Jul 28 2009
Tool Time - Unmounting Wheels
I haven’t posted a “Tool Time” post in quite some time, so when I was unmounting my Wheels (GASP) yesterday afternoon it dawned on me that I should be sharing this with you.
For some reason my wheels don’t get used at all. Somehow I just cannot rap my head around when to use them. With that in mind I made the leap and unmounted them so I could then use them as I would any unmounted stamp. Especially since I love, love, love the wheel images. Now this is my preference, I am sure there are tons of people that would never ever think about unmounting their wheels and you use them all the time. If you are one of those people, please don’t get mad at me for dissecting mine. 
Here is how it is done. First, take an Exacto Knife and cut right through the seam of the stamp when it is on the wheel. Next peel the stamp off of the wheel. I was very surprised at how easy they come off. If there is glue stuck to the back of the stamp, peel it off. I found I could just roll the glue off with my finger.
I took a permanent marker “Sharpie” and wrote the name on the back of the stamp.
Apply a thin coat of Aleene’s Tack it Over & Over Glue on the back of the stamp with a small paint brush, right over the name I wrote on. The glue dries clear so you can still see the name.
Let this glue dry for about 1 hour, at least. The Glue stays tacky so your stamps will now stick to an acrylic block (I use a 4.5″ x 7″ block) and you can take them on and off. You will not have to apply this tacky glue to the stamp again until you have used this stamp about 50 times.
I store them in a large zip lock baggie. They stick right to the inside of the bag. You can clearly see the name of the stamp through the baggie. I also put a reference sheet in the bag with them and a reference sheet in my stamp binder.
If you unmount a bunch at one time you can stamp a few at one time on plain paper to make your reference sheets.
Photo of my Current Stampin’ Up Stamp binder. This binder holds a reference sheet for all of my Stampin’ Up stamps. When I get a new set of Stampin’ Up stamps I copy the sticker sheet before I assemble my stamps to the blocks and the copy gets put in my binder. Takes very little time. The binder is so nice to have to flip through to see what I have.
I hope you have found this tool time tip helpful.
Here is a link to all of my Tool Time posts: http://zindorf.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/category/tools/
Until my next post. . . . . . ..
Hugs,
Michelle
Never thought about un-mounting the wheels - what a great idea!
I keep a stamp binder also and find it a necessary tool when I am looking for that “just right stamp.”
TFS
Brenda Cook
The only thing stopping me from unmounting my one wheel (I don’t buy them because I don’t like wheels, but the stamps are very nice) is the lack of the right size block. What sizes do you need to hold these very long stamps?
I unmounted mine about 6 months ago and they get used a lot more than they ever did before. I love them unmounted!
I never use my wheels, but I love the images. I never thought of unmounting them. I am so going to do this!
Hummm! I, too, never use my wheels and I’m wondering if I’d use them this way. Very interesting post.
I love the info about the tacky glue, as well. I’m going to get some of that for my unmounteds, for sure.
Thanks for sharing the tip about removing rubber from wheels. This makes good sense. I have removed most of my regular stamps from the wood.
Now I’ll be able to be a lot more accurate with placement and inking.
I love your idea, in fact I just ordered 4 wheel stamps from my dealer last month and unmounted every one of them as soon as I got them! But I couldn’t remember the details of the unmounting. So thank you for sharing today. I can hardly wait to use them!
I even got really brave and cut up the Fall/Thanksgiving one into smaller pieces so I could use the words and leaves individually.
I am new to stamping and have a question about your stamp binder. How do you organize all of your stamps? I can see keeping the SU sets together, but at the same time I often want just one from each set… do you catagorize them in any way?
Thanks for doing such a wonderful blog! I check your blog out quite often for techniques and ideas! Blessings, Mary
I have one more question, don’t you “need” to have a sponge layer under your rubber stamps when you are stamping? I am not sure I understand “why” of that spongy layer but almost all my stamps have them except for the clear ones. And, when I get unmounted stamps I was told to use that mounting foam before I used them. Can you explain this one? Thanks, Mary
I too unmounted my wheels! It was really easy and I’ve been using my wheels this way more in the last few years than I did on the roller.
I really like the wheels but they were taking up too much room and I didn’t want to part with any of them.
However I did not go the Aleen’s route with the wheels - I do use this for my unmounted stamps stored in CD jewel cases.
But for the wheels I wanted to keep the storage to a minimum so I store mine all in a Martha Stewart CD Storage Box (keep my stamps in some of these as well) and have written the names on the back of wheels so I can see what I’ve got in there.
I had 2 custom acrylic blocks made to size at a local glass shop and keep those in the box too.
When I need to use a wheel I just use 2 sided tape on the block and it works like a charm!
I like your idea of a reference binder and NEED to work on something like that PDQ!
Thanks for putting together a great pictorial of how you did it!
