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So I recently saw this mentioned in a thread about breaking glue bonds on models, and I imagine it's pretty self-explanatory but...what exactly is it? Is it literally just sticking a model in the freezer, waiting a few hours, then breaking parts off?

I imagine the idea is that the cold makes the glue weak and brittle and allows one to snap a model apart with little hassle, but it sounds kind of odd.

Yes, pretty much. The only other caveat is that it depends on the glue -works on superglue/ca glues, doesn't work on plastic glue where the glue melts and re-bonds the plastic.

But yes, you stick it in the freezer for awhile, glue joins become brittle, break off the parts.

I've tried this and it never works for me and I know it's a ca glue bond. Weird thing is that whenever I flew with minis in the checked bag, the glue bonds were always broken. All I can suggest is you leave it in there for more than an hour or something.

Okay, would not recommend the freezer method. Just saying.

It does actually work.

CA glue pulls in moisture to cure, and like concrete, will crack and expand in freezing temperatures.

Like most things, an hour isnt enough. Leave them in overnight. An hour is barely enough for an ice cube tray.

Unless youd rather cut the model apart with a knife?

Dip the model in water first - water expands when it freezes & can help break the bonds.

Which thread ? i want to read it.

 Sidstyler wrote:
Okay, would not recommend the freezer method. Just saying.

Why not?

Also, this thread is very timely. I have some models that need repaired, so unless the above poster replies with a good reason not to try the freezer method then I'm gonna go home and try it!

No reason not to at least try it, unless you're on a very tight schedule or have a grossly overstuffed freezer. If you don't find it sufficient, you haven't lost anything but time with those particular models.

Personally, I've found it helpful for weakening CA bonds. I'm also pretty patient, so I'm willing to do multiple freeze/thaw cycles (each of several hours) if the join is particularly stubborn. It's generaly more important to me to keep the parts intact than it is to have them separated as quickly as possible.

[edit: typo]

Well then, I am willing to try it!

I've always just taken to stubborn glue bonds with a heavy knife and a heartfelt prayer.

I just used it the other day to replace some weapons on my terminators. I left them in the freezer overnight and with a little bit of pressure the arms popped off. My only issue is removing the shoulder pads from the loose arms and I've yet to find a safe way to do that without destroying the pads.

 Sidstyler wrote:
So I recently saw this mentioned in a thread about breaking glue bonds on models, and I imagine it's pretty self-explanatory but...what exactly is it? Is it literally just sticking a model in the freezer, waiting a few hours, then breaking parts off?

I imagine the idea is that the cold makes the glue weak and brittle and allows one to snap a model apart with little hassle, but it sounds kind of odd.

Yes, pretty much. It should be noted that this method is pretty much ONLY for "superglue" type adhesive bonds. Solvent bonds on plastic melt the pieces together and MUST be physically separated (ie CUT apart). Araldites have the opposite tolerances - they don't like temperatures above 72*C and you can use mild heat to break those bonds.


Ziploc bag, freezer and overnight is my usual method. If not pure metal-metal, ie mixed media (IE, metal/resin, metal/plastic, resin, plastic) ALLOW to thaw before attempting to separate as the freezing ALSO makes plastics brittle (resin is a type of "plastic" material for this explanation). It works better on metal-something else bonds as the two materials will contract differently, making the procedure work a little better. Some bonds are stubborn and will require several goes at this, but you should at least be able to chip away at the glue to make it easier to get the rest off.

Provided the joint isn't solvent cement - I have not had a joint where it does not work. Been breaking apart models with it since I was a little kid (30+ years...). It is also the safest in terms of not having an impact on the materials...at all.

There are actually three different things at play with it.

First - different materials shrink/expand at different rates due to heat. Large temperature changes will cause the plastic to shrink and the glue to shrink at a different rate pulling away from the plastic. Also works with metal and resin.

The second is that materials tend to become more brittle when cold. This makes it easier to pop the joint apart when it has already been weakened by the first.

The third is as bubber noted already, water expands when it freezes...the plastic and glue will contract. Water in the joint between the different parts will often just pop them apart in the freezer with no work at all.

Now, doing it right does take a few steps. First, get your stuff wet. I use warm water, I have used cold water...I don't have any evidence that warm water works better/worse - just what I use. Don't dry them off - just toss them in a zip lock or other container to keep track of the parts in the freezer should they pop apart in there.

Second is the amount of time needed. Plastic and resin are poor conductors of heat. That means it will take a relatively long time for them to freeze all the way through. I almost always leave them for 24 hours...give or take a few hours. Metal is a better conductor - but for simplicities sake, I still will normally leave them overnight.

I have used it for pretty much every combination you can think of - metal to metal, metal to resin, metal to plastic, plastic to resin, plastic to GS, super glues, epoxies.... Works on all of them. It will even work on GS to GS (a particularly tricky joint to separate).


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Thorgrim Bloodcrow wrote:
My only issue is removing the shoulder pads from the loose arms and I've yet to find a safe way to do that without destroying the pads.

Drop them in an ice cube tray - fill with water - freeze.

Again, the water expanding does wonders. It works like millions of tiny fingers gently pulling them apart.

Yeah, warm water will freeze faster than cold water (it's actually scientifically true).

They recently figured out the science of why - and it's way above my pay grade to try and understand the science.

So I opened up the freezer today and a funny thing happened.

Apparently most of the dwarfs were bonded with hobby cement, couldn't even get em to wiggle! All but one which must have been superglued because the only part of him I could find was the torso back. The front bit? I have no idea! It's not like it's a very big freezer, I don't even have anything to freeze! Literally nothing in there except ice cube trays and a bowl of dwarfs.

So yeah, freezer method works like a hot damn, but not on hobby cement...

I've had success on multiple models using the freezer method. The more recent ones are my Forgefiend whose hoofed feet were pointed outwards (not much, but enough for me to notice and thus bother me), and the second was my Stormtalon... I glued the tail wing on backwards (total derp). Both just popped off after leaving them in the freezer for a while and applying some elbow grease. /flex