Alternative cement for styrene models

[Bayfield Transfer Railway]

I live in 1200 square feet with no garage, no basement, no attic, and approximately 40 square feet of closet space total.

I'm tripping over crap constantly.  I do NOT need a gallon of MEK rattling around the place.

 

[doctorwayne]

I recently had need of some lacquer thinner for painting and for stripping paint from a brass locomotive.  The bastardised version of lacquer thinner, despite no longer being useful as a cement for styrene, does still work for thinning paint and for paint removal.  However, instead of going to my nearby Canadian Tire store, I went to the Sherwin-Williams distributor where  I had bought the MEK, mentioned previously in this thread.
The salesperson couldn't tell me if the thinner was the original formula or the semi-useless revised version, but since I needed it for paint, I purchased a gallon.  When I got home, I decided to test it on some styrene, just to see if it had any effect, and applied a bit to two pieces of scrap material.  After pressing the pieces together, I worked on the brass locomotive for a while, then went back to the two bits of styrene.  I was pleasantly surprised to find them fairly securely bonded together.

The can also shows the chemical make-up of this particular lacquer thinner, (the first one I've ever seen offering that info) but not the proportions.

Bayfield Transfer Railway

I bought the MicroMark stuff and paid the shipping.

Because it's a lot more convenient than keeping huge amounts of organic solvents around.

 

I suppose that's one way to look at it.  However, I payed about $20.00 for 127.8oz. of lacquer thinner, the equivalent of, obviously, 128.7 one ounce bottles of Testors.  Using Ed's price of about $5.00 per bottle, it would cost $639.00 for the equivalent of that gallon from Testors, or, for a one ounce bottle of lacquer thinner, 15.6 cents.  And even if you opted for the MEK, at $40.00/gallon, 31.2 cents per bottle.

The Sherwin-Williams distributor sells these chemicals only as gallons or larger (commercial-size) containers.  I no longer paint commercially, so for paint purposes, I generally go through a gallon of lacquer thinner in a little less than two years, and since I'm using the MEK only as solvent-type cement, I suspect that I'll get about 3 to 4 years out of a gallon.
There's no inconvenience at all in storing a gallon can of either, and if you can't see yourself using that amount in a reasonable period of time, perhaps you could partner with other local modellers:  buy a gallon, then sell refills to other modellers for whatever price you see fit.  You'd make bags of money, even at a buck-a-bottle, as long as there are enough local modellers interested, and no shipping fees, either.

Incidentally, I Googled "Testors liquid cement for modellers" and got THIS.   If I had to pay those prices, I'd quit the hobby immediately.

 

Wayne

[mobilman44]

Assuming there aren't any stores that carry suitable glue around you, then bite the bullet and order a couple of containers online.  I use the Model Master cement (as Richhotrain mentioned) and one container will last an awful long time - literally years, and I've built a lot of models.

 

[richg1998]

For years I have used MEK for a quick bond and commercial products for a slower bond.

MEK requires control so not to overdo it. I used a pipette.

Rich

[Bayfield Transfer Railway]

I bought the MicroMark stuff and paid the shipping.

Because it's a lot more convenient than keeping huge amounts of organic solvents around.

[Bubbytrains]

That really surprises me you can't find it in any store around you, unless you live in the boonies. Even if you don't have a hobby shop, usually you can find it in a craft store or the toy section at Walmart by the plastic models. On a side note, I used to use Testors exclusively, but have since switched to Plastruct mostly.

[garya]

I've tried both MEK and Xylene (xylol) and they both work ok.  Xylene evaporates a bit slower than MEK, so that may be an option for some. 

Pint and quart cans are available from the usual suspects.  I pour a small amount into an old Ambroid or Tenax bottle with the brush applicator.  Just remember to put the cap back on and tighten it.

[Jumijo]

I ran out of Ambroid Pro Weld today, and decided to try Klean Strip MEK. It glued two pieces of plastic together nicely. 

[doctorwayne]

Thanks for the suggestions regarding the evaporation rate of MEK. 

I bought mine at a Sherwin-Williams distributor, and was assured that it was genuine MEK, not a substitute.

Wayne

[j. c.]

doctorwayne

I bought a gallon of MEK after they changed the formula for lacquer thinner, making it useless as a cement for styrene.

The MEK works well, but has a shorter working-time than lacquer thinner had.  This is most noticeable on large areas, where even applying it with a 2" brush can't cover the entire area before the area first-coated has dried.

The almost $40.00 cost was a bit of a surprise, too, but even the puny U.S. gallon will do a lot of refills of the Testors bottle.

Wayne

 

 

wayne add some acetone to the mek to slow down the evap rate.

[gmpullman]

I added a little (maybe 5%) Toluene to the MEK* "substitute" and that seemed to slow down the evaporation a bit.

Actually Tenax was mostly methylene chloride with a few additives.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dichloromethane

*Most retail stores are selling the MEK Substitute. If you visit an automotive paint supply you might find "genuine" MEK.  

Still, I like the Tamiya stuff I mentioned above. Everyone has preferences, you just have to experiment to find what you like.

One day I'll round up all the cements and solvents I have in the workshop. On any given project I may use a half-dozen — or more — various adhesives.

You can't build a house using only one-size nail.

Good Luck, Ed

[mbinsewi]

I also use the MEK. As Doc Wayne says, for large areas, it evaporates quickly.

