ATG 714 - the good, the bad and the pretty

I bought my refill tape as a box of 12 which came like this:

What is an ATG?

I haven't bought any scrapbook supplies since April 18. This is by far the longest that I have gone without buying new scrappy supplies...not that I am left wanting. My craft room has enough paper and embellies to keep me going for a decade (or maybe more)!

The one exception to the buying freeze has been the purchase of an ATG 714. What is an ATG 714 you ask? Well, if you haven't heard of this beast, let me tell you, it is by far one of the best scrappy purchase I have ever made. ATG stands for Adhesive Transfer Gun. The 714 model dispenses 1/4 inch double sided (very sticky) tape. There is a also another model that comes in yellow that dispenses 1/2 inch tape.

Why I purchased the ATG 714:

So why did I buy this? Well, getting the proper adhesive has long been a problem for me. Living on a small Island limits adhesive choices and it is very overpriced. I have tried the Pioneer tabs with the annoying little blue tabs on the back, the Herma Vario tabs that just don't hold up good enough for me, the plan ole glue stick which is ok but a little messy, time consuming and not strong enough for certain elements. I LOVE Terrifcally Tacky Tape but it is very pricey and the only place around here that sells it is Michaels so it costs double (or more) than it should.

The first thing I did was read a lot online reviews. Then I did some price comparisons. The best price I could find was here but it is a company that ships within the United States only. A further search led me to here which is the best price that I could find within Canada. I purchased the ATG 714, 12 rolls of 1/4 inch 36 yards adhesive and shipping for $115.00. Now, that sounds like an enormous up front cost but the ATG 714 pays for itself in that first purchase. The 12 rolls of that I bought is over 400 yards of adhesive!!!! I am very heavy on adhesive for my projects but even still, I know that it will last me for some time to come.

My ATG 714 arrived within days of my online purchase. I couldn't wait to rip open that box, load up the adhesive and give it a whirl!! In my excitement, I couldn't really figure out how to load the first roll of tape so instead of reading the instructions I hollered to DH to come put it together for me. It only took him a few seconds to load the tape and we were ready to roll. Last night I had to do a refill by myself but it was no problem at all b/c there is a little diagram inside of the case that was really easy to follow.

I had read online that it can take a little time to get used to how to handle the ATG 714 but I must say that it came very naturally to me. I could put the adhesive precisely where I wanted it right away. The adhesive is good and strong. Not as strong as Terrifically Tacky Tape as some reviews would suggest but still very good quality...much better than any photo tab I have ever used. The one con that I can see with the ATG 714 is that left handed people may have a little more trouble using it. I am ambidextrous so that isn't an issue for me. Also, the reviews said that when you used the ATG on a layout be sure that you don't want to move anything after the fact... I didn't find this to be true. Most things I could pry apart if I was very careful unless I was working with really cheap or thin paper.

in summary

the Pros:

• cheaper and better adhesive
• refills last a long time b/c they are 36 yards
• easy to handle (despite how it looks!)
  
• you will never misplace an ATG on your desk!
• eliminates searching/traveling to get more adhesive

the Cons:

• you may have trouble using it if you are left handed
• some people may not like the size
• upfront cost to purchase the ATG

Altered ATGs
Here are some photos that I have found in various spots on the internet of people showing off their altered ATGs ...how cool are these!?! I was trying to decide if I wanted to alter my ATG or not. At first I thought I didn't really want to but then there were a couple of examples I found that I really liked so I think that when I have the time, I will alter it. My favourite ones are the last two photos posted here. I love the soft, pretty look to these. I especially love that for the most part, they left the frosted side as is so you can still see how much tape you have left in the dispenser.

Link to this altered ATG
Link to this altered ATG

Link to this altered ATG

Notice that this person wrapped ribbon around the handle :)


Link to this altered ATG

Lovin the metallic paint here

This person even has a stand for their ATG! This is the 1/2 inch model and it comes in this yellow. She added the rub-ons etc and then covered in it modge podge.

And last but not least, my two favourites: