jamesG

Beautiful paint.

Awesome job.

Cool, thanks for the info I'll definitely look into those.

What masking medium do you use? I have seen them but never tried them.

Can you be more specific as to the epoxy you are using for this. I seem to recall some that yellowed over time perhaps it was a cheap brand

If it works for you, cool. I simply don't like "gluing" paint to paint as I believe it to be weaker and will remove some if not a good deal of paint when the joint fails. Yes, scraping is a pain and I avoid applying paint to areas that I know will have to be glued such as where seats go, interior tub to frame, engine block to cylinder head... masking tape is our friend.lol. I also seem to remember from somewhere the use of white glue (Elmer's) as a mask. I haven't tried bondene yet. I use either testors, micro crystal clear, or good ole Elmer's for clear parts held in place by... well, whatever works.

Ah. I got ya.

For the most part, yes. However, if someone posts an idea I think might work for me I have no problem adding to my skill set.

This will be fun to put to the test. Multiple glues, cements, epoxy etc. On bare plastic vs. Painted then glued plastic. My guess would be that the glue loses bond with the paint or the glue pulls the paint right off the plastic long before glues on bare plastic. Now, perhaps you want your models to come apart easily in the future. I don't. I don't intend to rebuild them, ever.

I have several built 35+ years ago been packed and moved between more than a couple homes and stored in un air conditioned storage unit for 10 years in florida. All still in great shape. All built with tube glue. Sure I have a couple with glue on the windows and such that isnt a problem with the glue that's a problem with the person that applied it, me. I'm rebuilding a 30+ year old vette right now. Yep, got heavy with the glue when originally built and extra care had to be taken when I took it apart just as you should with any glue. So, no I guess I dont understand, which is why I asked. Got to be realistic here, these kits aren't meant to be taken apart that's why they require "glue" and not screws.

I like micro-clear though I cant find it local anymore.

I get what you are saying and perhaps I will do some experimenting though on some left overs not a model.

What would these other glues be? Though I don't like the idea of gluing to paint. I don't intend to be rough with models either but I have moved enough to know that I want them to be able to survive packing, shipping, storage ( sometimes for years) and handeling without need of much if any repair

I tend to use liquid cements more these days. What other "glues" dont require paint removal. I'm curious though I dont trust gluing to paint as the paint will always be the weakest link. I use ca sparingly due to hazing or fogging. Tube glue is a pain to work with but does a good job at bonding (though probably not the best). I'm curious as to why you dont like the idea of melting the plastic together.

Yeah, I understand that some things will demand paint prior to assembly such as an instrument cluster prior to adding the steering wheel and that it also depends somewhat on the intended level of detailing. I was just curious as to anyone's preferences or any methods I may not have thought of. I myself prefer to paint as much as possible and then remove what is needed to achieve a good "glue" bond. Exceptions would be engine block and trans. or seats that are two or more pieces.

I agree with jim, start wit a snap kit first to test the waters then move on to a slightly more advanced kit. Keep in mind that there are various devices and tricks out there that would aid in holding parts and holding parts together while you work. If you need help in that area don't hesitate to ask, there are lots of people here more than willing to help.

When it comes to interior tubs for example, do you prefer to paint all parts first then remove paint where parts are to be "glued" or "glue" first then mask various parts and paint or something else. For example. Seats can be installed then everything painted as one or parts can be tub and seats painted separate then paint removed where parts meet or areas where seats go could be masked parts painted then remove mask and assemble. Yes I am aware that certain items may require a combo of techniques just curious as to preferred techniques or ideas I haven't thought of

I'm no chemist but it doesn't seem that "every" brand is methylene chloride. Tamiya is acetone, testors is I believe methyl ethyl ketone etc. While similar they are not the same thing.

Thanks again for all the info. I've been out of the hobby for a while and most of my "glues" have either evaporated or turned to useless blocks so I'll just have to grab a good variety.

Got ya. I would think there wouldn't be much of a variation within a single kit though. Looks like I'll be making a glue run. Plast-i-weld, ca, epoxy, I'll find something eventually I guess. Thanks for all the info

I have used tenax in the past I found that Flex-I-File plast-I-weld worked better. Your thoughts? Yeah, I understand different glue applications and dissimilar materials require different products. However kit parts wit obvious exceptions should be the same material, no? Both products I've used so far have been liquid cement not tube glue.

Testors directions say to apply to both surfaces wait 20 seconds, join parts and hold 20 seconds. It didn't work maybe a longer wait time?

How does bondene compare with tamiya and testors? It seem to work in the same way, is it just a "hotter" formula?

While trying to rebuild nightstalker vette I have encountered problems with both not doing a very good job of bonding parts together. On original kit parts tamiya was hit and miss. It bonded the hood and scoop ( both white plastic) and blower parts ( both black plastic) but black to white plastic doesnt seem to work well. Neither tamiya or testors seem to provide a strong bond between kit and evergreen styrene. Anyone have these issues or any ideas what the issue could be?

That's great, however, it would have been better to experiment on scrap parts first to see see if there would be any reactions between dryer sheets, glue, and paints.