Hi all,
I recently bought a bunch of Walthers Cornerstone building kits to add some buildings to the layout. On the box it says plastic glue is required but before I by just any old plastic glue wanted to see what you guys recommended and what has worked well for y'all when putting together these kits.
It alos mentions in the instructions when putting together my station signage to use white glue..I'm guessing there is something better than plain old Elmer's? Thanks guys!
--Nick
Fetner CP, Cary, NC
For small plastic parts like doors and window frames, I use thin Testors plastic cement in the little bottle with a brush in it.
For window glazing, I use canopy cement because it dries clear.
Walthers kits have relatively thin walls. For the corner joints, I cut a length of small balsa wood, perhaps 3/16 square, and attach it to the inside of the corners with cyanoacrylate, also called CA or Superglue. It bonds wood strips to plastic very well. The wood also blocks any gaps in the corner and prevents light leaks if you illuminate the structure.
I use Elmer's, or more commonly the same stuff in a gallon jug from a large hardware store.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
For gluing wall panels together, I use Testors gooey plastic cement - the kind that comes in a tube. The Walthers parts do not fit together very well, and even if it looks like the entire joint is together, using thin cement that wicks along the koint will only bond small spots together at a few points along the seam. The Testor's gooey stuff fills the gaps and bonds the entire seam. If you're careful, you can use it and not have an unsightly glue bead visible later.
For other parts I'm using Tamiya liquid cement. But I also used Bondene in the past, and it works well for plastic-to-plastic bonds. Whatever you do, DON'T believe Model Railroader's contention that Bondene bonds parts right through paint. It doesn't, as I learned from painful experience.
Mark P.
Website: http://www.thecbandqinwyoming.comVideos: https://www.youtube.com/user/mabrunton
Regular old Plastic Cement for the walls, with "re-enforcements" at the corners.
The signs are indeed regular old Elmers glue.
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
I use 1/4" styrene square tubes to reenforce the joint at the corners. If the front windows extend all the way to the side walls I might use 1/8" or only use the reenforcing tubes above and below the window.
Not all Walther's kits are the same. Many are recycled from other manufacturers. I have had several sold under the Walthers name that had Heljan stamped into the building foundation. Some kits have very solid corner joints while others are a challenge to get the corners to mate flush. That's where the reenforcement tubes come in. I attach those to the inside of one of the walls using gooey tube glue making sure it is flush with the end of the wall. I use the thin plastic cement to make the joint with the other wall and the square tube. I also use a small square to make sure the walls are perpindicular.
I originally used lacquer thinner for plastic kits, but once they altered its make-up to make it "less dangerous", they also made it less useful, at least as far as assembling plastic kits is concerned.I now use MEK (methyl-ethyl-ketone), which is similar to the old lacquer thinner, but it evapourates much faster.I buy it by the gallon, and then decant it into a old Solvaset bottle, with brush-in-cap, which works well for applying the solvent: brush it on both mating surfaces, then bring them together immediately and hold in place for at least 20 seconds.If you're building a kit, and the parts, once assembled, have gaps between them, you can select a piece of sheet or strip styene (or styrene rod, which works well for plugging holds that you've drill in the wrong place) that's about .004"thicker than the gap or hole....apply MEK to the material on both sides of the gap, or, for a hole, to the inside circumference of the hole, then apply the MEK to both sides of the material being used to plug the gap or hole.The MEK softens the plastic, allowing the slightly oversize material to be forced into an area otherwise too tight. The softened plastic may squish out - don't worry...once it re-hardens, the excess can be neatly removed using a suitable blade in your X-Acto handle.
I usually leave such repairs a few hours to let them completely harden.
Wayne
My boring answer... I pretty much exclusively use Testors liquid cement for plastic on all plastic models.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Hello All,
For my Walthers kits, I use Miro-Mark "Same Stuff" Plastic Welder and/or Styrene Tack-It II Plastic Welder.
