The subject kinda says it all. When you buy staples, they come in those long, lined up rows, all stuck together. However, when your stapler uses them, it has no problem getting them apart. You can also pull them apart without damaging anything. Is it some kind of adhesive? There doesn’t seem to be any interlocking parts.
I’m baffled.
It’s a really weak adhesive, similar to the stuff used on Post-It Notes™.
On most staple strips I’ve seen, if you look closely enough you can see a thin layer of glue. The glue isn’t strong enough to prevent the stapler from dislodging a single staple from the end of the strip.
If you have ever used a pneumatic stapler you would be able to more clearly see what keeps them together. It does “appear” to be a thin strip of glue but in reality it is an extremely thin layer of clear low adhesion tape that gives way after the plunger strike (when the staple is installed). If you have a stapler that has been around a while look inside it and you may see what appears to be little balls or flakes of cellophane (as opposed to violaphane)
On construction staplers the same technique is used but the staples are larger, hence the left over plastic debri is more noticable. Some construction staples use paper. I have two pneumatic staplers and one uses only plastic backed staples and the other will shoot either one as long as the staple gauge is correct. When you go to Home Depot next time look at the nail gun display under staples (If your interested enough in this topic) you will find that you can more easily see what keeps these staples together. Hope this helps.
Bis spater,
KaiserWilly