Much of the “stuff” I have that breaks is plastic. I realize that there are a bazillion types of plastic but…….. but I just can’t find a good plastic glue.
I remember as a kid I made tons of plastic model ships and planes and I used a tube of glue that literaly seemed to melt the pieces together. Is that glue still available? Or did the government ban it because it was “sniffable” ????
I’ve been to all the hardware and big box stores with their hundreds (seemingly) of adhesives and only a few say they are good for “some types of plastics”. But trust me, they fail miserably on what I call “ordinary” plastic ie: eyeglass frames etc.
Is the original model makers glue in a tube still available? Is it the same as it was in the 50s-60’s ??
Of course I haven’t tried a “model” shop, because they too have seemed to disappeared, replaced by Target – WalMart etc.
Anyone know the answer? Or can recommend a good plastic glue?
Thanks
Replies
Some super glues , are you sure it is not nylon ?3M does make a 2 part adhesive.
Model glue is still available, but I doubt it would help you. It does indeed weld styrene plastic together, but plastic found in eyeglass frames or parts of power tools, etc. are very unlikely to be styrene. Instead they will be made from less brittle plastics of various sorts that model glue will not weld.
There are specialty glues for various sorts of plastics from vinyl types, PVC, and resins. Super glue and epoxy can work well in some applications.
In short it really depends upon the specific type of plastic that you need to glue and the stresses the glued part will have to endure.
Go to an arts and crafts store (Michaels and Hobby Lobby are here or go online and search) and buy a tube of E6000 glue. It will bound metal to plastic, wood to plastic, metal to metal. We use it all of the time with computers and electronics. Never had it fail, never.
Scott
Thanks - I'll give that a try (E6000)
PVC cement (for plumbing) is roughly the same as the old modelmaker's cement. But as you note, it will only work on plastics that are soluble in the solvents it contains (typically toluene and/or xylene). There are also commercial adhesives formulated for specific plastics, although you often have to buy them in impractically large quantities.
Some plastics, such as polyethylene, polypropylene and polytetrafluroethylene (Teflon) are all but ungluable.
-Steve
Go to Mc MasterCarr.com and look up the Loctite CA glues. the one we regularly used at Mattel for hard to glue plastics was loctite 404 in a yellow bottle. $15.00 plus for the bottle but well worth it. you can store it in the frig for a longer shelf life.
The old model glue in the tube (and the old liquid) are no longer available. You can still get tube glue and liquid but the sniffing issue forced a change and IMHO they do not work any way near as well as they used to.
Being as my other hobby is Model Railroading I work with a LOT of plastic glues and none of what is available over the counter works very well anymore.
ah for the days of MEK (yes I know it would kill you but at least it worked!)
Doug
Yup. Go to the plumbing supply store, or anyplace they sell plastic pipe. Typically, this is a two-step procedure: a cleaner/dissolver that preps the surfaces, followed by a plastic glue.
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