Balloon material

NWCCTV

Way back when, when I was a kid there use to be a product on the market that you could make blow up balloons, animals, etc. with. This stuff was really cool and came with a straw and you would blow in to it and shape your balloon. Does anyone remember this stuff and possibly have a clue as to what it was called and where to get it?

Edit: I just found it. It was made by Whamo and it was called Super Elastic Bubble Plastic. Now I just need to find some!!!

Edit: It looks like it is no longer available. I guess too many people liked the fumes too much. Does anyone know of something similar to this product?

JLocke

I remember the stuff, or something like it, but I haven't seen any of it for years. Made kind of 'crispy' balloon-type shapes. Good luck in your search.

Duane Degn

Super Elastic Bubble Plastic

Darn, I hadn't read your edit. Now how will I impress people with my useless knowledge.

I don't think it's available because the fumes weren't very healthy and it was easy to breath the fumes back in through the straw.

I majored in chemistry and was surprised to find ethyl acetate smells just like S.E.B.P. Ethyl acetate must have been it's main solvent keeping it soft.

When I worked at the university chemical stockroom, we sold ethyl acetate to biology classes to use in their "kill jars". They'd place bugs in the "kill jar" along with ethyl acetate and the bugs would soon be dead.

Why would they take something as fun as S.E.B.P. off the market?

ElectricAye

Looks like you could always get some PVA (Polyvinyl Alcohol), some acetone, and ethyl acetate and try DIY.

Just be careful of how flammable it is. Don't breathe the fumes, get it on your skin, or the skin of others, etc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Elastic_Bubble_Plastic

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Polyvinyl-Alcohol-PVA-One-Pound-Lab-Chemical-/251239460980?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a7f09f074

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ethyl-Acetate-500Ml-Poly-Bottle-Reagent-Chemical-/110998222168?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19d8027558

prof_braino

http://www.sciplus.com/p/TOUCHABUBBLES_3808

might be close?

LoopyByteloose

Bubble gum might be a good alternative material.

CuriousOne

There is special, non-toxic glue for capturing mices, insects, etc.

I haven't seen your original material, but from description it looks just like the substance I mentioned above, so you may try it too. I used compressed air bottle (used to clean keyboards) with it, got quite nice, stay-solid-longer bubbles, but they were sticky.

LoopyByteloose

I know what Prof Braino is referring to and it isn't really balloon material so much a bubble material. It will ruin your clothes, hair, and household furnishing just as well as bubble gum. You just don't have to chew it to get it ready to do so.

On the other hand, I did once work for a manufacture of balloon making machines. And we did have machines that made and tested balloons made from latex rubber. These are rather simple. They dip a shape into the latex solution and then a rubber balloon was removed from the form by a worker. It's the same process for surgical gloves, and other more exotic devices that prevent pregnancy.

So, is this really about balloon material or long lasting bubble material?

Latex rubber is one balloon material, another is metalized mylar.

NWCCTV

More about long lasing bubble material. I like the latex ballon idea but have no clue where to get it. I do not really want to use mylar unless it is a last resort.

prof_braino

Google for liquid latex e.g.

http://www.partycity.com/product/pint+of+latex.do

I painted this stuff on rip stop nylon to make reinfoced balloons. Needs to be on the INSIDE of the cloth to hold very much pressure. I later switched over to Mylar balloons inside the ripstop envelope, but I was going for max pressure, these could hold 40psi.