Introduction

Bohning introduced the Bohning Block in 2020 to apply their 75 years of experience in adhesion to bovine hoof care.  To better understand the capabilities of this new product line, testing the Bohning Block’s compatibility with the most popular hoof epoxies on the market became essential in understanding its strengths and limitations.

Method

All specimens were prepared using production-quality unpigmented and purple pigmented Bohning Blocks.  Blocks were laid out in pairs; 3 pairs were lined up on a table. All epoxies were allowed to acclimate to room temperature prior to application.

Each epoxy bottle was fitted with a mixing tip and applicator gun as specified by the glue manufacturer.  Epoxy was applied to only one block of each pair.  Within 7-8 seconds of epoxy hitting a block, the top surface of the block was fully covered with epoxy and flipped onto the unglued block lying next to it.  Light pressure was then applied as the fast-setting epoxy set up.  NOTE: 3 pairs of blocks were bonded at a time as this was found to be a good amount for most brands of epoxy used.  Typically if a fourth pair was attempted, the fast-curing epoxy would begin setting up inside the mixing tip, and it would become much more difficult to coat the block in the limited window of time allowed.  Blocks were allowed to fully cure before cutting.

All epoxied hoof block “sandwiches” were then cut to final size using a custom-built sled jig and a band saw.  Sandwiches made with Small Bohning Blocks produced four (4) 1.0” x 0.6” cross-sectional specimens each.  Specimens were then bagged and labeled at the band saw to remove any possibility of mixing them up.

All specimens were tested in a dual-column tensile tester with a 5-kN load cell and manually tightened jaws.  Data was collected using a data acquisition software.

Results

The Bohning Company has found that any tensile strength over 750 psi will provide excellent results in most conditions and applications. The tensile strength average per product ranged from 941 psi for one manufacturer to a high of 1427 psi for another manufacturer.

Bovi-Bond, Accu-Bond, PrimaBond, Septicare II Bond Express, Bovibloc, Black Magic Winter, Trimmer’s Choice, Hoof-Tite Cold Weather, Hoof-It, Mini Moo Gloo, SureBond 2B, and Hoof-Tite V2 were all tested and passed the 750 psi threshold.