I don't know if this problem has an answer, but it happens to me enough that I have to vent. Often I need to make two identical versions of a modded piece. They are made from the same material, cut the same way, prepared the same way, yet the first one glues instantly and permanently while the second won't bond at all. It's infuriating. How can two identical setups react so differently to glue?

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No idea. Do you ever use an accelerant?

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No I just use the gel stuff. It's so bizarre.

It glues my fingers to anything though.

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I tried gel and didn't like it at all.

superglue is used in jewelry repair all the time, fondly called the "pearl hammer" by some older jewelers. every unstrung pearl gets glued on a post and I use only superglue. two part expoxy can last longer/stronger but I get worse results with it.

I use the cheap stuff at home for the most part and loktite brand at work.i did order some brush on superglue that has came in handy for tight spots @ $5 for 2 tiny bottles it won't be replacing the 2 for $1 pack I normally get! I think it is all the same as far as results and getting clogged up with a sticky tip.

I have had the same result with gluing toy parts as you dusty. I think it is the surface on a micro level. if your cut is super clean maybe hit it with a light sand paper to rough it up. the rougher more porous the surface the more tiny voids to fill and bond. I have had success pinning and gluing at the same time.also the time before application and bonding may differ because of temperature. I sometimes hit both pieces with a lighter to warm them up before I glue them.

I have a small container of fabric stick pins. I just used them in this way to pin new boots on some newsculpt legs. I took small plyers and drove a pin down into the center of the new boot. then I cut the pin head off at an angle and pushed that sharp end up in the leg. here's where it gets sticky. I then pulled them apart and brushed superglue over one surface. pushed them back together.

for this to work both the boots and legs must be on the "rubbery" side. the newsculpt legs and starwars boots made a good fit.

I really feel your pain dusty! I cuss more about super glue than anything else hobby related.

my newest mutant power is that most of that "LASER BLAST" wont even stick to my skin anymore.

As for bonding or not - depending on what you mean by prep, there could be release agent residue moreso on one piece than the other?

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I do scratch the surfaces up, but I don't use any solvents to get rid of possible residues. Perhaps I should try an alcohol bath on parts before gluing.

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oil from skin too. I wonder if the fire/heat that I've been hitting parts with is only burning off residue and not improving the bond by "heating" the surfaces.

with especially tricky parts I'll use a touch of baking soda as the accelerator that was mentioned earlier too. Doesn't answer the question though

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anyone ever try that UV glue? I got a crown last year and they used UV activated glue, also at my first factory job they used UV glue to hold medical masks together. they had a conveyor belt that ran through a UV tunnel.

The UV stuff is strong, but it isn't terribly adhesive. For instance, if you tried to UV bond two lengths of sprue together end to end, the UV bit wouldn't bend or break, but you'd be able to pull the sprue right out of it once it was cured. I know joemichaels has used some and wasn't impressed. Maybe it works better on different materials, dunno, but I haven't been curious enough to spend the money to really test it out.

I find it is definitely a "surface and prep" issue with using any superglue.

Since there is often the problem of the glue solidifying in the tube, I often set a specific day for glue jobs and only finish when the last piece is done or the tube is empty.

General prep is this(for me):

Make sure parts to be glued are test fit before hand. If there is sprue stump, flash, or other bits to be removed, they're cleaned off with the Xacto.

For pieces with nominal to large surface areas, I take my pin drill and make tiny shallow wells just barely on the surface spaced about 1/16" apart.

Next, all parts get hit with the soap and water treatment. Just a simple sudsy rub and rinse until squeaky.

Once dry, I line up the workspace of pieces to be glued and put on those very thin food service gloves you can get at the dollar store package of 100. One by one, they get glued and since Loctite gel is a thirty second hold, I hold the parts glued to the count of thirty. If there is any overage of glue running out, I take a toothpick and gather it or smooth it on the perimeter of the joined pieces.

Since most plastics will become desiccated when set, if the piece is not to be painted, I brush on some Duraclear matte sealer and this covers the 'powdery residue' you often find( you can see how effective it is in that saloon piece on the tables). Pieces to be painted will be get primed first anyway, so it's all good.

Edit: Oh, if using alcohol to prepare a surface, use 91% alcohol, which is the same stuff they used to clean electronics and such like VCR heads. 70% alcohol has oil in it and you're defeating your purpose. Some use acetone dips, and that works too, but it does the same thing to the plastic as the superglue.

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