UV-cured Blufixx plastic used to repair crumbling binding section

**Tate Ferguson** · Jun-21-2017, 4:50pm

I used a "Blufixx" kit to repair/stabilize a deteriorating binding (as I mentioned in an earlier post).

1) shows the crumbling area. 2) shows the masked-off area with the thin, syrupy Blufixx substance being applied. 3) shows the UV light at the opposite end of the applicator, curing the plastic. It hardens in five seconds or less. 4) shows the partially-sanded area after removal of the tape.

It looks better than the photo shows. I might sand it some more and/or color it with a brown Sharpie. I anticipate keeping this mandolin until my demise, so the repair quality is somewhat moot...

**multidon** · Jun-21-2017, 8:47pm

Sorry to be a naysayer. I don't think that was a particularly good idea. That stuff is supposed to be very adhesive and very hard, which is why dentists use it. Once it's on, it's on, and there will be no easy way to take it off. Im not a big fan of the repair look, and I don't think a brown sharpie will make much difference and may not even stick. As you say, you are happy with it and it's your mandolin, so you are free to do whatever you want with it. But somewhere down the line, as you point out, after your demise, it will belong to someone else. And that person may be interested in a proper restoration. Which will be next to impossible now that you have used the uv cured stuff, which will be next to impossible to remove.