What to Do When Your Glue Stick Dries Out

Every glue stick dies eventually, usually the night before a deadline. Here is what to do about it.

We tested everything on the long table at print night, with real zines and real volunteers, not in a lab. Our criteria were simple: does it work, does it last, and does it hurt to use for an hour.

What we tested

• A long-reach stapler with a depth guide
• A Teflon bone folder
• A self-healing cutting mat, A2
• A metal ruler with a cork back

Cheap tools are fine for learning. The moment you notice a tool slowing you down, that is the moment to buy the better version.

Buy the cheap one first. Then buy the one that lasts.

What we'd buy again

Nothing here is sponsored. We paid for all of it, and some of it we paid for twice because the first one broke.

If something here doesn't work for you, write in. Half of our how-tos have been corrected by readers, and the corrections are always better than the original.

Print nights are pay-what-you-can. The jar covers toner and paper most months, and when it doesn't, we hold a swap and sell the duplicates from the lending shelf.

If you are reading this at the collective, the good scissors are in the drawer marked "do not take the good scissors". Please do not take the good scissors.