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I already know how each glue acts so you dont need to explain that to me.

So, Iv recently not had use of my glues for a few months due to not being able to get figures (go figure ).

However I bought a Termi Lord for my Chaos army, and grab the plastic glue and then find out its went into this kind of string like mess.

However my superglue is fine! So I plan on using that.

Is there any other problems, other than a slightly weaker bond, that I should be aware of??

No, but on plastics it's just common sense to use plastic glue.

I have never bothered with plastic glue. I use super glue on everything, and have had no problems.

Mostly it comes down to the care you take in the handling/storage of your figs once assembled.

I never have problems with my plastic glue, but my superglue dries up in the lid so fast....

I too use superglue on everything. Plastic glue kind of annoys me.

Howard A Treesong wrote:No, but on plastics it's just common sense to use plastic glue.

I know its common sense but I hat paying £4 to have a product last a few months to then die on me. Its some money wasted imo.

CT GAMER wrote:I have never bothered with plastic glue. I use super glue on everything, and have had no problems.

Mostly it comes down to the care you take in the handling/storage of your figs once assembled.

Pretty much 90% of my stuff is carried in a GW case with the other 10%(mostly Rhinos) in my bag. So yea the majority of it is safe.

I use Super glue for everything, plastic glue just pisses me off

johnscott10 wrote:

Howard A Treesong wrote:No, but on plastics it's just common sense to use plastic glue.

I know its common sense but I hat paying £4 to have a product last a few months to then die on me. Its some money wasted imo.

What 'dies'? You mean it runs out? Yeah, that happens to super glue too, and milk in the fridge.

Howard A Treesong wrote:

johnscott10 wrote:

Howard A Treesong wrote:No, but on plastics it's just common sense to use plastic glue.

I know its common sense but I hat paying £4 to have a product last a few months to then die on me. Its some money wasted imo.

What 'dies'? You mean it runs out? Yeah, that happens to super glue too, and milk in the fridge.

By "die" I mean that it becomes unusable, and adds more effort to cleaning them up(though I do sort of skip the whole remove mold line thing). The worst case was one of my marines lookin like he had been passed through a spider web because of all the thin white glue strings.

I've really never seen this and I've been using plastic glue for a long time. Gel super glues can sometimes make a string.

One benefit of super glue is it's semi permanent, it can easily be scraped off or stripped without destroying arms/heads/whatever else later on if you want to swap them out.

johnscott10 wrote:I know its common sense but I hat paying £4 to have a product last a few months to then die on me. Its some money wasted imo.

Sounds like the problem is actually just that you're buying GW plastic glue, which is money wasted even when it doesn't die on you.

Some of GW's hobby materials are great... glue isn't in that category. GW's glue is horrible, over-priced, watery stuff. Pretty much [i]any[/] other plastic glue will be cheaper and work better.

I hate plastic glue. Makes a mess, smells like crap, melts plastic too much. Super glue is all I have ever needed.

Also, while superglue can be used on anything and bond to it decently, plastic glue will only hold on plastic. Trying to bond plastic to metal with it is a waste of time and effort.

I currently use plastic glue but intend on switching to just superglue once I'm certain the bonds are strong enough. It's wonderfull to be able to snap a fig and fix some random thing that annoyed you about it without having to use a knife and risk ruining it.

Superglue all the way. I have used plastic glue from time to time, but not a fan.

As others have pointed out. Superglue is alot easier to work with and if you mess up easier to take apart and fix. Just remember alittle goes along way.

Good Luck

Superglue all the way. If you make a mistake, it's easier to fix.

For plastic glue, I like Testor's "kill you with sweet fumes" stuff.

However, PP plastics don't take to plastic glue, so I'm stuck
(see what I did there) with superglue for those models.

I use superglue on everything. I don't carry my fragile armies around in a metal toolbox with no padding, though, so if you abuse your minis plastic glue might be better.

I used gratuitous amounts of plastic glue on my marines when I was younger and now I really wish I'd just used super glue because they're pretty awful looking.

To you guys who use superglue on everything; how exactly do you handle a figure that sports two separate arm pieces that connect to a single weapon?

Examples: Tactical marines holding bolters, or Stormvermin holding halberds.

I have enough stress gluing those together with plastic glue (and it's natural grippiness), and using superglue for the task seems like it would be a slippery, sticky mess.

Howard A Treesong wrote:No, but on plastics it's just common sense to use plastic glue.

Actually, it's not? Like, why/how could you actually think it would be common sense

I use plastic glue on everything plastic. I think it is far superior because it creates a much better bond. Using superglue on everything would be annoying. It snaps easily unless you pin things (and who wants to pin 50-something basic soldier minis?) and it creates this small layer between pieces that sometimes leaves a visible gap after painting.

Altruizine wrote:To you guys who use superglue on everything; how exactly do you handle a figure that sports two separate arm pieces that connect to a single weapon?

Examples: Tactical marines holding bolters, or Stormvermin holding halberds.

I have enough stress gluing those together with plastic glue (and it's natural grippiness), and using superglue for the task seems like it would be a slippery, sticky mess.

Glue gun holding arm on, let dry/set. Then Glue supporting arm on, and position it. I had to figure this process out for all the Eldar Guardians and Dire Avengers. Way easier than trying to glue both arms at the same time.

