What glue do you use?

[78GT]

Looking for some help please...  I've recently got back into model making after a good few years away. I've also got a little lazy in my old age and mainly use superglue. My son has recently shown an interest, he's Mr Independent and doesn't like me interfering but I'm a little uncomfortable leaving him unsupervised with superglue.

The tube of poly cement supplied with his kit is pretty horrid and other than liquid poly our local model shop only has revell contacta.  Is this any good? Is there anything else better? Primarilly looking for something suitable for him to use but if it's any good I may use it too.  Thanks for any advice

Edited April 21 by 78GT
typos

[Chimpion]

Revell Contacta in the pots with a fine tube dispenser is a great general purpose glue for non-clear plastic (polystyrene). Strong and easy to use and perfect for beginners. The only issue is the tube tends to clog with dried glue. I stick a spherical headed dress-making pin in the end after use and it stays clear. The stuff lasts forever.

 

 

[PLC1966]

7 minutes ago, Chimpion said:

Revell Contacta in the pots with a fine tube dispenser is a great general purpose glue for non-clear plastic (polystyrene). Strong and easy to use and perfect for beginners. The only issue is the tube tends to clog with dried glue. I stick a spherical headed dress-making pin in the end after use and it stays clear. The stuff lasts forever.

 

 

If it blocks up, heat the metal dispenser tube with a lighter.   Then keep the tube facing downwards.

[78GT]

@Chimpion@PLC1966 Thanks for the tips

 

Can this stuff be used on painted surfaces or does it only work on bare plastic like poly glue?

Can it not be used on clear parts?

 

Sorry for all the questions.  Thanks

[Troy Smith]

50 minutes ago, 78GT said:

Can this stuff be used on painted surfaces or does it only work on bare plastic like poly glue?

Revell Contacta is a liquid polystrene glue,  in the family of plastic solvents like Tamiya Extra Thin, Humbrol Liquid poly etc.  

It won't work with paint but will probably eat through the paint,

The metal tube is instead of a brush to apply it.  

 

The components of these is a chemical mix, a while back someone posted the safety data sheet for Tamiya Extra Thin, one of the main components is Methyl Ethyl Ketone often abbreviated to MEK, also know as  Butanone, 

The was Ethyl Acetate.... I ended up buying a litre of MEK off ebay.... It's very good, but hot, and very very thin. 

Apparently it goes off but a litre was £12 posted, which put the cost of model glue into perspective.

I also made a a load of sprue goo as I have plenty to play with.

 

Another poster here mentioned dissolving clear sprue in MEK to make basically tube glue,   I mention this as it's just about what these glues are, styrene solvents.

 

It's useful to know you can thin tube glue with liquid glue though, and tube glue has it's uses,  older kits were meant for tube glue, where the added dissolved styrene gives them some body and grab,  I found them very handy in small dabs on an old Matchbox kit where liquid glue was too thin.

 

50 minutes ago, 78GT said:

Can it not be used on clear parts?

with care, like any other styrene solvent glue. Used carelessly it will cloud

 

PVA is often used, I had some high grade waterproof fast grab woodwork PVA (Wudcare 5 minute)  which works very well.

 

HTH

Edited April 22 by Troy Smith
additions

[dogsbody]

My stuff:

 

 

 

 

Chris

[PLC1966]

23 hours ago, 78GT said:

@Chimpion@PLC1966 Thanks for the tips

 

Can this stuff be used on painted surfaces or does it only work on bare plastic like poly glue?

Can it not be used on clear parts?

 

Sorry for all the questions.  Thanks

Yes it does work on painted plastic.  Kind of removes the paint while the plastic is left fine.

 

It will work on clear parts, however I generally use some kind of PVA as it will dry clear.   

[78GT]

Thanks for all the advice.  When I'm next in town I'll grab some and try it. 

[Rob de Bie]

On 4/21/2025 at 11:28 PM, 78GT said:

Looking for some help please...  I've recently got back into model making after a good few years away. I've also got a little lazy in my old age and mainly use superglue. My son has recently shown an interest, he's Mr Independent and doesn't like me interfering but I'm a little uncomfortable leaving him unsupervised with superglue.

The tube of poly cement supplied with his kit is pretty horrid and other than liquid poly our local model shop only has revell contacta.  Is this any good? Is there anything else better? Primarilly looking for something suitable for him to use but if it's any good I may use it too.  Thanks for any advice

 

I'm a CA builder too, never use solvent glue, and asked myself this very question.  I understand your reluctance, but would replacing CA with a solvent glue (read hydrocarbon fumes) really makes things safer? Plus, the waiting times with solvent glues might make building slower, requiring more patience. He will maybe glue his fingers together a few times, but isn't that a learning experience?

 

Rob

Edited April 24 by Rob de Bie

[78GT]

@Rob de Bie A good question!... and the truth is I don't really know the answer so looking into all options.  Thanks for your thoughts.

[dogsbody]

When using Tamiya Extra-Thin, I apply it using a small 00 size paintbrush, to control the amount applied. if possible, I hold or clamp pieces together first, the apply cement into the seam.

 

 

 

Chris

[Rob de Bie]

13 hours ago, 78GT said:

@Rob de Bie A good question!... and the truth is I don't really know the answer so looking into all options.  Thanks for your thoughts.

 

The follow-up posting by Dogsbdoy / Chris made me realise it's useful to mention how I use CA.

