Homemade Lace Tips

[outlaw704]

Maybe I'm obsessive-compulsive, but I like the finished look of lace tips instead of burnt string. I experimented and came up with this technique for creating homemade lace tips:

I use shrink tubing and a heat source. You can get shrink tubing at Radio Shack, but I found this stuff online at CableOrganizer (http://cableorganizer.com/heat-shrink/heat-shrink3.htm). The purple tool in the first picture is an Embossing Heat Tool from Hobby Lobby, but a blow dryer or even a lighter will work...

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/2985/lacetip2qu9.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip2qu9.jpg)

Cut some 1/2" inch pieces of heat shrink tubing and slide it over your excess string.

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/9383/lacetip5ql7.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip5ql7.jpg)
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/6173/lacetip3xm3.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip3xm3.jpg)

Apply some heat.

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/3251/lacetip4sh0.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip4sh0.jpg)

Trim the excess lace.

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/8639/lacetip6hr9.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip6hr9.jpg)

Here are the results.

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/5448/lacetip9gu0.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip9gu0.jpg)
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/8921/lacetip10tk0.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip10tk0.jpg)

There are lots of colors including clear. This stuff hardens up like plastic and gives a nice finished appearance to my stringing projects. :idea:

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/5420/lacetip1ui2.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lacetip1ui2.jpg)

[HawkletLax]

that does annoy me, but not to the point to go out and buy all that stuff

[tiplax]

looks nice, but a lot of extra work i would never have the patience to do. but to each his own.

[murderlax]

or you could simply tape it.
what is a roll of tape now-a-days? like $.49?

[Sir-Lax-Alot]

I am fine with burning my laces. But its a cool discovery.

[vegasboy]

sir lax alot is right on the same track as me .

[Bretmac]

im with tiplax i get bored and dont even like burning my laces so i doubt i could do that

[Wooks]

or you could simply tape it.
what is a roll of tape now-a-days? like $.49?

49 cents? Jeez. $5 for me.

Anyways, I think that tipped laces thing is awesome, but I'd really only use it if i strung my gamer super-perfectly, and wouldn't be tinkering with it. But, I always tinker :-(

[thedamnedfan]

Cool... my mom has one of those heat guns. And I could really use those for some of my shooting strings, they loose their tips sometimes... inspiration.

Thanks. Nice looking stick BTW as well.

[sailorslax88]

i did that once to a 98 inch long shooting string so i could use it over and over... i didnt feel it was worth it

[MiddieMan05]

Might not be worth it to you guys, but he clearly stated it is worth it to him, so I say great job.

[PaulCT7]

Personally, this is just for sidewall, but if you burn it, then pull towards the end you can seal all the white inside the color which looks really clean. More so that this in my opinion, however, I dunno how crosslace works.

[laxman01]

Good idea, but it's a lot easier when stringing a stick to just burn the edges. Instead of having to go out and buy more supplies.

[ALEX WIZ]

You put the heat shrink on the laces, then use the heat gun/ hair dryer it will conform to the laces correct? How long does it take with the heat gun? And with the hair dryer?

[mnlax9]

it does look nice but i think it sounds like a lot of work

[outlaw704]

You put the heat shrink on the laces, then use the heat gun/ hair dryer it will conform to the laces correct? How long does it take with the heat gun? And with the hair dryer?

Yes -- it does shrink down and grabs on tightly and conforms to the laces. It's probably easiest to see when you use the clear shrink tubing, especially on the rougher textured sidewall string. With the embossing gun they take about 5 to 10 seconds to shrink. About the same with a lighter. A blow dryer takes just slightly longer -- 15 to 20 seconds.

Clearly this technique is not for everyone or for every stringing job. But personally, if I take the time to dye a stick and/or do some sort of "extra special" stringing job (you know, like using colored Jimalax materials); or if I was being paid for a stringing job, these lace tips add a certain amount of cool factor. I get a lot of very positive feedback when people see these things in person.

Since a foot of this stuff costs about $1.25, and I can make about 20 to 30 lace tips out of a foot, they cost me around 5 cents apiece and add about five minutes to a dyng and stringing job that may have taken hours. :bye: