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So, my understanding of plastic glue is that it's better for plastic miniatures because it actually chemically fuses the plastic, making it theoretically inseparable, right?

.Great. Why doesn't it work? How long does it take to cure? Does it not like primer? Does it denature at any particular temperature (in the bottle, not dried)?Is it safe to feed to children? Does anyone have an MSDS for this stuff?

Thanks.

In essence, yes, it melts the plastic together for a stronger hold plastic to plastic than super glue will give you. In some cases, pieces can be seperated, but in a lot more cases it's very difficult to remove pieces without damaging them.

Sometimes it won't work because you put too much on. There's no need to slather the surface with it like sun lotion at the beach, just make sure to have a reasonable amount at the contact points, as too little will have the same effect, and will require to be scraped or filed off it it's dried. Unlike super glue, plastic glue doesn't much like sticking to its dried self.

Length of time to cure can vary. Usually it bonds in a matter of seconds, for some awkward pieces to might have to prop the pieces up, and sometimes bits won't go together for other reasons, such as the GW model requiring you to be able to defy the laws of physics whilst putting it together. For the majority of cases, it's only a handful of seconds though, it's not like super glue where to have to hold the pieces in a vice-like grip for minutes on end.

Primer takes to it fine assuming you're not spraying it when the glue is freshly applied. Glue to primer will eat the primer though, so it's advised to be very careful if (re-)gluing a painted or primed model.

I've not found it to denature quickly at general room temperature. I still have bottles that are some years old and work to a lesser degree than newer bottles, but work nonetheless. Dunno how it'd be in non-UK climates though.

Yes, it is safe to feed to children. Try mixing it with your metal/plastic/resin filings and discarded sprue for a nicer texture. (In other words; no.)

Nope.

Okay, thanks. I'm pretty sure I wasn't putting too much on. I had just enough to wet both edges of it. I had one piece in particular (a guardsman foot and it's base) to cure for over two hours, and there was literally no glue oozing out between the join spots, and then it just pulled apart as if it was mildly sticky. Elmer's would have held it better. My air conditioning was out for about a week however, during which the floor the warhammer stuff is on got up to about 100 degrees Fahrenheit. I want to say that's about 35 or 36 in Celsius, so it was pretty warm. I suppose I'll assume it was either an old bottle, or got too hot.. Funny that you mention that super glue takes minutes. I mine normally bonds in seconds. Not sure if you have it over there, but the Loctite control gel glue is amazing.

It's a shame to hear about the glue not being good for the kids. I will have to notify their parents. (only joking)


(or am I?)

daedalus wrote:So, my understanding of plastic glue is that it's better for plastic miniatures because it actually chemically fuses the plastic, making it theoretically inseparable, right?

.Great. Why doesn't it work? How long does it take to cure? Does it not like primer? Does it denature at any particular temperature (in the bottle, not dried)?Is it safe to feed to children? Does anyone have an MSDS for this stuff?

Thanks.

Yes. Theoretically inseparable. You can reaf them apart or cut the pieces to separate, but usually, the bond is stronger than the original material.

Why doesn't it work? Why doesn't it work on what?

It only works on polystyrene. If it's NOT polystyrene, it will work about as well as spitting on it and hoping (it doesn't work on ABS - which is A 'styrene', but not polystyrene, for example. Or Resin, or any of a variety of other "plastics" like PVC or PET.). That said, I DO have a plastic dreadnought sarcophagus plate glued to a METAL dread with plastic glue. Undercuts and suction bonds are behind this freak though.

How long does it take to cure? Depends on a variety of factors. Type, viscosity, amount are the usual ones. The thinner, liquid ones will tend to set faster as the carrier evaporates faster. The gel type stay softer longer. It's usually mostly cured in an hour or two. Like many adhesives, the 'right' amount is a learning process. Too much will take a lot longer and too little will not be very strong.
It will often remove primer (depending on the active ingredient. Toluene 1% solution is common) if applied to a painted surface.
Haven't noticed it denature. I've had bottles last me years with no loss in efficacy.
Is it safe to feed to children? Only if you don't like them.

MSDS depends a lot on which active chemical solvent is the key ingredient.
I have MSDS for Distilled water, and all the way through to various and sundry exothermic and otherwise toxic chemicals.

It sounds like you've primed the pieces and THEN tried to use Plastic Cement. That won't work. You need the plastic to be free of paint, so scrape it off at the spot you need to glue on both sides. It will stick very quickly then.

Different plastic cements cure at different speeds, and have different toxicities. The bad-smelling ones generally work/cure faster. "Non-toxic" limomene cements that smell like oranges dissolve plastic and cure somewhat slower, though this depends a lot on the particular formulation--I like Gunze "Mr Cement Limomene Type," a very thin non-toxic cement that works and cures about as fast as, say, Testors regular orange-tube cement.

In theory, a bond with plastic cement should be as strong or stronger than the plastic itself. In practice, it's not necessarily true. In my experience the main problem is when you end up moving the parts a little bit while the cement is curing. You end up in effect tearing apart some of the bond, and the joint will be weaker than the plastic around it. If you're not bringing the full surfaces of the parts tightly together (for example, if one of the surfaces isn't completely smooth), you can get something similar. A well-done plastic cement join is very strong, but it's very easy to make a weaker one.

just avoid the weak watery GW plastic glue

I use the non toxic Testers glue (the stuff in the blue squeeze tube). I'm pretty sure it works better than GWs glue, it's cheaper than GWs, and it has a nice citrus like smell to it. It usually has a nice bond after a minute or two.

daedalus wrote:Okay, thanks. I'm pretty sure I wasn't putting too much on. I had just enough to wet both edges of it. I had one piece in particular (a guardsman foot and it's base) to cure for over two hours, and there was literally no glue oozing out between the join spots, and then it just pulled apart as if it was mildly sticky. Elmer's would have held it better. My air conditioning was out for about a week however, during which the floor the warhammer stuff is on got up to about 100 degrees Fahrenheit. I want to say that's about 35 or 36 in Celsius, so it was pretty warm. I suppose I'll assume it was either an old bottle, or got too hot.. Funny that you mention that super glue takes minutes. I mine normally bonds in seconds. Not sure if you have it over there, but the Loctite control gel glue is amazing.

It's a shame to hear about the glue not being good for the kids. I will have to notify their parents. (only joking)


(or am I?)

Depends on which type of plastic glue you have. If we knew it could help us greatly... Realistically, i would just read what the side of the bottle says. I use the Testors Liquid Cement for Plastic Models. And with this stuff, I apply just a small bit to one surface of what i want glued, hold for around 10-20 seconds, and its set, ready to go, it's really great stuff and I highly recommend it.

This will tell you everything you need to know about plastic and glue..

Avatar 720 wrote:And sometimes bits won't go together for other reasons, such as the GW model requiring you to be able to defy the laws of physics whilst putting it together.

Dark Eldar Scourges... /shudder
Trying to get the wings to stay on whilst they're already off balance on the rock style base's you get with them.
God they were a complete pain in my *** to put together.

I've had the same problem with guardsmen being Tipsley McDrunkerton when gluing them onto hte base with plastic glue (usually the running poses). I've adjusted my assembly method to glue the legs to the base first, once those were solid, I did the rest of the model.

I think that's one of the things to keep in mind when assembling with plastic glue, different orders of assembly to maximize the success rate of your desired bonds.