Scratch building glue?

[jones45]

Alright I need to know what glues/epoxys do y'all recommend for choping a top,I've had a dirt track Monte Carlo project for a few years need to know what's the strongest glue is ,set times ,and prep.im frustrated to have a choped up car and cannot finish it.thanks dennis

Edited December 20, 2015 by jones45
Mis spell

[Foxer]

I use Devcon 2-ton Epoxy that comes in 4.5 ounce bottles. It's very easy to pour equal quantities for mixing and it keeps clean and last seemingly forever. It is a 30 minute clear epoxy and is very strong.

When chopping a top, or any body splice, you should always use a backup piece on the cut when gluing. I have used plastic and brass strips in the past, but now I use fine fiberglass cloth embedded in the epoxy. This gives a thin, smooth and strong joint.

[jones45]

Thank you foxer I'll be sure to look into this.is this this a order only product or can I buy it locally?

[unclescott58]

When I first saw the title to this thread, I though why would anybody want to scratch build glue? After all, glue in general is not that expensive. Sometimes I'm not the brightest bulb in the bunch. ?

[jones45]

Don't worry Scott we all have our moments.lol

[Ace-Garageguy]

I do a lot of chops and other heavy mods. I use conventional liquid cement to get everything stuck together and aligned perfectly, and then use the epoxy-fine fiberglass cloth reinforcement method Foxer mentioned.

I've been doing the 'glass reinforcement for many years, primarily because I had materials made for 1:1 aircraft in stock...and they're MUCH stronger than anything you can get for hobby work.

That being said, ANY hobby-shop 30-minute epoxy made for RC models should do you just fine. You can get the very fine fiberglass cloth there too.

Be sure to get at least 30-minute stuff though. The shorter cure time material is nowhere near as strong.

This is not the best photo in the world, but you'll see the reinforcements on the pillars and the roof center.

Here's the build thread if you want to see the rest of the mods on this one...

Here's another one...

 

If you do this right, you can get plenty horsey with your bodywork and paint-polishing with NO FEAR of cracking at the seams.

Scale 4" chop on a '70 Chevelle, scratchbuilt front pillars...

 

 

 

[jones45]

Wow on the build quality there bud, and thank you That helped my understanding alot ,now what fiber glass cloth do I need to get and how many layers and tools needed,thanks in advance dennis

[Foxer]

I just have to say it was Ace that put me on to the fiberglass cloth ... I haven't had to go back to repair any splice yet ..

[Art Anderson]

Wow on the build quality there bud, and thank you That helped my understanding alot ,now what fiber glass cloth do I need to get and how many layers and tools needed,thanks in advance dennis

I too have done the fiberglass reinforcement technique that Bill described so very well.  Any hobby shop with a decent flying model aircraft or RC boat department will have fiberglas cloth in several weights.  Personally, I have used 1/2 ounce glass cloth (that's 1/2 ounce weight per square yard!), which is plenty strong enough for reinforcing spliced panels (such as underneath a chopped top), and yet still thin enough so as to allow a builder to control the panel thickness in such conversion work.  It can be layered on (I have used as many as three layers of this cloth while still making a thin section surface possible.

Art