How clever you are! Can’t wait until February - I’m attending your St. Louis workshop! So glad you scheduled here!
Not sure I am ready to unmount my wheels just yet, but the mention of your binder system to keep track of your SU sets was very helpful. I had been planning on making up a binder for years, but my stamp collection is so large now, that starting a binder at this point seemed an overwhelming task! BUT……I have just become a SU demo, in fact, my kit is to arrive today! I am going to pass the time as I wait for the man in brown by starting a binder of my current SU sets! I think this will help me to more organized as a demo! Thanks so much for the perfect timing with your inspiring tool time post! Who knows…maybe I’ll unmount those wheels soon also!!
YOU ARE A GENIUS!!!!! As soon as I read this, I rushed into the studio and got one of my wheels (least favorite one…if there is such a thing) and followed your instructions. PERFECT!!! Now they are all unmounted! I didn’t have the Tackit so I used double stick tape. I really do appreciate all the hints/tools you share. Thank you so very much.
Very cleaver idea. Never thought about unmount the wheels. I’ll have to try it. Thanks for the tutorial. You are a very talent person. Love all of your Brayer tutorial.
Thanks so much for all your tutorials — glad to hear I am not the only one who dislikes those wheels (but love the stamp) — I have a SU workshop here today but you can bet I will be working on the wheels tomorrow — so glad you are coming to Mechanicsville, Virginia in March 2010 — I am signed up for a beginner session and the advanced session and I am counting the days!!
FABULOUS ideas! Thanks for Sharing. Hugs…
Hi Michelle,
Love the idea of unmounting my wheels. They definitely get more use out of them that way. I too am interested in how you organize and store your unmounted stamps. I have spent a lot of time unmounting my wood stamps and mounting them on EZ-Mount (sp?). I like the idea of using the tacky glue instead, but how do you store them. I think we need a storage tutorial. See what you started?
Thank you again for all you do. Looking forward to September.
Wendy
Wow, what timing. I was just talking about doing this!
Thanks for the directions!
Sandra
Michelle, When you stamp with the unmounted wheel stamps on acrylic blocks would you use a stampamajig to get a single long border on a 12 x12 page? Can’t wait til Jacksonville!! Becky
Michelle, what an interesting topic! I have wanted to try this with several wheels I have acquired and never use. I was just wondering, what size block will the wheels need when unmounted?
super super helpful! You rock Michelle!
Thank you so much for the fantastic idea. I NEVER use my wheels, so I think this is something that I will do in the very near future.
Great idea, but I’m little bit suprised, because I have notice you love to use inky roller almost everywhere and now do don’t like roller at all. Anyway, I haven’t byu any roller stamps, becaude I don’t like them that way. Maybe now I will ;-D
Michelle,
I never thought to unmount my wheels, plus I never use them because I forget I have them. Sooo….I will be unmounting them for sure. Thanks for sharing.
Jan
I only have a couple of wheels & have hardly used them because I find it difficult to place them exactly where I want them. It never occurred to me to unmount them. Great idea. Thanks for the tip!
well…I think you should get some prize for this bit of info! Never thought about unmounting them…PERFECT solution for me…ty ty ty Cher
The few I have were unmounted by me several months ago also. They were a pain to use even with that SU tool for rollers. It was just too time-consuming. But I didn’t think to store them as you have…so thanks much for the great how-tute. Looking forward to 2010 and your class in AZ.
Michelle,
What a fantastic idea! I only think about my wheels when I run across them looking for something else. I really like them, but never pull them out. I’m going to do this. How cool!!
oh, but what do I do with cartridges - assuming they have any ink left after all these years? :o)
Take care and STAY POSITIVE!
Wow~ I would never have thought to do this! Thank-you so much for sharing this with us!!! I am like you, love the images on the wheels, but always forget about them, never use them, and for me…I honestly am unsure what to do with the wheel, humph. But now, I think I’ll have a project once I am all moved into our house=) Have a wonderful day!
Tanya Atkisson
scs “orangegymnut”
I’m not sure about my other Stampin’ Around roller stamps, but have us your idea on my Watercolor Joy SA. Now I’ll be able to use different colours on the flowers! Thanks so much for this Tooltime tutorial.
Okay, I am the lone commenter so far that loves her wheels as wheels, although I have to admit I don’t use them as frequently as my other stamps. I just think using the wheel is so easy but I really see the beauty of unmounting them to use markers to color them, and more exact application at times, etc. Also, they take practice (and some kind of wheel guide) to be precise. However, this was a great tutorial on how to unmount them and store them. You are the organization queen!
I keep a reference book for my stamps, too.
BRILLIANT idea for the wheels, and how hard would it be to just tack them back on to the wheel if you suddenly decided you wanted to wheel it!
Thanks, Michelle!
Wendy
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