Hair System Tape vs. Glue

Once you ordered a glue-on hair system or wig from an online supplier, you will need to consider what kind of adhesive you should choose for the hair system installation on your client’s head.

In the men’s hair system world, tape and glue adhesive are the most common tools for hair system and wig attachment. However, choosing between hair system tape vs. glue can pose a challenge to beginners without having any experience in using them.

In fact, which one is better between tape and glue when it comes to hair system attachment hinges on a large number of factors that highly matter to the wearers’ wearing experience. And the answer to that question varies from individual to individual, given each hair system wearer’s situation is different.

Today, we are answering this question based on the characteristics of the two different kinds of adhesives, as well as the pros and cons of tape and glue to help you make a better choice between them.

Now let’s dive directly into the blog.

• Related: 12 Best Tape and Glue for Men’s Toupee and Hairpieces
• Related: Men’s Hair Piece Installation Tutorial: From Beginning to End

Hair System Tape: Types, Characteristics, Pros, and Cons

Adhesive tape is a kind of carrier material that has adhesive coated on two sides to stick the skin and hair system together. It is transparent and available in rolls or pre-cut shapes.

Nowadays, the most dominant types of tapes have proved to be tape rolls, contour tape, and mini taps.

Rolls work the best around the perimeter of the hair system base when placed about 1mm away from the perimeter edge. Still, it is not recommended for the front hairline area since the shape of the area is very special as well as conspicuous.

Instead, contour tape turns out to be the best option for that area, given it is exclusively designed for the front hairline area of the hair system base in line with the various shapes of people’s front hairline. So it is set to help their hair systems appear as natural-looking as possible by presenting a more undetectable front hairline.

Then it comes to the mini tabs, which are much smaller pre-cut tape strips. They typically come with a length of 3.8cm and a width of only 2cm. They are so small for the sake of giving the wearers more flexibility. Because they would not need to go through the hassle of cutting the tape to the correct size and shape themselves, which is extremely handy and user-friendly.

Tapes typically are transparent and come in several liner colors that indicate the degree of tackiness.

Advantages of Tape Adhesives

Work well with different types of hair systems: As a very versatile hair system attachment tool, the tape is compatible with many kinds of base materials, including French lace, Swiss lace, skin base, NPU, poly perimeter, skin with gauze, as well as monofilament.

Easy to handle: Hair system tape is much easier to work with than tape. It will save you lots of time for you and your client. With tape adhesive, you can prepare the hair system in advance with tapes stick on for installation before your client arrives in your salon for the appointment. When you install the hair system, it doesn’t need time as the liquid adhesive to dry.

And different from the liquid adhesive, it won’t go anywhere else it shouldn’t go. Even if you place it in the wrong place, you can easily peel it off easily and reattach it again.

Easy to remove: Tapes can be peeled off from the base easily, even if sometimes it sticks hard to the base, you just need to spray some solvent on it, and it will get peeled off completely.

Safe for sensitive skin: In addition, tape usually works better for those hair system wearers with skin sensitivity because fewer chemicals are used to produce tape than glue.

Breathable: Tape offers a more breathable experience as it doesn’t cover every inch of skin as the glue does. They are even tapes with breathable holes like Walkertape Extenza-Bond Plus.

Disadvantages of Tape Adhesives

Despite the convincing pros of tape adhesive for hair systems, its limitations are very worth-noting.

May cause damage to the fragile base like poly skin: Hair system tape does not work very well for delicate base hair systems, like a very thin poly hair system with base thickness of under 0.08mm. Such kinds of bases can be easily torn when the tape is peeled off.

Visible in the front hairline: For another, hair system tape has 8-10mils thickness that creates a slight edge. When the tape is used along the hair system edge, especially the front hairline area, it appears not that natural. This is due to the fact that tapes are much thicker and much more visible compared with glue, thus tending to make the front hairline appear somewhat strange.

Hair System Glue: Types, Characteristics, Pros, And Cons

Hair system glue is a kind of clear or white liquid adhesive that’s usually brushed on the skin to secure the wig or hair system. It goes on liquid on the scalp and dries after a moment. There are solvent-based glue and water-based glue now on the market, designed for your different requirements.

Solvent-based glue dries faster and offers long-lasting hold and strength. It is more affordable than water-based solvent. However, they are made of different types of chemicals and thus may irritate sensitive scalps. Walker Tape Ultra Hold is a typical solvent-based glue that can  last for over four weeks 

Price: $31.12 ($9.15 / Fl Oz)

Water-based glue is a comparatively new product in the market, developed as an alternative to solvent-based glue. Fewer chemicals are involved in making water-based glue, thus it is more friendly to sensitive skin and more expensive. Ghost Bond is a water-based glue that provides 4-5 weeks of hold time

Price: $17.25 ($13.27 / Fl oz)

Advantages of Glue Adhesives

Durable: Generally speaking, glue adhesive has average longevity than tape products given that they contact the wearer’s skin more intensively and won’t let any water or air goes in.

Invisible: Hair system glue appears highly invisible compared to tapes. It is transparent when applied to the head. After it is dried, it will create a very thin film on the scalp that’s completely invisible, thus working exceptionally well for the front hairline area acting as a thin skin layer beneath the hair system.

Precise attachment: Besides, it is seen as a more flexible attachment tool. The users can precisely determine the area to be glued according to their own needs. By doing so, there are fewer chances for any air or space left under the hair system base, preventing water from seeping in when taking a showing or even swimming.

Disadvantages of Glue Adhesives

Like tape adhesives, glue adhesives have their own limitations that many hair systems wearers are not OK with.

Takes more time for installation: Unlike tape adhesives, attaching hair systems using glue is actually more demanding as well as time-consuming. After applying it to the hair systems, the wearers need to wait for a little while to let it dry out before attaching the hair systems. Both over-drying and under-drying can lead to the improper attachment for the wearers, so they need to be particularly careful with how long they should let the glue dry out.

Takes more time to remove: Removing the glue adhesive from the base takes more procedures and time. You will need to soak the hair in water or solvent and wait for the glue to get loose, then brush off the resides completely, and finally shampoo and rinse it.

Unfriendly to sensitive skin: As mentioned earlier, there are fewer chemicals involved in the production of tape. Glue adhesives, in comparison, have more chemicals that can cause certain kinds of discomfort to those with sensitive skin as a form of liquid. So it is recommended to test a small amount of glue on an area of your skin for about an hour to see if there will be any disturbing reactions. If there is not any, you can then use it while feeling reassured.

Don’t work well with mesh materials: Glue liquid is likely to seep through the base and cause damage to the hair, thus it is more of an ideal option for the poly base since the hair would be kept entirely away.

Hair System Tape vs. Glue: The Right Option

Both glue adhesive and tape adhesive have their own advantages and disadvantages for hair system wearers to take into consideration when making the decision. Which one to choose from largely depends on the base material of their hair systems.

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On the hair system market, there are plenty of very popular options available loved by numerous hair system wearers. Please check out our list of the 12 best tapes and glues that are all highly recommended for attachment purposes.

All in all, which one is a better hair system attachment option between hair system tape vs. glue strongly depends on personal preference and what type of hair system you are going to wear. You just need to choose the one that better suits your clients’ situation, as well as lifestyle.