BeadSmith Thread Zap – Nylon / Polyester Thread Burner

STOP USING A LIGHTER TO BURN YOUR THREAD ENDS!!!  Seriously.  

The very fine wire tip allows you to get incredibly close to your project in order to melt thread ends without burning everything around it.  With a fresh battery, the tip will get red hot almost instantly.  Placing the tip close to the thread transfers enough heat to melt the thread without scorching it…so, no black thread ends to ugly up your very nice looking final product.  

Lessons learned:

1. Don’t be shy about replacing the battery.  The battery will start to lose its juice after about an hour or two worth of use – the tip will still get very hot, but not glowing red hot.  Using the thread zap at this stage will result in stringy thread hair and you’re more likely to risk getting the tip too close to your leather and burning it.
2. Leave a minimum 1/8″ of thread end sticking out to use with the thread zap.  You can leave the melted thread nub on the surface, tuck it in the stitch hole (I use a scratch awl to do this), or tuck it and use some glue to hold it in place.
3. The tips are made of thin wire and are easily bent/broken if you’re not careful about how you set it down as well as other things on a cluttered workbench bumping in to it.  Accidents aside, the metal components of the tip will wear out after a lot of use and it will need to be replaced.  Always use the cap when you’re done and it’s a good idea to spend the extra $5.50 for a 2-pack of replacement tips to have handy.

*Requires 1 AA battery (not included)