Uses Of CA Glue

[midlineqb]

I'm getting ready to turn 81 the first week of April. I have been away from model car building for at least 30 years. I've been trying to get started again for about 3 years. I've collected quite a few of kits and rebuilders; plus lots of parts. Now I want to really get started building and want to know what you guys use CA Glue for.  Also what Brands do you recommend? Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated.

[stitchdup]

personally i only use ca on resin and prints. I prefer poly cement for plastic. and glue for clear parts is also a must. most ca and polystyrene glues will fog clear parts

[Bainford]

I use CA to glue brass, aluminum, and other materials together, or to plastic. There are other times when it is used because its quick curing or great capillary action solves a strategic problem.

CA comes in various viscosities. Most builders on here seem to like the thicker CAs, but I only ever use the extra thin stuff. 
 

If you get some CA, get some accelerator or 'kicker' also. After applying CA, if you want instant curing, apply a drop of kicker to the joint. It often comes in a spray bottle, but I use a pipette to draw some from the bottle and apply it directly to the joint. 
 

I primarily use Bob Smith Industries (BSI) brand. They are created for the hobby industry, come in several viscosities, and in a few sizes of bottles. And their kicker doesn't harm plastic or paint finishes. However, pretty much any CA will work. Even cheap grocery store offerings of Krazy Glue or Super Glue are perfectly fine. They also tend to be on the thin side, which works for me. 
 

Keep in mind that when CA cures, it emits a gas that will permanently fog clear, chrome, and some painted surfaces. 

[Dave G.]

I don't use much CA glue for plastic models. But it is good if you need to glue metal parts to plastic. So is epoxy. I like Zap Ca products. And the 5 minute version of JB Weld for epoxy.

[NOBLNG]

Bob Smith Industries (BSI) also makes a Super-Gold version of CA that won’t fog clear parts. It is also available in a medium and thin viscosity.

[NOBLNG]

CA will also react with cotton (Q-Tips) and maybe wool. It will heat up and produce fumes that can adhere to fingerprints on your fresh paint job. Law enforcement sometimes uses this method for highlighting fingerprints.

Edited March 29 by NOBLNG

[R. Thorne]

I use ca glue (Bsi gold) for painted surfaces, otherwise Tamiya extra thin cement.

[slusher]

I use Loctite super glue only on hood hold or problem area. I use Tamiya thin cement and Testors orange tube glue most of the time.

[Brutalform]

Like others have stated, BSI gold, won’t fog chrome or clear parts. And the Zap A Gap glue is great for filling in gaps, and also some sink marks. After it dries, it can be sanded smooth. 

[Dave G.]

On die cast model train kits, I used the Zap a gap to install the brass pieces. That was decades ago, still holding today.

In wood turning, if you know what you're doing, you can turn out small tree ornaments and finish those to a super high shine using thin CA on the lathe. And use the gap filling CA to hang wire for a bell gong in bell ornaments. In fact you can do block glue ups with CA before turning, you can glue on top domes or bottom spires on wood ornaments using CA.

As I said, I don't use Ca much on plastic models. And since I'm never in any rush to build my kits, the strong glue I use is the Black bottle Testors. The weaker glue is the orange tube Testors. And Testors clear parts glue for chrome or glass. Those are my standard glues to use on any plastic kit. Again, I'm never in any rush. With the ornament turning I always was in a rush or under pressure as the season approached, and CA was perfect.

[bobss396]

I have this cut on my thumb that is in a bad place, slow to heal. I'm going to hit that with CA glue, the thick stuff.

Hobby Lobby has good CA glues, thin, medium and thick. The thin is quite runny. I try not to apply it right from the bottle.

The thick Loctite is my go-to pretty much. I squeeze out as much as I need, even a tiny dot.

I usually use thin cardboard squares or bottle tops to put it in. Toss it before I get it where I don't want it.

