chemicals, vigorous rubbing is the answer!

Derek

And even better if someone else is doing it!

 

[wallacebob]

Same problem on scooter grips in warm climate; sweaty palms! Clean with meths to remove grease.

 

[Ruffles]

I think once the plastic has started to degrade it will soon get sticky again.

I reckon a can of artists lacquer might work on our old binos. But not found myself near an arty crafty shop recently.

 

[Cliveshep]

I live in the tropics now - all my rubber-covered things go sticky. I think the heat breaks them down, certainly scrubbing off the stick only allows it to get sticky again later on. I've got a re-chargeable (USB and wind-up) multiple LED lantern that is brilliant (no pun intended - it gives a great beam) that has a rubber case, it is sticky and I gave up trying to get rid of the stickiness.

For what it's worth many years ago I had a Panther motorbike and I bent the trailing-link front forks. I attempted to heat the offending part and crowbar it back into place - which was a success, not such a success was not removing the wheel first and heating a patch on the tyre which then remained sticky. I cured that by heating again and rubbing flowers of sulphur into it from a chemistry set, having read in my EUP Encyclopaedia that rubber was hardened from latex by adding sulphur. All I can say is it hardened the rubber tyre. We were kerb-side overhaul specialists (bodgers) in those pre-mot days, no one had heard of Political Correctness or Health and Safety, money was tight, you did what you could.

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

If the 'rubber' is just a thin coating on a plastic base, that is a fairly common thing that I have come across on camera grips. When it goes 'sticky' I have used white spirits on a piece of cloth, usually a discarded face cloth, and rubbed vigorously. The loops of the toweling material seem to aid the rate of removal.