In the trades, I used it as a general solvent when cleaning concrete floors, before doing a light acid wash, to clean and prepare a concrete floor for a finish sealer.

Mike

[doctorwayne]

I bought a gallon of MEK after they changed the formula for lacquer thinner, making it useless as a cement for styrene.

The MEK works well, but has a shorter working-time than lacquer thinner had.  This is most noticeable on large areas, where even applying it with a 2" brush can't cover the entire area before the area first-coated has dried.

The almost $40.00 cost was a bit of a surprise, too, but even the puny U.S. gallon will do a lot of refills of the Testors bottle.

Wayne

[maxman]

MicroMark Same Stuff:

 

https://www.micromark.com/SAME-STUFF-APPLICATOR

 

[SeeYou190]

I have found Testor's liquid cement in all kinds of places.

.

Michael's, Hobby Lobby, Menard's, etc. You don't need to find a hobby shop to get it.

.

-Kevin

.

[BigDaddy]

joe323

but how do you open the bottle?

Righty tighty, lefty loosey?

 

[richhotrain]

joe323

 

richhotrain

Testors Model Master in the odd shaped black plastic bottle with the needle nose applicator works just fine.  You can find it anywhere that deals in hobbies of any kind.

Rich 

but how do you open the bottle? 

Eh?

[joe323]

richhotrain

Testors Model Master in the odd shaped black plastic bottle with the needle nose applicator works just fine.  You can find it anywhere that deals in hobbies of any kind.

Rich

 

but how do you open the bottle?

[richhotrain]

Testors Model Master in the odd shaped black plastic bottle with the needle nose applicator works just fine.  You can find it anywhere that deals in hobbies of any kind.

Rich

[BigDaddy]

I can drive 100 miles round trip to Modeltrainstuff and pay $5.75 plus 4 gallons of gasoline or I can order it on Ebay for $8 no tax or shipping. 

Let me know when gas is $0.55/gal again. 

[nealknows]

What about some of the glues from the people that make 'Gorilla Glue'? They have so many different kinds, and all available at the likes of Home Depot..

Neal

[rrebell]

Find a plastics store, they sell smaller cans.

[NVSRR]

You can get MEK in pints and quarts from homedepot and lowes and paint stores and hardware stores.   Only problem i find is since each place orders seperately. You have to bounce between olaces to find one that does stock the pint and quart.   You could also get pint containers,  buy a gallon and split it amoung a group.  Or buy yours self a pint container and donate the rest to a local group or club

Just a thought

Wolfie

[gmpullman]

jmbjmb

Are there any good alternatives anyone knows of for cemeting styrene models?

I was really disappointed to see Tenax being discontinued. I have tried several "stand-ins" and out of all of them I like this the best. It is a bit "slower" acting than Tenax but nearly as strong.

There is a thicker variety, too, but I have not tried it.

https://www.horizonhobby.com/tamiya-extra-thin-cement-tam87038

Horizon Hobby (aka Athearn) has pretty reasonable and fast shipping on this. I bought four bottles which mitigates the per bottle cost a bit. My total was $21 for four bottles.

Economy shipping is $3 or FedEx is $5. within the lower 48.

Good Luck, Ed

[j. c.]

one sorce i forgot to mention  is pvc pipe primer if you can live with the purple color its is stock at most hardware stores.

[RR_Mel]

Michael’s also stocks Testors 3507 Liquid Plastic Cement.  Any RC hobby shop will stock it too.  The Model Railroad hobby shop closed its doors here seven years a go but there is still a couple of RC shops, they’re normally good for building supplies.

 

Mel

 

Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951

 

My Model Railroad   

http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/

 

Bakersfield, California

 

I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.

 

[j. c.]

is there a hobby lobby near you ? if so they will have it .

[DSchmitt]

I often use Acetone.

Super glue used to be popular, but some modelers found parts following off after a few years.

Have you considered buying some other items on-line and including a couple bottles of Styrene cement in tne order?

Elmers Plastic Cement https://www.walmart.com/ip/Elmer-s-E1004-Plastic-Cement-5-8-oz-Tube-Clear-Sweet-Alcohol-Liquid/20371064?action=product_interest&action_type=title&beacon_version=1.0.2&bucket_id=irsbucketdefault&client_guid=31255b8b-c0d9-4788-3de9-017f940342ce&config_id=106&customer_id_enc&findingMethod=p13n&guid=31255b8b-c0d9-4788-3de9-017f940342ce&item_id=20371064&parent_anchor_item_id=20371068&parent_item_id=20371068&placement_id=irs-106-t1&reporter=recommendations&source=new_site&strategy=PWVAV&visitor_id=QEk2e24-e6j6ajp5UPGxdU

 

Another Elmers product that might work. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Elmer-s-Model-Hobby-Cement-1fl-Oz/20371068?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=1453&adid=22222222227017084418&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=51754140791&wl4=pla-83159886311&wl5=9032555&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=112550049&wl11=online&wl12=20371068&wl13=&veh=sem 

Any store that sales Elmers should be able to get them. uNote, I have not used either Elmers product.

 

 

 

[tstage]

Plastruck Plastic Weld.  It's more aggressive than Testors liquid cement and evaporates quickly.  I don't like it for more delicate parts for that reason.  Testors you can order online from M.B. Klein.  Hobbytown carries Plastruck products.

Tom

[arbe1948]

jmbjmb

aviod buying a gallon of MEK.

Quart cans available at hardware, paint, and home center stores.