A glue that holds

[Dale C.]

Dale

[William H.]

Re: A glue that holds

I use stuff called plastic welder.

[Terry M.]

Re: A glue that holds

One key is to identify what kind of plastic it is. There is plastic and then there is PLASTIC. Different plastics work best with different glues. Some plastic materials will have letters or a number on the back to identify the type of material they are made of.

Search the web (Goggle, Bing or whatever your favorite search engine is) to find ways of identifying the type of plastic and then search for the appropriate glue.

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: A glue that holds

Dale:
The toughest plastic to glue is ABS. There are glues that will hold most other plastics that you can get at the hardware store. I have used one made by Lock-Tite that is designed to work on "all plastics" and has worked well for me. It comes in 2 parts. One is a primer that looks like a felt tipped marker and the other is in a small tube. I have another adhesive that I bought from a plastic fabricator here in Detroit that is made specifically for ABS and once glued you can not break the pieces apart. Both are in my shop so I will get the product numbers for you tomorrow and post them here.
Jeff

[Dick W.]

Re: A glue that holds

Go to the Loctite or 3M home page and look for the proper adhesive. There is more information that you ever wanted to know about them on those pages

[Dale C.]

Re: A glue that holds

Thanks guys. Jeff, I think I have some of that two part Lock-tite. I'll do some experimenting, I just don't remember anything I have & tried was worth a darn. With the tele steering that area gets a little more jostling. Dick, I'll take a look in the AM.
Dale

[Phil D.]

Re: A glue that holds

If its the tab I think you're talking about, I just repaired one on my 69. The tab itself was missing so I fashioned a replacement from a piece of scrap and "glued" it back in place with an epoxy putty. I can't attest to the longevity of this particular repair as I just did it last week but I've used the stuff before on interior plastics with excellent results. Looks like a sort of log roll candy. You slice off a piece and knead it to mix the two parts. I have even put big globs of putty in place and then used a dremel tool and sandpaper to shape it to repair broken pieces.

[Dick W.]

Re: A glue that holds

I just remembered that I used a SEMS product the last time I glued some of those plastic pieces. Go to their website and look

[Chuck S.]

Re: A glue that holds

...I think I have some of that two part Lock-tite. I'll do some experimenting, I just don't remember anything I have & tried was worth a darn. With the tele steering that area gets a little more jostling...

Most modern interior trim parts are ABS, and have been for decades. The other option is that the trim is actually vinyl covered fiberglass like much of the interior trim on early C3 Corvettes. If it's thick and heavy with a vinyl covering, it is likely fiberglass; if it's painted and relatively light and thin, it's probably ABS. If it's fiberglass, I would just use resin and fiberglass cloth to reinforce the tabs.

ABS is one of the hardest plastics to bond, and an adhesive that will bond ABS, and virtually all other plastics, is a fairly recent development. I ordered my first batch from the internet before it was even in local stores.

I removed some ABS interior windshield pillar moldings during a repaint of my old SUV. These windshield pillar moldings were aged, thin, and attached in strange oriental ways; I learned the removal tricks by shattering the first one into probably a dozen small and large pieces. These old moldings are irreplaceable (junks parts are just as dry), so the only alternative to staring at a ragged headliner corner and the bare steel pillar was to glue it back together.

I rebuilt it one piece at a time, bonding edges that were probably 0.045" thick, using care to align and support them perfectly. To insure the molding stayed together in one piece, I later laminated fiberglass cloth to the backside of the bonds. It ain't pretty, but it's better than looking at the steel pillar.

You say you have some on hand...be sure your existing glue is still viable. That stuff has a shelf life once it's open, and I've gotten some bad adhesive right from the store. If the part turns out to be ABS, I would probably buy fresh adhesive and try it in a hidden spot first.

[Patrick N.]

Re: A glue that holds

The covers and dash are ABS which is a styrene-base plastic and requires a styrene based solvent.

My company uses ABS and we have great success with the following: mcmaster.com / ABS adhesives-Weld-On 4052-dries clear. Also bonds ABS to vinyl, styrene, acrylic.

This adhesive works well if the parts fit tight. If there are gaps, you may want to explore the advice of the other posts and use an epoxy or something thicker.


Hope it helps.
Pat

[Paul J.]

Re: A glue that holds

Most modern interior trim parts are ABS, and have been for decades.

Does anyone know if the ABS trim is a similar formulation to the DWV (Drain-Waste-Vent) ABS we use in the plumbing trade (called "All Black Stuff" by many plumbers)?

If so, then the ABS cement will work, and since it softens and partially melts the material, the bond will be very tight.

Dale as Chuck pointed out, any crack in plastic needs to be reinforced on the back side. I always glue a piece to the back for strength, and put very little glue in the crack.

Paul

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: A glue that holds

The adhesive I found to be made for ABS plastic is "Weld-On" (IPS Corporation) #1707. The can is marked "For ABS only". I purchased it locally in Detroit at a plastic fabrication company and was told by their fabricators that to determine if a plastic is ABS just wipe a bit of acetone or lacquer thinner in an inconspicuous place and it the thinner attacks the plastic it is most likely ABS. The sample I brought to them was and this adhesive cannot be separated once cured. Their website is www.ipscorp.com. Hope this helps.
Jeff