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Many of your inquiries concern personal issues; some reflect a lack of familiarity with the materials, the differences, what some can do and so forth. So instead of actual questions from you, we thought some insights would anticipate many of your questions; spoken and unspoken.
Acrylic:
Acrylic is a crystal clear (with transparency equal to optical glass), light weight material having outstanding weatherability, high impact resistance, and excellent formability. Acrylic has greater impact resistance than all types of glass. Service temperatures range from -30 F to + 190 F. One-half the weight of glass and 43% of the weight of aluminum. Blow molding of acrylic spheres represents one of about a dozen different forming techniques available to producers of products using this versatile material.
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Polycarbonate:
An invention owned and produced exclusively by GE until its patent expired, this material was originally marketed under the trademark LEXAN. While LEXAN still is a synonym for polycarbonate material, GE is no longer the sole supplier. Polycarbonate products have 250 times the impact strength of glass and 30 times the impact strength of acrylic. Polycarbonate products have 40% better thermal efficiency than glass and lower maintenance costs than both glass and acrylic. With adhesives such as urethane, polycarbonate can be bonded to virtually anything. Service temperatures for polycarbonate is from -40 F to + 270 F and it maintains its impact properties at 264 psi. It transmits 83% of visible light and weighs 15% of the weight of glass.
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Effective seal:
With a raw acrylic cylinder, a seal is created or absent depending on how well the acrylic flange "fits" around the genital. Pubic hair is frequently shaved off or removed to prevent vacuum leaks dependent on an "acrylic seal". Vacuum pressure pulls ancillary flesh (the flesh outside of the cylinder) under the flange until enough is present to block the entry of atmosphere. The purpose of vacuum pumping is to modify the shape of an organ, so an effective seal with gel coating or a pillow, or both substitutes to a large extent, for the dependance on flesh to seal the chamber.
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Entrance extension:
Spheres, like two-stage cylinders, would restrict normal physical movement without a smaller dimension pipe to separate the torso from the larger second stage and guide the genitals into the chamber. The term "first stage" describes this important function for two-stage cylinders, and is used on this web site in two-stage product descriptions. Entrance extension is synonymous with first stage, and is employed to describe the first stage of a sphere cylinder.
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Gel coat:
An industrial compound which adheres well with acrylic and polycarbonate, gel serves as a coating to cushion a "genital path", and cover over adhesives. It is also an excellent sealant. It provides a "skid proof" surface to slow down or prevent unwanted flesh migration. When applied in several coats, gel conforms to the shape of the body part it is next to. Gel prevents pain because flesh is no longer employed to the same degree to create a seal, when vacuum pressure builds. Gel is applied by dipping the plastic to be coated into a vat containing the hot gel, which gradually cools as the acrylic is removed, and the gel is shaped by hand tools during this time. Gel reacts to temperature changes. Gel is not affected by most lubricants, but will react to petroleum based lubricants. Gel reacts to urine by becoming sticky. It is or can be restored when it is dry. Gel may be cleaned with dishwasher liquid or by hand soaps. Other suggestions for the care of gel are contained in the packaging with your new cylinder. Please note: we learned that a two-stage cylinder user with a heavy gelcoat routinely employed a heating pad during his sessions, resulting in the development of a weakened joint. If your planned usage includes focusing heat on your cylinder, let us know. We can coat your first stage with vinyl or a different material to counteract the effects of heat on your equipment.
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Gel lip:
A gel lip is formed by the process described above, into a rounded flange located at the entrance of the cylinder, made of the gel coating after it has cooled.
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Gelbell entrance:
Gelbells have a tapered shape. Tapering plus a comfortable lip at the entrance of a penis cylinder chamber gives the user an experience not found elsewhere. As the penis is vacuum pulled past the top of the Gelbell, control over the flow of fluids into the spongy areas of the penis is simplified. When attached to a sphere, a Gelbell entrance guides the male groin.
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Pillows: Types and variations
Pillow describes a function for a product line. For the two-stage or sphere sized application, usually a "lipped" pillow is most suitable. If your I.D. is 3-1/2" you will find great merit in the "cupped" design. You will also find useful the larger Pillow TW, which has a thin wall, but still provides good fit and appearance where the I.D. is up to 3-1/2". For penis cylinders, we provide lipped, cupped and TW sizes and in addition, "overhanging" pillows, which lap over the entrance end and can provide a gasket effect or can be turned under to create a tighter fit as needed. All pillows will have a strap available which makes it more secure, whatever the size of cylinder entrance. Written suggestions with illustrations are contained in the package in which pillows are shipped.
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Silicone Rubber :
Silicone rubber can be compounded and applied diversly. Rubber products' malleability (hardness and softness for our purposes) is measured on a special scale. A low durometer rubber compound is soft when compared to the same compound with a higher durometer. We protect our gel with a 35 durometer silicone compound. The consequence of such an application over the gel is to lengthen the useful life of the gel, which is heat sensitive, by coating it with a durable rubber. Silicone rubber can also be molded into useful forms to further the goals of comfort and affordability.
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Soft edged:
All conventional acrylic flange equipped equipment has sharp edges. They must have the sharp edge as it is essential in forming a seal, by using the surrounding or "ancillary" flesh as the sealing agent. Our approach is to use our gel coat to provide a "skid-proof" surface over a sanded edge, thus forming a soft edge for your comfort.
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Straight wall:
This term describes the untapered entrance extension which is the path for genitals to the cylinder chamber. A straight wall is desirable as a platform for a pillow. The pillow requires a straight wall entrance of from 1-1/2" to 2" in order to attach to the cylinder.
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