Hengam is a plastic toy that you can wrinkle in your hands. The material from which hengam is made has interesting properties that allow you to give the toy a wide variety of shapes.
Toy story
In the 40s of the 20th century, scientists were looking for a replacement for rubber. As a result, an organic polymer was created with interesting properties. From it, they began to produce toys for children that allow them to develop hand motor skills. “Hand chewing gum” is an elastic, plastic mass that can be crumpled, torn, twisted, and modeled in different ways.
If you put a ball of this material on the table, then it will start to spread, if you hit the wall, then it bounces off.
Making hand gum at home
Hengam can be made at home if desired. To do this, you will need: PVA glue, a small container, a wooden stick (you can use Chinese chopsticks), borax (sold in garden shops).
Hengam can be bought at a toy store. The material costs about 500 rubles and is durable.
One can of PVA glue must be poured into a bowl, gradually add borax and stir vigorously with a wooden stick. The consistency of the material will depend on the amount of borax, so you need to add it drop by drop. The more borax, the thinner the hengam will turn out. The procedure continues until a lump forms on the stick, which stops absorbing the glue. It will need to be wiped with a dry cloth. If the mass hardens quickly, then it must be put in a bag and kneaded with your fingers. To make the toy colored, you can add food coloring or gouache to the bowl before mixing. A drop of essential oil will help get rid of the glue smell. The toy will retain its properties for about a week if played with it intensively. This is the minus of homemade hengam. Over time, the mass will dry out. "Hand gum" prepared according to this recipe does not leave greasy marks on the skin, clothes and other surfaces. Well detaches from the table and walls.
There is also another recipe for making hengam. To do this, you will need: silicate glue, vodka or alcohol. When using alcohol, it is necessary to mix the two components in a 1: 1 ratio, if vodka is used, then the glue is added 1.5 times less. If you add a lot of alcohol, you get a solid, fragile substance, so the proportion cannot be violated. To get a white thick mass, somewhat reminiscent of thick wallpaper glue, it is necessary to intensively mix all the components. After that, rinse the hengam with cold water and squeeze a little so that the excess liquid is glass, and the “hand gum” is ready. Such a toy will last literally for a day, after which it will dry.
For another recipe for making hengam, you will need: starch, water, PVA glue. It is necessary to dissolve starch in water, observing a 1: 1 ratio. Then gradually pour in the glue and stir vigorously so that the mass acquires the desired viscous consistency. The toy made according to this recipe is non-bouncing, but rather pliable.
