Liquid Glues

[Frankiebe]

Hello All and Happy Holidays

What are your feelings about Tenex 7R Liquid Glue.

I just bought a brand new bottle of Tenex. It seems that now it does not evaporate as fast as it used to. Is this my imagination or have they changed their formula slightly. It seems to work just as good as before. If this is true, I think this is a good thing because you don't have to rush as much to apply the cement with your brush.

Has anybody used other types of liquid glue, and what are your results?

Frank B

Edited December 20, 2008 by Frankiebe

[clamm]

Hello All and Happy Holidays

What are your feelings about Tenex 7 Liquid Glue.

I just bought a brand new bottle of Tenex. It seems that now it does not evaporate as fast as it used to. Is this my imagination or have they changed their formula slightly. It seems to work just as good as before. If this is true, I think this is a good thing because you don't have to rush as much to apply the cement with your brush.

Has anybody used other types of liquid glue, and what are your results?

Frank B

I haven't been back into building long enough to know that it's changed, but Tenex is great stuff. For scratchbuilding, say joining styrene rod together, it's unbeatable.

I have also had good luck with Micromark's "Same Stuff", and with samestuff, the brush you use to apply the glue is attached to the top that screws the glue bottle closed. Very convenient.

Edited December 20, 2008 by clamm

[Scalefinishes]

I use laquer thinner as liquid glue.

Works great, evaporates fast and you can get a quart for the price of a small bottle of regular liquid glue.

Same here, But I use Methyl Ethyl Ketone. (MEK)

Jameston

[Guest Davkin]

I'm an Ambroid man myself. I used Tenax and loved it until I discovered Ambroid but Tenax is a close second. The Plasikote liquid cement is good too. I tried MEK for a while as well but ran into problems with permanent softening of the plastic. And like Dave indicates MEK fumes are nasty stuff. Actually all these liquid cement fumes are bad for our health so you should minimize exposure. I don't use the brush that's included in the cap, for two reasons. One, it's very inprecise, and two, it's wasteful. You end up getting far more liquid on your parts than you need and that also means you are breathing in more fumes, not a good thing. I use the "Touch n 'Flow" liquid cement applicator that Micro Mark sells. This tool is just a small glass tube with a very fine hollow needle on the end. Just set it in your bottle and it fills up with liquid automatically. It allows you to put just the right amount of liquid in just the right spot. Here's something else I do to minimize evaporation. I took a lid from a used up bottle and drilled a hole in the center of it just big enough for the Touch 'n flow to fit through, about 1/8" dia. I put this cap on and stick the Touch 'n flow in the hole and leave it at arm's length during the modeling session, and when I'm done I replace the regular cap. I've seen no measurable evaporation using this method.

David

[Frankiebe]

I use laquer thinner as liquid glue.

Works great, evaporates fast and you can get a quart for the price of a small bottle of regular liquid glue.

Hey Steve

Thanks for the tip. I have some Klean Strip virgin lacquer thinner, its a medium dry. I gave it a try and it seems to work pretty good, though it seems aggressive. I went on Klean Strips web site to get the MSDS sheets to see the ingredients. It has Acetone in it. So I went out and got some of that to try. That also works pretty good and it seems less aggressive. My last experiment is to use 50/50 mix of lacquer thinner and acetone. Both the lacquer thinner and acetone used separately produce a fairly strong bond.

With the Tenex 7R the bond is strong but seems slightly weaker than lacquer thinner or acetone. The aggressive thinners would work good for larger heavier parts, but I would stick with Tenex for the small fine parts.

Also, I have been experimenting using plastic sprue dissolved in Tenex 7R to used as a light filler for body work. I have had pretty good results with this mixture. Since you mentioned using the lacquer thinner for glue I decided to try making the putty filler with thinner and acetone, as a cost saving measure. I am in the middle of that experiment and it looks like its going to work.

Thanks for the tip Steve

[MikeMc]

I am a Tenax man...last visit to the "big city LHS" my guy told me they couldn't get it anymore, so I bought ambroid. Today at the LHS tenax was in....

new formula??? looks the same smells, the same ,only the PRICE!!!!! is new !!!!