Meh, I'll take the flexibility of super glue over the "OMG I MELTED THIS TOGETHER" approach plastic glue takes sure, the bond it great and all, but super glue works as well... just don't drop the mini on the arm it took you 10 minutes to attach. And, if you do, the problem is easily fixed. Using super glue.

I've also had the same problem as some others... used plastic glue in days gone by, came back later and thought "wow that looks like utter crap..." and then remembered that I'd used plastic glue, so there was very little I could do about it

As for glueing separate arms/weapon components... got a bunch o' Catachans I did that with, works just fine with a little common sense and patience. In fact, it has very little to do with the glue. Same goes for yesterdays Bestigor axe attaching... honestly, don't know wtf you're doing wrong

As for gaps... if you're using the correct amount of glue (as in, very very little) that doesn't happen, really. More commonly I've found the parts are a bad fit and the glue has nothing to do with it... and gap filling isn't exactly the hardest thing to do.


So, in conclusion, super glue is fine unless you're a numpty about it.

What sort of glue are you using and why is it £4 John?

Randomly selected google result for Revell Pro Contacta
http://www.modelshopleeds.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=6621

Lasts ages, runs smoothly and sticks plastic together really well

Altruizine wrote:To you guys who use superglue on everything; how exactly do you handle a figure that sports two separate arm pieces that connect to a single weapon?

Examples: Tactical marines holding bolters, or Stormvermin holding halberds.

I have enough stress gluing those together with plastic glue (and it's natural grippiness), and using superglue for the task seems like it would be a slippery, sticky mess.

Some superglues are not the liquid sort, but a sticky gel that has enough viscosity to hang onto things, more than plastic glue, actually. We always have both in our tool box. Liquid is great for pinning, but for most everything else the gel is king, especially if you're messing about with poses. Another trick is to use blu-tack or elastic bands to support your models while the glue dries. Obviously don't put the support on the glued section .

Loctite Ultra Control Super Glue Gel: http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/sg_ug_cntrl/overview/Loctite-Super-Glue-ULTRA-Gel-Control.htm

EDIT: Oh, and don't use GW super glue. EVER.

Why does super glue give a weaker bond?
I wouldn't say I am rough with my miniatures but if super glue is noticeably weaker than plastic glue I have a feeling they will break apart a lot. Sometimes the plastic glued ones break loose on the small bits.

I remember using super glue many years ago and it drying and sticking pretty fast. I intend to buy some this weekend to stick the fincast models I did recently together. However I am now worried they will fall to bits.

They won't necessarily fall to bits but the bond is different from that using plastic glues.

Plastic glue "melts" the plastic so the parts fuse together
CA is more rigid and will not flex so can break if dropped for example

SylvanaSekNadin wrote:I remember using super glue many years ago and it drying and sticking pretty fast. I intend to buy some this weekend to stick the finecast models I did recently together. However I am now worried they will fall to bits.

Finecast is resin, and therefore different from plastic. It takes a very strong superglue bond, like, freakishly strong. Plastic bonds are lighter with superglue than with plastic glue because plastic glue chemically bonds the two pieces of plastic together.

If anyone is getting weak bonds using plastic glue, then you are either using the wrong type of plastic glue for those models (more likely), or you used too much/way too little.

The key is to use the right kind of glue for the job.

For plastic, your best bet is probably a very thin watery plastic glue with a brush aplicator. This type of glue is almost all solvent, as if you get some on your hands it will not feel sticky at all. It smells worse, but is easy to apply neatly and works great. Also, it will never go bad on you. I use plastruct glue and it is great!

The kind of plastic glues with a thickener (usually come in a squezable tube of some kind) can get stringy and can get the effect that you mention. I rarely buy these kinds of glues as they are messier and don't give superior results.

As for superglues, it's extra important to use the right kind of glue for the job. I've posted this several times before, but it's information that GW won't tell you, and every modeler should know:

In my experience, brand isn't actually important, but every hobbist owes it to themselves to have 2 (possibly 3) kinds of superglue. I've given the BSI names below, but other brands make similar products.

1) A thick or "Gel" superglue (Maxi-Cure) for:
-gap filling
-joining of parts that aren't evenly matched.
2) A thin watery glue (insta-cure) for:
-Instant attachment of porus materials like balsa,
-surfaces that are well matched and need a close bond
-Strengthening of existing bonds. A truely thin superglue will be sucked into an existing crack by capilary action.
3)Optional: A ruberized (IC-2000) or flexible (Instaflex, or Gorrilla Rubberized) super glue . You can also use this instead of a Gel glue.
-For gluing heavy metal models without pinning.
-For gluing models where shock absorbtion (usually heavy metal models) is a concern.

All 3 kinds of glue can be found from Bob Smith Industries. If you've never noticed BSI glue, it's because it's probably the brand in your model shop with the model shop's name stamped on it. Usually BSI glues are very reasonably priced. BSI ruberized glues are a bit less common in shops, but Gorilla rubberized glue is fairly widely available at hardware stores.
You can see all 3 kinds of glues here:
http://www.bsi-inc.com/Pages/hobby/ca.html

Sum up, glue type matters alot. Buying Loctite, Gorilla, BSI, or Krazy is no guarantee of good results unless you're buying the right tool for the job.