What is Latex Rubber?

If you just want to know about the latex rubber we sell on eBay scroll down to the bottom.

The word latex comes from the Latin for milk –lac.
When crude forms of rubber were brought back from South America in the 18th century it was noticed that it would remove pencil marks from paper when rubbed, paper was expensive then, hence the name rubber. A small piece of rubber sold for this purpose was very expensive then.

Most natural rubber originates from the Hevea tree which exudes a milky liquid when damaged which sets on contact with air generally thought to protect the tree from fungal and insect damage and grazing, technically this is not sap which runs much deeper within the tree; the lactiferous producing cells lie just beneath the bark.
Many plants produce a milky “sap” such as dandelions but the Hevea tree is farmed because it can be “milked” by cutting into the bark and collecting the liquid without destroying the tree. Chewing gum used to be made from chicle a gum collected from the Manilkara Chicle tree, today most is made from synthetic rubber.

The British introduced the rubber tree to their colonies in the East –Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia . The Dutch also created plantations in their colonies in Indonesia.
It was discovered that ammonia solution prevented the coagulation of raw collected latex so it could be transported to a central processing site.
It was also found that turpentine and naphtha would dissolve the raw latex to make a rubber solution.

Its main use then was for waterproofing garments and footwear buy these degraded quickly, and became sticky and smelly and needed replaced quite often.

Hard rubber differs from latex rubber due to the way it is processed from collection.
When the latex is extracted form the tree it is either kept in liquid form (latex concentrate) or allowed to dry out (dry rubber).

Both are stabilised by a process called vulcanisation using heat (to speed up the reaction and to drive off the water content) and sulphur (or sulphur donors) plus the addition of other stabilisers. This process cross links the polymer chains resulting in a product that recovers after deforming or stretching. Harder more chemically resistant rubbers can be produced by controlling the heat and adjusting the levels of the vulcanising agents. The discovery of this process is attributed to Charles Goodyear. Vulcanised dry rubber’s main use was for vehicle tyres, Goodyear Tyres used the name as an acknowledgement of his discovery.

Dry/hard rubber is used for tyres, tubing, hoses, footwear, automotive components, engineering parts, adhesives, and some household appliances

Latex rubber is processed from the liquid form and undergoes a lighter vulcanisation process to make a soft very stretchy product, it is how ever this leaves it more vulnerable to chemicals and degradation from heat and light. This product is used to make dipped or moulded items such as gloves, condoms and balloons, “foamed to make latex foam or extruded to make elastic thread.

Some people are allergic to latex to varying degrees, either to the natural proteins in the latex, the chemicals used in the processing or to the talc or corn starch used to dust the finished product which carries fine particles of latex into the air. In severe cases contact can result in an anaphylactic reactions (rare), less severe cases causes dermatitis, eczema, rhinitis other forms of mild discomfort.

The latex rubber we sell here on eBay is specifically designed for use in clothing.
It does have other uses such as exercise bands, gaskets and vacuum beds. It has a smooth side which can be carefully polished to a high shine and a matte, rougher side.

I cannot recommend its use for the repair of dry/wet suits, hovercraft skirts, any application where it will come into contact with mineral oils or solvents, prolonged exposure to heat and light, or the for the repair of styrene butadiene or neoprene (both synthetic rubbers).

Please see my other guide for information about the care of latex clothing