Official Luthiers Forum!

I am wondering what you folks feel the best glue is for glueing Plexiglass to plexiglass or lexan to lexan or plexi to lexan. All responses are greatly appreciated!

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

I've heard that Butyl Cellusolve is the right stuff for that.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

[QUOTE=Don Williams] I've heard that Butyl Cellusolve is the right stuff for that.[/QUOTE]

butyl cellosolve is a glue? We added it to paint to slow the drying down

I've found using a plastic primer special made for super gluing plastic works good. Should be available in any large home depot place or hobby shop.

Hi Dave:

We used to use Weld-on 3 to glue Acrylic sheets together. Weld-on 16 will work as well but has to be clamped and sit for 24hrs, Weld-on 3 is harmful to skin as becomes acidic when mixed with the moisture on skin. More info obtained from supplier if required.

I have used thin CA with great success.

You can solvent bond with Methylene Chloride. You can also use RTV silicone, urethane and CA.
It all depends on your application to determine what is the best to use.

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

Superglue works for me!

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Sylvan
http://www.wellsguitars.com

Acrylic (plexiglass) can be solvent bonded using acetone. The surfaces must be a perfect fit for the best bond. For advise from profesional plastic fabricators do a search on TAP plastics. They have stores and plastic fab shops on the US west coast.

Al

Thanks Soooo much guys! I am gong to experiment a little and see which I like

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

I saw some GE Lexan solvent in Home Depot. I believe the primary ingredient was butyl celusolve...... I know, it sounds crazy, but it is used for welding plexi too. I'll shoot down the road and double-check that tomorrow. Dave, if you have a Home Depot near you (LOL) you can check there for the solvent.
BTW, I believe Plexiglass is a polycarbonate, as is Lexan. They're both just brand names, but with different properties.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

I just did a Google search on plexiglass glue and got a ton of hits.

Plexiglass is a brand name and is produced by Loctite. It is a pure polymer Methyl Methacrylate. I've used it in my wood acrylizing process, but it's bad, evil stuff and moved past it to safer chemicals. Just last week I sold my last five gallons to an ivory dealer who uses it to stabilize his ivory. I even drove 120 miles to deliver it and I'm feeling a lot safer in my shop now that the time bomb is gone

Actually Lexan is totally different from Plexi. Lexan is stronger, machines easier, and is made by General Electric Co. I have worked in the factory where they make the Lexan resin, and the process is downnright scary. The solvent used in their process is Methylene Chloride.

Al

Just ordered some M.C. from "Chemassociates". Must be nasty they would only ship it ground.

THank You everyone for all your input. I really appreciate it!

Don, I already have some Butyl Cellusolve. I'll give that a try. THANKS for your help!Dave-SKG38990.4949768518

_________________
Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

[QUOTE=A Peebels] Actually Lexan is totally different from Plexi. Lexan is stronger, machines easier, and is made by General Electric Co. I have worked in the factory where they make the Lexan resin, and the process is downnright scary. The solvent used in their process is Methylene Chloride. Al[/QUOTE]

I believe Lexan is the polycarbonate version. Polycarbonates are used in eye glass, contact lens and bullet proof "glass"

Don,
I used some Butyl Cellusolve...waited about 10 minutes and nothing happened. Perhaps I rushed to test the joint? Anyway, I also tried some #10 thin CA it works but I was able to pull it apart after about a 20 minute cure...Now it didn't go easy...it was a strugle...but I did it bare hands without any tools...I assume it would get better if left over night. I also tried CA mixed with Butyl Cellusolve...worked the same as CA alone.
The Methylene Chloride is ordered and hopefully will soon be here. Does anyone know if M.C. is called something else and sold in Home centers? I have an Ace Hardware and a Home Depot a few miles away.

_________________
Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

Yeah, I was wrong on the cellusolve thing. I read the Methyl-whatever stuff and confused it in my brain. Wait, that's redundant, since my brain is already mostly confused....

Dave, if you go to Home Depot, they usually have the solvent/adhesive for Lexan in tubes right above the sheets in the display.

_________________
"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Dave TAP plastics will have the correct info.

Al

I got some stuff at a local hobby shop called "Tenax-7R", purported to be a universal plastic welder. I havent't tried it on _everything_, but it sure works on acrylic. It doesn't say on the bottle what's in it, and doesn't smell like anything. Scares me. It's super thin, and to use it I put it in an empty CA bottle with an applicator tube of #26 Teflon spaghetti, so it doesn't (quite) go all over the place. It's pretty nearly instant.

Dave, the liquid type of furniture stripper is Methylene
Chloride. I used to get the Kleen Kutter stuff at Wallie World.

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Dave Rector
Rector Guitars

THANKS GUYS!

_________________
Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

Dave,
You have talked about the application so I can't help much. PM me if you want more help.

To solvent bond, the pieces should be machined so that they have a nice fit without gaps. Hold the pieces together under pressure and allow the solvent to wick into the joint. Another method would be a short dip into the solvent and then assemble and hold under pressure until dry. If you have gaps, there are thicker adhesives that are better suited. You might want to look into Weld-On #58.

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.