CA adhesive problems

[Watto]

Hi, I'm still relatively new to this hobby and have very quickly amassed a large collection of tools and supplies to enable me achieve the kind of results that I aspire to however, I cannot master the use of CA adhesive.!! I really want to include the photo etch parts in my builds but, because CA adhesive never seems to adhere to anything but me, I tend to leave them off and go for the chunky plastic versions. I remove paint and ensure the surfaces  are clean but, despite leaving plenty of time for things to cure, I'm usually holding parts as they came off the sprues. Any advice regarding best brands/techniques etc would be appreciated.

 

Watto

[Ngantek]

CA comes in many different styles, all of which can have different uses. The most obvious difference is viscosity. Very thin stuff will set very quickly and is good for penetrating seams and suchlike (along with getting on everything everywhere such that you will never be clean of it!). As you get thicker, drying time tends to increase so gel types give you a lot of time to work with, and wont generally 'flow' away from where you've put them too much. CA activator is used to set the glue instantly and is very useful, particularly for thicker gel CA glues (and or even mandatory for some tasks, depending on your coordination!). It generally comes in sprays, so if you need care applying, it can help to decant a little and apply with a needle or some such. Water also seems to activate it somewhat, so I know some people will apply a little to one surface and CA to the other when bonding. For whatever reason I also tend to find the medium it's applied to affects the drying time, so joining PE parts with even thicker CA can set very quickly and irrevocably.

 

Applying CA, I tend to put a bit of masking tape onto the cutting mat, then squirt a little drop onto that. Then apply with a sewing needle. Depending on how much, I find either a needle, or a needle whose slot has been sliced through with a dremel (to produce a two pronged fork shape) works well personally. If your glue really isn't setting, I'd suggest just trying a different one. If it doesn't bind, also make sure to clean off any half dried CA before having another go. 

 

Another useful thing to have in the box is some debonder, which can help clear up mistakes and whatnot. 

 

 

 

[Watto]

Thank you for your reply, I take your point regarding viscosity, I do use a gel version generally and hadn't taken into account the lack of "flow".

 

Thanks again, 

 

Watto.

 

 

[Ngantek]

Yep, Pin, a duplicate post. Just a quick thing Watto, this section is generally for help with using the Forums rather than with modelling queries, where you probably want to go into the tools and tips section for this kind of thing. Don't make another new one, I suspect the mods will move it, but for future reference.

[Watto]

Sorry for the duplication, I don't know much about computers either... 

Ooops, sorry.

[Redstaff]

Hi Watto

One piece of advice I would give that I found out from somewhere, is that little is best

If you put too much glue on then usually you get a weak joint that takes ages to set and gets very messy.

I was usually putting too much on and having issues similar to yourself, can't remember who said, but less is more so to speak

 

Ian  

[treker_ed]

You need to read the headline title of this area - Once you've looked at the FAQ forum, post here if you still need help. NOT for modelling related issues.

 

[Mike]

23 minutes ago, treker_ed said:

You need to read the headline title of this area - Once you've looked at the FAQ forum, post here if you still need help. NOT for modelling related issues.

 

We’ll let him off this once cos he’s new, and skewer him next time

 

I’ve moved your thread into the correct area now, and please wander round the forum structure to familiarise yourself with the location of all the sub forums. You’ll find there’s usually an appropriate place for pretty much everything modelling related. Within reason of course  

[Pin]

Not sure if you have read my reply in another thread so will repeat myself.

The problem, as I see it, is not with CA per se but with PA parts. These small sneaky beasts require some experience and patience and we all came through your pain.

I would suggest a couple of things

- sometimes CA is not the best choice for the job, for example screen wipes and instrument dashboards are easier to glue with Future (or any other acrylic finish), sometimes PVA is also an option

- make a small puddle of high viscosity CA (gel) and use a knife blade or a pin to transfer a tiny drop of glue to the placement rather than to the part itself. Even a tiny drop will provide enough bond to fix a part in place, once cured you can strengthen the bond by adding more glue, again with a knife blade. In this case it may be worthy to use high viscosity glue because of capillary effect 

[Mark Harmsworth]

Good advice from @Pin. Exactly what I would have said.

 

Good luck

Mark

[dogsbody]

This is the cut-down sewing needle I use to apply small drops of CA. I place a drop from the CA bottle onto an old broken Xacto blade. I then use the needle to pick up a smaller drop and apply that to whatever I'm sticking together.

 

 

 

 

I use regular old Crazy Glue, because it's cheap and easy to acquire.

 

 

I also keep a bottle of acetone-based nail polish remover near at hand for those time when I glue small parts to my fingers or when I glue my fingers together.

 

 

 

 

Chris

[Watto]

Thanks for the replies. I'll stick with it (pardon the pun). I think the comment pointing out viscosity is something that I've overlooked and the way in which I apply the adhesive. I appreciate your tip of using a metal needle Chris, I wonder if using a wooden tooth pick, as I do now has any effect on the flow adhesive across and into the joint?

 

Thanks Watto.

[Pin]

Wooden stick is OK, but more blunt, less precise

[spruecutter96]

To be honest, CA is WAY too messy for attaching PE parts, in my experience.

 

Strong PVA (paper/wood) glue is easier to use and cheaper. Apply with a cocktail-stick or similar small, sharp device. And it dries clear and will have no nasty side-effects on nearby paint or clear parts (no "noxious" gases are given off as it cures). 

 

Hope this helps.     

 

Chris. 

[Neddy]

One additional point about the CA itself: the gel-based variant can be a pain to use and take too long to dry.  You will get better results with the basic original CA IMHO.

[Tojo72]

I find the less the better,too much is no good,big blobs never dry.

Also it does go bad in the bottle after awhile

I switched to using regular Gorilla Glue with the blue cap,seems to last right to the bottle is empty,still need to use a small amount.

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Gorilla-Micro-Precise-6-Gram-Bonding-Clear-Multipurpose-Adhesive/1002695148

[rayprit]

Having built in excess of 40-50 resin kits, 1/35 Accurate Armour, 1/24 KFS, JLTRT(Pete Watermans O Gauge railway kits)that theres good CA glue and bad CA glue?   Building so many resin kits with glue from cheap places, such as Poundland, B&M and other hardware stores that provide 6 or more on a blister pack , you get what you pay for.............all those kits I built with cheap CA over the years parts are falling off, the glue has lost its holding power residue can still be seen on the parts and parts fallen.................I switched to the more expensive CAs sometime ago, Zap and Rocket being the main ones with more success ..............they maybe £7-£9  per bottle but very economical...........many bottles lasting on average 5 years or more..........1 bottle (thin Ca)is 10 years old..............secret to keeping the CA fluid is to keep the top firmly in place and in a cool place.............I keep mine in the fridge........have about 5 bottles, thin, thick, medium, currently, all are held firmly in the recess for the eggs,.......(epoxy Glue also).................as suggested earlier, the needle trick is very effective, dried glue on the tip easily scrapes off

 

I did use to put photos of my work on Britmodeller years ago, but when I noticed them appearing on Google images search results under a different names, I took them all down and never displayed since

[Pin]

2 hours ago, Neddy said:

One additional point about the CA itself: the gel-based variant can be a pain to use and take too long to dry.  You will get better results with the basic original CA IMHO.

 

Different glues serve different purposes. Sometimes longer curing time and lower viscosity is a virtue. 

Long curing time is never a problem, just use activator

 

 

[Pin]

1 hour ago, rayprit said:

I switched to the more expensive CAs sometime ago

 

I agree, I use Sylmasta glues almost exclusively