Tutorial: Connecting beverage can opener tabs
Upcycling DIY tutorial Connect aluminium can opener pull tabs To create amazing things
In this article:
- Instructions on how to connect pull tabs in 7 simple steps
In only seven easy steps to great upcycling design
1# Get small stable pliers
2# Collect Pull Tabs
3# Washing is best to boil off
4# Sort by type and state
5# Bending
6# Cutting
7# Merge
No glue just pull tabs and a pair of pliers.
In this upcycling DIY tutorial about handmade things out of can flaps, also called soda can pull tab opener, you will learn in a few simple steps how to make the pull tabs flapsto get a kind of chain mail shirt fabric.
One could say one makes a fabric like out of textile, only with aluminium can flaps, which can then be processed in different ways. You can create designer lamps, tablecloths, jewellery and whatever else you can think of. There are no limits to creativity.
1# Get Pliers
The pliers should be stable enough to pinch or cut a slit in the pull tabs. However, the finer the cut, the better the tabs hold together afterwards. A small pair of pliers as shown in the picture is advisable.
2# Collect Tabs
Of course you need a lot of aluminium pull tabs, from 200 pieces you get a surface together from which you can build smaller things. But you can also find the tabs in larger quantities on the Internet and on Ebay, who finds the tedious collecting too tedious.
3# Wash & Boil
Since the closures are often sticky or dirty, simply put them in a pot of boiling water and leave for a few minutes. Then place in a drip tray and on a towel to dry.
4# Sort
There are basically two different types of pull tabs, but they are very similar. One type has a slightly larger hole with a shape similar to a semicircle. The other variety has a smaller hole, which is also rounder. In order to avoid later tensions in the grid, you should always put only one of the two varieties together. The pictures show the difference between the two species.
5# Bending the tabs
This is a very important step on which the result strongly depends at the end.
The upper part of the flap is bent downwards. In the best case we bend the middle piece between the two holes. Basically, all closures should be bent or bent the same way. One can already bend or better said one must bend the bend very strongly in the direction of the right angle. Roughly speaking, perhaps a 70° angle. If the bend is too flat, there will be tension between the individual links later. It is better to bend too much than too flat, but the rule is as equal as possible.
6# Incise
With the pliers that should be stable but should make as narrow a cut as possible, the individual tabs are cut. Only a single cut at the top of the outer end. Cut so thin that you can close the gap again.
7# Connect the pull tabs
If you look at the pull tab as the number 8 with its two holes, it has the cut at the top and is otherwise closed. Now 2 more tabs with the lower part of the number eight are added to the section. On the pictures you can see the steps. Following this scheme you continue until you have put the desired area into each other
It is recommended to first put the length together as a base and then row by row from left to right. In principle the same procedure as for knitting with wool.
The steps are very simple. You always hang two tabs with the underside in a slot at the top of the next tab, then try to close the slot again by bending it slightly so that the tabs cannot slip out again.
Now you can let your creativity run free
Once you have understood the principle, you can go on like this forever, whereby the natural end is usually determined by the amount of pull tabs.
Here you can see a lamp made out of 1400 parts that we built. This gives you an idea of the quantities needed to create something halfway decent. It is not recommended to drink 5000 cans of cola or beer to get a lamp. Before it comes to that you can also buy pull tabs in large quantities on the internet.
If you want to see everything we already did with the pull tabs you can have a look at our projects or just see what other upcycling tutorials are available on our site.
Tutorial:
Connecting beverage can opener tabs
Upcycling DIY tutorial Connect aluminium can opener pull tabs To create amazing things
In this article:
- Instructions on how to connect pull tabs in 7 simple steps
In only seven easy steps to great upcycling design
1# Get small stable pliers
2# Collect Pull Tabs
3# Washing boil off
4# Sort by type and state
5# Bending
6# Cutting
7# Merge
No glue just pull tabs and a pair of pliers.
In this upcycling DIY tutorial about handmade things out of can flaps, also called soda can pull tab opener, you will learn in a few simple steps how to make the pull tabs flapsto get a kind of chain mail shirt fabric.
One could say one makes a fabric like out of textile, only with aluminium can flaps, which can then be processed in different ways. You can create designer lamps, tablecloths, jewellery and whatever else you can think of. There are no limits to creativity.
1# Get Pliers
The pliers should be stable enough to pinch or cut a slit in the pull tabs. However, the finer the cut, the better the tabs hold together afterwards. A small pair of pliers as shown in the picture is advisable.
2# Collect Tabs
Of course you need a lot of aluminium pull tabs, from 200 pieces you get a surface together from which you can build smaller things. But you can also find the tabs in larger quantities on the Internet and on Ebay, who finds the tedious collecting too tedious.
3# Wash & Boil
Since the closures are often sticky or dirty, simply put them in a pot of boiling water and leave for a few minutes. Then place in a drip tray and on a towel to dry.
4# Sort
There are basically two different types of pull tabs, but they are very similar. One type has a slightly larger hole with a shape similar to a semicircle. The other variety has a smaller hole, which is also rounder. In order to avoid later tensions in the grid, you should always put only one of the two varieties together. The pictures show the difference between the two species.
5# Bending the tabs
This is a very important step on which the result strongly depends at the end.
The upper part of the flap is bent downwards. In the best case we bend the middle piece between the two holes. Basically, all closures should be bent or bent the same way. One can already bend or better said one must bend the bend very strongly in the direction of the right angle. Roughly speaking, perhaps a 70° angle. If the bend is too flat, there will be tension between the individual links later. It is better to bend too much than too flat, but the rule is as equal as possible.
6# Incise
With the pliers that should be stable but should make as narrow a cut as possible, the individual tabs are cut. Only a single cut at the top of the outer end. Cut so thin that you can close the gap again.
7# Connect the pull tabs
If you look at the pull tab as the number 8 with its two holes, it has the cut at the top and is otherwise closed. Now 2 more tabs with the lower part of the number eight are added to the section. On the pictures you can see the steps. Following this scheme you continue until you have put the desired area into each other.
It is recommended to first put the length together as a base and then row by row from left to right. In principle the same procedure as for knitting with wool.
The steps are very simple. You always hang two tabs with the underside in a slot at the top of the next tab, then try to close the slot again by bending it slightly so that the tabs cannot slip out again.
Now you can let your creativity run free
Once you have understood the principle, you can go on like this forever, whereby the natural end is usually determined by the amount of pull tabs.
Here you can see a lamp made out of 1400 parts that we built. This gives you an idea of the quantities needed to create something halfway decent. It is not recommended to drink 5000 cans of cola or beer to get a lamp. Before it comes to that you can also buy pull tabs in large quantities on the internet.
If you want to see everything we already did with the pull tabs you can have a look at our projects or just see what other upcycling tutorials are available on our site.
