The iron melts the dried glue on the inside of the tube, sealing it up.
It's a little like a glue gun. The glue sticks are dry until heated in the center of the gun.
It doesn't take much pressure with the iron to melt the glue. Simply roll the tube over the surface.
The picture shows the tube set against the hot iron surface. I usually put a piece of clean white paper between the iron and tube.
Be sure the tube is clean before using the iron. If there is any dirt or finger oil on the tube, you could permanently set it in place with the heat!
Sometimes the last of the exposed seam won't lay down. Put some glue on one side of a knife blade and push it under the seam. Let dry and iron in place.
It's surprising how strong these tubes are, especially at this smaller diameter.
When making larger diameter cardstock tubes, I let a drop of thin CA run down the inside of the body tube. this insures the tube is closed and hardens it up a bit.
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