Quick question on applying stickers

[rei]

I just got some stickers from cubesmith to replace my crappy old rubik's brand ones and I've already taken all the old ones off. Will leaving the glue from the old ones make the new stickers last for less time? I don't have any means to get it off easily and I don't want to buy anything if it won't help or hurt it. Thanks in advance for any help.

In retrospect it seems like a dumb question but I don't want to ruin the new stickers really early on.

 

[jonny guitar]

I alway like to give it a rub down with a rubbing alcohol wetted cloth to get the glue residue and any oil off.

 

[ajmorgan25]

I always squirt a little bit of Goo Gone onto a rag, wet the entire cube with it, and let it sit. Then I take another clean rag and take all of the adhesive off, clean the cube with a damp rag, and dry the cube. Works fine for me.

 

[PCwizCube]

The glue from the old ones will make the new ones last a lot shorter.

I would recommend applying small amounts of Goo Gone, nail polish remover, or WD-40 on to the surface of the cubies. Then, wait for about 2 minutes and get a rag and wipe it all off.

 

[williamg]

2 minutes ought to be enough for anyone

 

[cookingfat]

if you don't have any substance like googone, then just rub it for ages with a tea towel or dry cloth or teeshirt until all the cubies are smooth and not sticky. It takes ages but its worth it.

 

[ImNOTnoob]

I use the stickers themselves to remove the residue.. Works like a charm!

 

[Tox|k]

I find rubbing alcohol doesn't work much better than soap+water so I use mineral spirits for removing goo and gunk. It costs like $4 for a litre down at the hardware store. Just put some on a rag or paper towel and then wipe the surface, it pretty much turns the sticky stuff into a gel that's really easy to wipe off as long as you keep it slightly wet with the mineral spirits. I've never had the stuff gelate the plastic like jig-a-loo does either. I'm actually kind of amazed at how well mineral spirits work for this purpose; I've even had it remove tar-like substances from tools that I had thought would never come off.

 

[xAllen91]

This is what I do: I peeled of the old sticker and used it stick any remaining glue on the cubie pieces until it is free of glue residue. ^^ one sticker- one cubie. it works well. haha.

 

[AvGalen]

I simply don't remove any sticky stuff. Think about it:
a) You remove sticky stuff
b) You try to make new things stick

 

[hawkmp4]

I simply don't remove any sticky stuff. Think about it:
a) You remove sticky stuff
b) You try to make new things stick

True, but by cleaning it of the old residue you get a more uniform surface to apply the sticker to. Plus, the old adhesive probably won't give as good of a bond as the new adhesive.

 

[shelley]

I like to remove any old glue residue because with thinner stickers they poke out and make the surface all bumpy.

New stickers are quite effective at removing old glue residue. I found this out a few years ago when I restickered a cube without removing the old glue first. The bumpiness annoyed me, so a few weeks later I took the stickers off to reapply. The new stickers peeled off clean. Of course, this does require that you sacrifice a set of stickers, so it's only recommended if you have more sticker sets than you know what to do with.