I am in the process of assembling the Italeri 1/35 M101 105mm towed howitzer, and I have the Eduard PE set for it. The other night I was gluing the PE hinges and mounting braces to the inner gun shields (all Eduard PE), and with any manipulation at all, the pieces would pop off! So, I removed, what I assume to be, the dark oxide coating with some sandpaper and reglued (using CA). Popped off again. Re-attached using 2-part epoxy. Popped off again. Reglued with CA again, and let dry for over 24 hours. Put hinges in PE bender to bend both at correct angle so I could attach the upper shield, and you guessed it, popped again [:(!]. Got everything glued back together (CA), and for now it’s holding, but I’m concerned it’ll all pop again when I start drybrushing, and I still have a lot more stuff to glue on! (Sometimes I scuff pretty vigorously when weathering). The CA is a thin (not gel) Loctite product, and is brand new. The epoxy is Conap, and I use it to hold golf club components together. Short of stick welding, how do I get the PE to stick and stay stuck to itself[?] Help!!
Please understand this is gluing PE to PE (metal to metal), not PE to plastic.
I’m going to throw this out on the techniques forum as well. Thanks in advance for any and all help.
Hmmmm…sounds like you’re doing everything right. I just use a cheap generic Japanese CA glue (Cemedine Zerotime), and my PE stays on through all kinds of mayhem. As long as you sand the contact spots clean of any corrosion and rought it up a bit, it should glue on solid. Other than that, try to get as much of a mating surface as possible.
I have better luck with the thicker, gap filling (i.e. Zap-A-Gap) CA. Parts have to fit very well for the thin stuff. Also, I read (and it seems to be right) that super glue doesn’t stick well to super glue. So make sure you clean the old glue off the parts before regluing.
And, CA has very poor shear strength. Any kind of force from the side can send them flying.
I am amazed you had them pop off that many times and still find them. Usually if one comes off on me, it’s gfg (gone for good).
BIll hit the nail on the head…shear strength. If you 're doing any manipulating and put some flex or shear load on the parts they’re probably going to pop loose. Use a course grit to sand the glue areas and that will help some. Other than that it’s just be careful. If it’s too bad you might could drill a small hole or two in a place you can work with, glue a piece of wire in and fill with glue then sand it smooth. I just try to get everything set good before I glue and hope I don’t bump it. (I’ve repaired the front fenders on my 1/16 Tiger numerous times already [:p])
Thanks for the heads up. I will be using a PE set for the first time when I start building my Sherman Calliope. Gip I hope you have better luck with rest of your model.
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