Posted By Dave F on 11/27/2008 2:21 PM
Cyanoacrylate is an acrylic resin which rapidly polymerises in the presence of water (specifically hydroxide ions), forming long, strong chains, joining the bonded surfaces together. If you wet your wooden jig first then add CA you will rapidly bond everything to the jig. In essence, water acts as the bonding accelerator. Once the glue has polymerised and cured, the reaction is over, it is impermaeble to water, thus the "sealing" effect on the string mentioned above.
Basically, if you are looking for a surface that CA will not bond with it needs to be non-porus, anhydrous and inert. Smooth, dry and non reactive.
Basically your choices are metal, teflon or delrin.
My thinking here is that he is not intentionally bonding to the jig, but is more worried about the excess and ooze. As you note, the water causes the CA to instantly bond, but it seems to me to create a white crystaline-layer with no real strength that would impeed further bonding and allow him to lift the work out of the jig. Guess I'll need to try this myself and see what actually occurs.
That's why I said to try it on a scrap piece.