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Love them or hate them? Are they very cumbersome and heavy? they are expensive as far as tape goes and I was wondering if they are worth the $$. I have RA and I don't know if my hands and wrists could ahndle the bulk they offer. Are they as heavy as they look?
I love mine. (I too have RA, but not too badly right now. I do have to wear wrist braces at night tho.) I have seen a number of people do price compares and they all said the ATG was cheapest... My two boxes of tape have lasted for ever. I don't find it heavy, but it does take a bit to adjust to the size. I no longer notice that.
The newer ones, the xyron and the glue arts ones are smaller. Don't know how their refills compare tho, they seem expensive to me.
Honestly? I have the pink ATG. I thought it would be WAY heavier than it is. And if you buy bulk refills, you don't pay too much per tape roll. I buy my refills off ebay as needed when I feel like I'm running out. A pack of two rolls is about $9. But that's a 2-pack for a lot of METERS of tape each roll. The Tombo tape runner I used before, which was a very tiny thing you held in your hand and ran out every few projects, cost about $5 to buy a single pack refill. The pink ATG is big, but I hold it under my chin if I need two hands in between taping.
I have the pink Scotch brand ATG, and my concerns before I bought it were the same as yours (cumbersome, expensive refills, etc.) I was WRONG! It takes a bit of getting used to, but I don't find it heavy at all, and the tape lasts f..o..r..e..v..e..r, so it's way more economical than I expected! I haven't had to buy any refills yet, whereas I would have gone through quite a few Tombow or similar tape runners by now! Consider me fully converted!
Good post here! I read a post awhile back about these and the price comparison to the different tape runners. A few years back I had an ATG and didn't like it, felt that it was to bug & bulky for me. I mainly make cards and felt that I was using something so big for something so small. I haven't had much problem with the Tombo's until just recently not holding the layer down on my cards! Now I'm thinking that I need to try this again and give it some time to get use to! I have a Glue Glider pro which I just love but the refills are expensive. I always use a coupon for the refills though! So if I decide to try this again I will definitely purchase a pink one.(I'm a 2 time breast cancer survivor. ) I have a merchandise credit to AC Moore so with that and a coupon, I will not have to spend any money out of pocket!
So with that said what do my fellow SCS think! Also what tape refills are recommended for the ATG?
I have the red ATG and I love it, it was one of the best buys I have made for crafting tools. I have ordered my tape refills from the Tape Depot and from Crystal Clear Bags. When I was first looking at buying the ATG I did a cost comparison with the other tapes that I was using at the time and it worked out to be a lot less expensive to go with the ATG. When I received my ATG I decided to see how many cards I could make with one roll of tape and I was able to make 50 cards with two layers on the front and one layer on the inside for writing and sentiments (the base was black). It isn't as heavy as what you would think it would be like the others have mentioned and I have some arthritis in my hands and it doesn't bother me too much, when my hands starts to get sore then I work on something else until my hand is better. Good luck wit your decision.
To make the gun more comfortable to hold, you can pad it with foam insulation tape. This is the tape I picked up at Home Depot, but other brands would probably work just as well. Armaflex Insulation from Armacell | The Home Depot - Model TAP18230. It's a large roll, but I only use small pieces of it. It cuts easily with scissors, and I round the corners so that they are less likely to lift.
You can analyze where the gun makes your hand sore and custom pad it yourself. I put a small piece of the foam on the trigger and another on the gun's casing where it rubs against my hand. Make sure that the foam has enough clearance so that it doesn't interfere with depressing the trigger.
For only a few cards, it isn't necessary. But the padding makes a big difference on larger projects when you're taping for hours at a time.
Ladies, if you want the Pink ATG gun and 2 rolls of tape, this is definitely the deal of the day! Amazon has it for only $15.07 for the gun and 2 rolls of tape. That is a fantastic price. Hop on over there and get yours.
Once you have the ATG gun and use it a bit, you will wonder why you waited so long to get it.
Tape refills are not cheap, but they are cheaper than most (if not all) types of two-sided tape adhesives on the market, especially if you buy in bulk or use a coupon. The gun is somewhat bulky, but it is surprisingly light, even loaded with a fresh roll of tape. It is comfortable to hold and easy to use. If you can handle the weight of two cell phones in one hand, you can easily hold the ATG gun.
When using the ATG gun, the weight of the gun will be on your page or paper. But you will need to be able to press the "trigger" with your first or second finger and move your arm to distribute the tape.
@Bugga, always wanted to try one and for this price I will, just ordered it. Thanks for the info. Diane
Glad you got it, Diane. Just give yourself a little time to get used to it, and I know you will love it. There are lots of videos on Youtube about the ATG, too. Sometimes loading can be tricky when you haven't done it before.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my ATG. I have the red one. And the refills aren't expensive, if you consider the length of tape you're getting on each roll, especially if you order from The Tape Depot. (If you order from them, the rolls of tape are shipped upright; the first thing you need to do is lay them on their side or the tape could warp toward one side of the core.)
__________________ Linda E
Caution: You are entering an artistic zone. This is not clutter - this is creating. These are not pajamas - it's my work uniform.
I have the pink ATG and the glue glider pro too. Cost wise, I've found the ATG is cheaper than the glue glider pro but for ease of use and weight, I prefer the glue glider pro as I only have a small hand and do find the ATG a bit too big & bulky.
Cost wise, the X-press It double sided tape (similar to scorpal tape) is only $3 for 50 metres/54 yards and this is far cheaper than any of the tape runners I use as I only use acid free/photo safe tape. For me, if I have time to work on a project, I just use the x-press It tape and nothing falls apart using that tape. If I'm short of time, I use my tape guns/runners as they are quicker & easier to apply. JMHO.
I prefer the Glue Glider Pro too. There was a lady over there that is using the ATG tape to refill her GGP and her small tape runners. I am thinking of doing this when I run out of tape on my GGP.
Tape gun questions