[Frankiebe]

I am a Tenax man...last visit to the "big city LHS" my guy told me they couldn't get it anymore, so I bought ambroid. Today at the LHS tenax was in....

new formula??? looks the same smells, the same ,only the PRICE!!!!! is new !!!!

Hello Mike

Thanks for the input. I also have the Ambroid on my bench. It works good on certain things, I use it primarily for tacking large parts in place if I can't hold it place to use the Tenex. Ambroid also seems to leave film after it dries. It forms a strong bond when cured. Its like anything, I use a variety of cements depending on the application.

Frank B

Edited December 24, 2008 by Frankiebe

[tabsscale1]

I have tried Tenax just don't like it much . I primarily use Ambroid and if i want to slow things down I use Testors Liquid cement in the black bottle. If I am out of the ambroid I closest hobby store has plastruct bodene that works just as good.

[MrObsessive]

Another Ambroid Pro Weld fan here!

I've been using it for years after I was disappointed in Tenex as I thought it evaporated too quickly, and also was losing its potency after awhile.

Ambroid was taken off the market for some reason a little while back, but it seems to be available again as my LHS keeps getting it in stock now. I also have the Touch 'N' Flow applicator and I highly recommend its use!

I have the Plastruct Bondene also, but I've noticed that it clogs up the tip of the applicator for some reason to the point where I don't use it much.

Only for large jobs where a brush may be needed to apply it.

[DaVeL]

Another Ambroid Pro Weld fan here!

(snipped stuff)

Only for large jobs where a brush may be needed to apply it.

Umm, stupid question here (post #1 Once you use a brush or something for glue application, what do you use to clean it up??? I assume that you don't just toss a brush after using it once... Or do I need to go a bunch more brushes

THANKS !!!

Dave L.

[Guest Davkin]

As long as the brush is dedicated just for use with the liquid cement you shouldn't ever need to clean it, I never clean mine anyway. Liquid cement is extremely volatile, it evaporates in seconds. I currently use fine sable brush for doing fine work and never do anything to clean it. I immediately toss the brush that comes in the bottle, (Ambroid) it's pretty much useless for modeling. It applies way too much liquid with no precision to speak of.

David

[Fletch]

Guys, I use a 50/50 mix of Tenax 7R and Testors Liquid. Applied with either an A-West AW116 Needlepoint Bottle or a Touch-n-Flow Applicator. The one thing with Tenax is how fast it evaporates. By mixing the Testors with the Tenax, you slow down the evaporation time and end up wit a pretty strong bond. I have tried Micro-Weld and I'm not overly thrilled with it, seems to have very little surface penetration and not a great deal of holding power. It's fine for tacking parts together but not for final assembly.

I have gone the route of sprue in the cement and it does indeed work and works very well. The problem I had was that when it dried it was like trying to sand a rock. The stuff was so hard that 320 wet/dry would hardly even touch it

I went the MEK route years ago and found that the headaches were not worth the bonding capability of the product. Besides the fumes are heavier then air so if you have a pilot light somewhere near you had better have good to great ventilation.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Edited January 31, 2009 by Fletch

[cruz]

Ambroid is my favorite, saw Bill Geary using it and I was hooked. Tried Tenax before that but it evaporated quicker inside the touch and flo applicator and wasn't as good as the Ambroid!!

[bobss396]

Raw MEK is one of the top "to avoid" chemicals known. Unless you're into bladder cancer, liver damage, etc. Not that the brushable glues are thet much better for you.

Tenax is good, but Ambroid comes in a bigger bottle WITH a brush for the same $$. Ambroid caps/brushes can be used with Tenax if you shorten up the tube a tad.

Bob

[E St. Kruiser50]

Great topic

For me, after trying a host of different adhesives and glue's, I settled on three different one's in my "arsenal" of supplies, for different applications.

(1) The first is Hobbytown's "MAXI-CURE" soper glue, that I use with "ZAPP-IT". USE A RESPERATOR!!!!!

Most of the body work and custom work is done with this one.

(2)The second is a 5 minute epoxy made by PERMATEX called PERMA-POXY. A general purpose epoxy that dries crystal clear.

I use this one primarily for windshield's and adding all the finished detail pieces on the body, interior, engine and chassis. It makes for a very clean assembly.

(3) The third is the good ol' standbye TESTORS styrene glue.