[johnyrotten]

I use ca glue for metal to plastic bonds and resin pieces. Cheap harbor freight multi pack stuff. Works fine for what I need it to do. I've also used it with baking soda to make a rock hard filler. It works pretty well. that got me half a season of riding when the forks on my motorcycle were worn out.

[peteski]

I'm a self-admitted CA glue addict! I like the instant glue action. I rarely use typical styrene cement or glue in my builds. I use BSI brand CAs and accelerator.  I also  use epoxies for some joints and I do occasionally (when a  specific task calls) use thin solvent cements (like Testors or Tamiya).  I haven't used the old standby Testors cement in orange tube for decades.  For nostalgic reasons I still have a tube of it, but it is hardened.

[midlineqb]

Thanks for all the replies, they have been very helpful.

[StevenGuthmiller]

For probably a decade, (15 years ago) I used pretty much nothing but "Plasti-Zap" medium CA, and to be perfectly honest with you, I don't know why I stuck with it for as long as I did!

It seemed to cause nothing but frustration after frustration, until I finally relegated it to the back of my materials shelf.

I've used other CA glues since then, and I really don't like any of them that I've used any more than than I did the ZAP.

 

Today, if I use CA on one or two parts during the course of a project, I consider that liberal use.

Since then, I've discovered that I really have no need to keep 15 different adhesive products in my shop, including a half dozen different CA glues, kickers, etc, etc.

I have Plastruct, "Plastic Weld" for bare plastic, Elmer's white glue for carpets, and JB Weld "Clear Weld" for all of my assembly purposes.

That's pretty much it.

Seemed like a great idea to me to simplify my life and streamline my modeling processes, and it absolutely was!

Nothing I hate more than spending money on, and having a bunch of stuff laying around my shop that I rarely, if ever, have any use for, and then when I think I might have found a use for it 6 months later, it's all dried up and ready for the trash anyway.

 

 

 

Steve

[Force]

I use CA glue very sparingly on few parts, far away from paint, glass or chrome.
Parts like metal to plastic , strengthening some joints and such.
Mostly I use liquid glue like Tamiya Extra Thin Cement, Tenax 7R, or Revel Contacta Professional with the thin metal tube.

[robdebie]

Like Peteski, I glue nearly everything with CA. Transparent parts are the exception, I use epoxy for that. But I never use plastic glue. I am the exception in our club though.

Rob

[Brutalform]

One good thing about using epoxy over CA glue, for me anyway, is the ease of removal of the dried epoxy. Not sure if all epoxy’s are created equal, and have the same characteristics for removal, but I like the 5 min Z Poxy. Been using it for years. 

[rattle can man]

Solvent cement for styrene, CA for non-styrene or when I need a quick bond, canopy glue or Alene's Turbo-Tak for clear parts.

[Ulf]

Although you ask about CA glue, I can't help but recommend my favorite glue, Revell Contacta Professional Glue. If the glue dries at the end of the needle, you burn off the plug with a match.

Why this glue before CA ?
I use CA glue very sparingly nowadays.
CA glue ages on the building table which made me frustrated, it use to reminded me that I did not have time to build...
Some people get allergic to CA glue and when you get affected it is forever and with it other chemicals. My wife and her colleagues sometimes used CA glue and some of them have told me about this and the paradox that it was originally a medical glue but now doctors avoid using it.

[Perspect Scale Modelworks]

On 3/29/2025 at 12:26 PM, stitchdup said:

personally i only use ca on resin and prints. I prefer poly cement for plastic. and glue for clear parts is also a must. most ca and polystyrene glues will fog clear parts

Same here pretty much. CA for 3d prints and resin cast. Recently I've been using good old Crazy Glue on a resin cast Caddy. I say "it's my go to but so hard to get to" because the pin on the cap sometimes gets stuck in the bottle and needs pliers to be pulled out 🫤.

[bobss396]

I do a lot of drilling and pinning of parts and assemblies. I'm in the habit of test fitting everything.

I try to leave nothing to chance in the late stages. There is nothing worse than having a CA or epoxy applied part getting away from you.

Pinning will reduce the amount of any adhesive you will need.