For the windows, I use Micro-Mark "Liquid PSA (Pressure Sensitive Adhesive)".
This is a thick opaque liquid that dries clear.
It is applied like contact cement; it is applied to both surfaces to be glued and allowed to dry until tacky.
Then the parts are pressed together and allow to cure.
It is not a "permanent" bond like the other solvents I listed. Even when dry the parts can be separated.
This is also great for installing LED lights, it dries clear and the bulbs can be repositioned or replaced as needed.
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
Be aware that when using liquid plastic cements, that the capillary action is very aggressive. I caution anyone that any clamping device, including fingers, should be far enough from the joint that the solvent won't follow and ruin the face of the structure.
Since the demise of Tenax 7~R I have migrated to Tamia liquid cement and sometimes both varieties of Faller Expert (thin and thinner).
https://www.tamiyausa.com/shop/finishing/extra-thin-cement-2/40ml/
https://www.modeltrainstuff.com/faller-170492-expert-normal-setting-plastic-cement/
Good Luck, Ed
jjdamnit Hello All, For my Walthers kits, I use Miro-Mark "Same Stuff" Plastic Welder and/or Styrene Tack-It II Plastic Welder
For my Walthers kits, I use Miro-Mark "Same Stuff" Plastic Welder and/or Styrene Tack-It II Plastic Welder
I've used Micro-Mark Same Stuff with good results but the problem is when you add the shipping cost it becomes pricey unless you are purchasing other items with it. Plastruct Plastic Weld works just as well and since I am an Amazon Prime Member, I don't have to pay shipping costs. This makes it very cost effective whether I'm buying liquid cement or any other small item. I will also probably get it the next day. If you only buy a few items from Amazon a year, it probably isn't worth it to spend $119 annual fee for a Prime membership but since I regularly buy a wide range of items through Amazon, it has more than paid for itself and is so convenient given that I live in a rural area. It saves me gas as well.
Good advice on the capillary action of many thin solvents (glues). This includes "classic" CA.
gmpullmanSince the demise of Tenax 7~R...
According to the purveyors of Styrene Tack-It II Plastic Welder they have been able to "replicate" the formula of Tenax 7R.
Having never used Tenax 7R I have nothing to compare the "new" formula to.
It seems to work on the styrene projects I have along with the "Same Stuff" from Micro-Marki.
Tenax never worked for me after the demise of my favorite I went to Weld-On 3 used in the plastics industry. You can get most any size you need. Refull my old Pro-weld bottle with it.
rrebell I went to Weld-On 3
Weld-on 3 formulated for acrylics?
I wonder if 2354, for polystyrene and/or ABS would be a better choice?
https://www.amazon.com/Weld-On-2354-Solvent-Cement-Pint/dp/B009W8QESI
I suppose an exhaustive trial should be conducted.
Regards, Ed
gmpullman rrebell I went to Weld-On 3 Weld-on 3 formulated for acrylics? I wonder if 2354, for polystyrene and/or ABS would be a better choice? https://www.amazon.com/Weld-On-2354-Solvent-Cement-Pint/dp/B009W8QESI I suppose an exhaustive trial should be conducted. Regards, Ed
rrebellWhy ABS, we typicaly don't use that in our hobby.
Plastruct is primarily ABS. Scroll down the link for lots of explanations of the various plastic types and the cements Plastruct offers.
Some modelers like Plastruct. I prefer Evergreen.
Cheers, Ed
I don't use all that much ABS, either, but MEK works with it just as well as it does with styrene.
I also use MEK purchased by the gallon and funneled into smaller bottles. I like the Touch-N-Flow applicator to get things started from the inside. Once the parts are tacked together I will flood the seem. Once that has set up it isn't coming apart easily. No need for extra bracing.
Rick
Testors orange tube. Testors black bottle with the needle applicator.
A few droplets of CA applied separately as a "spot weld" for a quick set to be able to gently move the structure for faster assembly.
- Douglas