When I want something extra strong and durable, I pull out my trusty Red and white tube, and squirt it on, and then let it dry for at least 24 hours, depending on how "Generous" I was.

I use all three of these alot - dave

A side-note. >WARNING< PLEASE STAY FROM STRAIGHT MEK Bad enough in Testors glue.

THIS STUFF IS AN ABSOLUTE KILLER WITH ALL KINDS OF DISEASE POSSIBILITES.

>I DID SOME RESEARCH, AND THE RESULTS ARE BEYOND SCAREY<

Edited February 2, 2009 by Treehugger Dave

[lonewolf01]

Has anyone used pvc cement? It works great and you can get it in big cans for the same cost as ten-x or others.

I just use an old brush or even a toothpick to apply.

Edited February 2, 2009 by lonewolf01

[Fletch]

Are you talking about the PVC cement that is used for sprinkler systems? I would have never considered it because my experience with it is installing sprinkler systems and you have to use an etching primer in order to get it to work. But, I guess if you're not applying water pressure to the model it might work. After all Styrene is a lot different than PVC.

[lonewolf01]

yeah ive used this alot and never with primers or that cleaner stuff seems to hold parts together

real good even under pressure

[Helipilot16]

I use Ambroid for bare plastic. For painted or chromed plastic, I use Loctite super glue. It's great stuff and comes in a very nice bottle with a pointed tip that never clogs.

For clear plastic, I use either Elmer's or Aleene's tacky glue. I thin out the Aleene's for holding flocking.

[mountaindewd]

I am like alot of you. I have tried different ones and come to prefer Ambroid. Only problem is I can't find it anywhere now so I am using Tenax for the time being.

I don't know how any of you use the Plastruct stuff. I picked up a bottle of it after not being able to get the Ambroid, opened the bottle for maybe 30 seconds and it took two days to get rid of that smell. It went back and got replaced with Tenax.

As far as mixing things, I am not a chemist, therefore, I don't mess with that.

Les

[Zoom Zoom]

I used to be a big Tenax fan, but now, my personal fave is Tamiya liquid cement. It comes in a square bottle (which makes it much harder to spill), bonds great and actually has a USABLE brush!

Tamiya became my favorite instantly with that fantastic brush! Even better is the short, square bottle. It's not nearly as apt to tip over like a bottle of Tenax, Plastruct, or Ambroid. Those tall cylindrical bottles are terrible containers for such toxic and expensive and potentially damaging chemicals. I had a bottle of Ambroid spill (didn't damage anything, I used a piece of illustration board as the cutting surface and it soaked into it before quickly evaporating) and I almost lost consciousness due to the fumes when it happened I don't want to even know how many brain cells got lost to that debacle.

When my bottle of Tamiya cement is empty, I'll transfer my Ambroid to it to see if that works. Until then, the Ambroid will sit and wait And it still may not get used as I already have a new bottle of Tamiya bought "just in case".

[Foxer]

How many bottles, tubes, backpacks of CA has everyone thrown out after only a couple uses and it;s either clogged up or hard as a rock? I finally found one that works.. Zap-A-Gap CA+ 1oz container. It's a gap filling one which suits me fine for general attaching. This bottle just doesn't clog. I've never thrown a non-empty container out. It's almost becomes irritating to have a bottle of CA so long and begin to feel I should get a new one just on principle.

I've tried Tenax-7R but it's just plain too fast curing for me. I'll have to try Ambroid as that sounds like it's a bit slower. Otherwise I just use Testers Liquid in the black bottle .. that applicator has good control.

[nitrojunkie]

I use Ambroid,Tamiya liquid,the modelmasters in the plastic container and 15 min,30min or 60min epoxies depending on what I am gluing and how much time I need to glue it.Been using epoxy on glass pieces lately.

[isaacson06]

i tryed this tenax 7r and its only good for like really little stuff is that what it made for?? and what do you guys build most your models with glue where talking

[Jantrix]

I just tried Tenax for the first time. I needed a good liquid glue to join the rear fenders on my 40 Ford PU because there really isn't a decent mounting point between the two, just the side of the fender and the bed side. I figured any other glue would leave a visible mark somewhere under the fender that would be visible. I got the tenax and a syringe applicator. It worked perfectly, wicked down the joint before it evaporated and made a perfect invisible bond. I am now totally hooked.