 

I always put a drop on a plastic surface (left over spray can lid for example), and use a small (blunt-ish) rounded scalpel blade to pick up a bit of glue, and apply that to the joint, where the capilary action sucks it in the joint. Repeat that until the joint is done, and replace or clean the scalpel blade frequently, because the caked-on glue prevents it from picking up the right amount of glue.

 

Because of this application method, I consider gluing with CA pretty safe. I hardly ever apply CA straight from the bottle, and the few times that I glued myself to a model were always when I applied it straight from the bottle,

 

Rob

[Tarby]

On 22/04/2025 at 23:01, Troy Smith said:

Another poster here mentioned dissolving clear sprue in MEK to make basically tube glue,   I mention this as it's just about what these glues are, styrene solvents.

 

I put small offcuts of sheet styrene into a half used bottle of EMA Plastic Weld to make a styrene filler. You can make different viscosities for different needs by the amount of styrene you add, and just brush it where you want it.

Edited May 30 by Tarby

[dogsbody]

For CA glue, I put a small drop on an old, dull Xacto blade, then I dip the end of a cut-off sewing needle eye into the drop and then I apply that to whatever I'm sticking together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chris

[Remodel]

On 21/04/2025 at 22:28, 78GT said:

Looking for some help please...  I've recently got back into model making after a good few years away. I've also got a little lazy in my old age and mainly use superglue. My son has recently shown an interest, he's Mr Independent and doesn't like me interfering but I'm a little uncomfortable leaving him unsupervised with superglue.

The tube of poly cement supplied with his kit is pretty horrid and other than liquid poly our local model shop only has revell contacta.  Is this any good? Is there anything else better? Primarilly looking for something suitable for him to use but if it's any good I may use it too.  Thanks for any advice

To clean nozzle I just use spray craft airbrush cleaner using there nozzle to squirt down the needle as you can remove it if you just pull on it. It’s really easy to get off.

[Nocoolname]

On 4/24/2025 at 12:27 AM, Rob de Bie said:

 

I'm a CA builder too, never use solvent glue, and asked myself this very question.  I understand your reluctance, but would replacing CA with a solvent glue (read hydrocarbon fumes) really makes things safer? Plus, the waiting times with solvent glues might make building slower, requiring more patience. He will maybe glue his fingers together a few times, but isn't that a learning experience?

 

Rob

I think it really is a case of the right tool (in this case glue) for the job in question. I tend to use CA when the materials require it (i.e. resin or other material that doesn’t suit polystyrene cement) and/or for delicate parts that will not be exposed to outside knocking/scuffing etc. I find that CA can provide a brilliant instant hold (as your comments about fingers suggest… far too much experience of that 😂) but also gets quite brittle over time. This has led to many external parts simply breaking off in a way that would not have been the case had they been styrene and welded using polystyrene cement. But despite advances in injection moulding most of the best detail parts, including external (I’m thinking vanes, probes and undercarriage details especially) are either resin or PE so CA remains an essential tool for me. So for my part, I’ve never been a ‘one size or one glue fits all’ but rather use what best suits the circumstances kind of person. I’m just about to add two-stage epoxy to the tool kit, to cement turned aluminium parts to a kit I’m finishing up so that’s another new experience.

[flyboy2610]

Some people develop an allergy to CA fumes over time, and it is NOT pleasant! The reactions can be quite severe.

https://biologyinsights.com/cyanoacrylate-allergy-symptoms-risks-and-testing/

https://www.wyndly.com/blogs/learn/allergic-reaction-to-super-glue

 

I use CA only when absolutely necessary. My go-to glue is Tamiya Extra Thin, but I also use Testors liquid cement quite often on less than perfect joints. For joints that need to be as strong as possible I use the dreaded, much maligned Testors tube cement. That stuff takes a couple of days to thoroughly dry, though.

[Rob de Bie]

On 4/25/2025 at 12:59 PM, Rob de Bie said:

I always put a drop on a plastic surface (left over spray can lid for example), and use a small (blunt-ish) rounded scalpel blade to pick up a bit of glue, and apply that to the joint, where the capilary action sucks it in the joint. Repeat that until the joint is done, and replace or clean the scalpel blade frequently, because the caked-on glue prevents it from picking up the right amount of glue.

 

Because of this application method, I consider gluing with CA pretty safe. I hardly ever apply CA straight from the bottle, and the few times that I glued myself to a model were always when I applied it straight from the bottle,

 

Today I helped a 10-year old to build his first 1 1/2 models, first a Matchbox Gnat, then a Hasegawa Kfir. And his dad partially built a Heller Komet. They both used CA glue, using the technique described above. And it worked pretty well I think: the models progressed relatively quickly, and the boy had the motor skills to apply the CA to each connection. The Gnat took roughly 2 hours.

 

He wants to build an Antonov 225 next, I'll leave that problem for his parents to solve, haha!!

 

Rob

[ChuChu]

You can try Tamiya Limonene series. They smell much less than standard glues and as long as you do not throw models around room, they are totally fine, despite I read that they are bit weaker than standard version. I have Tamiya Limonene cement and Tamiya Extra Thin Limonene. Hard to say something bad. I prefer thin brushes, so just bough additional bottle of Extra Thin to use brush in standard cement.

 

In terms of CA glue, I recommend Tamiya Easy Sanding CA or if I remember correctly, black CA from Ammo. They work as CA glue, but can be sanded easily. Black version is great, because you can see where it is applied and remove excess. It also works nice as a filler for small gaps/imperfections.