Ideally, I would like a thin brush-on glue that’s not goopy, messy or stringy like melted pizza cheese. It should adhere well to paint without harming painted parts. It should not set too quickly as to precisely get joined parts into position. I find that Testor’s liquid brush-on cement is OK for joining bare plastic parts together but it does not have super strength. A good cement is supposed to melt and weld plastic parts together. Crazy Glue type products bond strong but may set too fast for precise part positioning. Brush-on Gorilla Glue is too thick to handle neatly on small, fine parts. Epoxies are messy and inconvenient for me unless I’m assembling R/C model boats and airplanes with wooden components.
Adhere well to paint without harming it? That sounds like a deal breaker,nothing I know of of.
Gator Grip and Elmer’s type glues,won’t damage paint,but not much strength.
You got me.
I use Tamiya thin for most applications and Weldon #4 when I need a hotter solvent.
Won’t these products eat paint? There are times when I will need to bond parts to painted surfaces. Example chrome trim pieces on bodies, cabs to chassis mounts, vehicle lights, truck horns, door handles and mirrors on trucks. I know Krazy Glue type products are paint-friendly. They have no solvents.
Tamiya thin is a CEMENT and Weldon #4 gets some crappy reviews on amazon.com.
Hello!
For unpainted styrene I use lacquer thinner (has to have butyl acetate in it). For painted parts I use super glue. That’s why I try to glue everything together as far as possible, and paint later.
I think people might give crappy reviews when they didn’t work how to use a product yet…
It’s also worth remembereing that a coat of future will prevent frosting from super glue…
Hope it helps - have a nice day, or actually - Merry christmas!
Paweł
For general work I use gel CA. The gel stuff does not need perfect fits, as does thin CA. For joints where I need longer setup time, I use Tamiya thin solvent stuff.
I will eventually have to glue clear glass parts and trim pieces to painted bodies. Correct, I do try to assemble unpainted parts with cement as much as possible or feasible. For example, the chassis of my truck. Should I only apply a dap of Future to the spots that are to be glued to prevent that white haze surrounding the joint with Krazy Glue?
I plan to use Testor’s Gloss or Dull Cote to seal waterslide decals.
Tamiya extra thin mostly and super glue
Where can I buy a THIN super glue that brushes on?
Generally the liquid super glues are in small squeeze bottles. If you want to brush it, squeeze a little on a non porous surface and pick it up on your brush. Clean the brushes with acetone.
In my experience, super glues with applicator tips clog up and the whole bottle is no good. I found brush-on liquid Loctite super glue at Walmart for no mess. I don’t like that thick, goopy Gorilla super glue I bought. The Gorilla might be Ok for heavy duty home and car repairs, but models are small and delicate. The Gorilla glue is stringy when the brush is taken out of the bottle and that string of adhesive will mess up any model it happens to fall onto. If I need pinpoint application I can use a toothpick as well. This dries clear and should be good for canopies and windows as well.
According to Walmart listing:
Loctite Brush On Super Glue Liquid has proven superior performance over most ordinary super glues, making it an important addition to any crafter’s supply closet. Thanks to a patented additive, our super glue liquid works faster and holds stronger on a variety of porous and non-porous surfaces. Ideal for invisible, close-fitting crafting applications, this liquid formula dries clear and sets in 15 to 30 seconds without clamping. Plus, it’s durable enough to resist moisture, most chemicals, and freezing temperatures for outdoor crafts, such as birdhouses and decorative mailboxes. Loctite Brush On Super Glue Liquid comes in a spill-resistant bottle with a built-in brush that allows for a precise, no-mess application on nearly any surface. Use our versatile Super Glue Liquid to bond to a variety of common craft materials, including leather, cork, paper, wood, fabric, metal, and hard plastics such as acrylic and PVC.
- Superior Performance: Brush-on super glue works faster and holds stronger on more crafting surfaces than ordinary adhesives
- Fast and Easy: Sets in 15 to 30 seconds with no clamping required
- Precise Control: Comes in a spill-resistant bottle with a built-in brush that allows for a precise, no-mess application
- Triple Resistance: Adhesive is resistant to moisture, shock, most chemicals, and freezing temperatures for outdoor crafts
- Seamless Look: Liquid formula sets quickly and dries transparent for home, hobby, and crafting projects
Dries transparent should mean no frosting. I can always test the product on scrap before committing to a model.
There’s a short but good video on the FSM site that explains the various types of glues and how to use them. Based on your posts I think you’d benefit from taking a few minutes and watching:
For a non-porus surface I use those dummy credit cards I get in the mail. Also, some plastic coated card stock flyers I get are coated well enough to not absorb thin CA. I use a homemade tool to pick it up- a needle with the tip of the eye ground off, and point stuck in dowel, to pick up the glue and place it on part. I can scrape off the eye to clean it pretty well.
I have been using the UV cured resins such as bondit more and more. Great for holding and setting in place small PE such as railings on ships. Sets almost instantly when you want it to using a UV flashlight. I buy the stuff on Amazon as well as the UV flashlight.
The main problem I find with the UV hardening is that you have to shine the UV into the seam. This can be problematic with some windows. Canopies are usually easy, but windows that mount inside can be problematic. You have to put extra glue on the outside of those windows, like the flanged ones.
Im curious too about the process of using future…
I saw once on the site here something i started doing and works well for me. You can sick a sewing needle into the end of a short dowl then split the head ( eye end) of the need to create 2 little barbs. Now you’ve got a handy glue applicator.