I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed

"Ed Lowenstein" wrote in message
...
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed



You are going to need to give more infor for #3. Like what are you using
the stuff for?

Ed Lowenstein wrote in

oups.com:

I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with
plexiglass sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too
sapele base? 3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Lots of good info here.:
http://www.tapplastics.com/info/video.php

The thickness you need depends a lot on how big the boxes will
be.

Ken

On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

In article , -MIKE- wrote:
On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.

Correct, but potentially misleading -- the solvent you need is *not* the same
stuff used for PVC plumbing. The principle is the same, but the substance is
not. The stuff you need is called IPS Weld-On. You won't find it at Home Depot
or Ace Hardware. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics". Any plastics
dealer either carries this, or can tell you who does. Check with sign shops,
too.

In article , Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?

Google "IPS Weld-On". You won't find it at home centers or hardware stores;
look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics".

2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?

Sorry, no idea. My best guess is that you'll probably need a mechanical
fastener of some sort. Acrylic plastics are glued to each other with a solvent
that essentially bonds them into a single piece. This process obviously won't
work if the other piece is wood. Epoxy or cyanoacrylate ("super glue") might
work -- experiment on scraps.

3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?

Depends on how large the boxes are. If they're only a handspan wide, 1/10"
should be plenty. OTOH, if they're as large as you are tall, even 1/4" might
not be thick enough.

On 7/18/10 9:38 PM, Doug Miller wrote:
In , wrote:
On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.

Correct, but potentially misleading -- the solvent you need is *not* the same
stuff used for PVC plumbing. The principle is the same, but the substance is
not. The stuff you need is called IPS Weld-On. You won't find it at Home Depot
or Ace Hardware. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics". Any plastics
dealer either carries this, or can tell you who does. Check with sign shops,
too.

Wow, Doug. Really?

How is that misleading? I told him to ask the manufacturer.
I wrote it's "like" pvc, not "is" pvc.

Are you a corporate lawyer or something? :-)


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

On 7/18/2010 9:38 PM, Doug Miller wrote:
In , wrote:
On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.

Correct, but potentially misleading -- the solvent you need is *not* the same
stuff used for PVC plumbing. The principle is the same, but the substance is
not. The stuff you need is called IPS Weld-On. You won't find it at Home Depot
or Ace Hardware. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics". Any plastics
dealer either carries this, or can tell you who does. Check with sign shops,
too.

I was not mislead whatsoever into thinking that Mike was suggesting the use of
PVC solvent to bond plexiglass.

--
See Nad. See Nad go. Go Nad!
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/

"Doug Miller" wrote

2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?

Sorry, no idea. My best guess is that you'll probably need a mechanical
fastener of some sort. Acrylic plastics are glued to each other with a
solvent
that essentially bonds them into a single piece. This process obviously
won't
work if the other piece is wood.

I have successfully glue acrylic 'Perspex' to wood with a general purpose
hot melt adhesive. It pays to warm both surfaces before gluing.

I seem to remember that you can make an adhesive by dissolving scraps in
glacial acetic acid.

Take care with the acid.

Jeff

--
Jeff Gorman, West Yorkshire, UK
email : Username is amgron
ISP is clara.co.uk
www.amgron.clara.net

On 18 July, 23:14, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?

All sorts of solvents. Exactly what depends on MSDS / OSHA regs in
your part of the world. Talk to your plastic supplier, but really this
is a simple problem and you just buy a jar of their recommended
moonshine. There are two sorts - thin pure solvents and also thickened
glues, made by dissolving plastic scrap in the thin stuff. One gives a
cleaner job, the other helps to fill gaps.

2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?

Mechanical fasteners, with the ability to slide for cross-grain
moisture movement of the timber. Otherwise use well-dried and long-
seasoned stable timber, small linear dimensions and epoxy.

3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?

Depends on the size of what you're making, and what you can get. I
make big display boxes from 6mm, small things from 3mm.

You need some tools, first of all a saw. Bandsaws work well, as they
aid clearance of the swarf. A problem with working plastic like this
is the "wooly" swarf that comes off, and its tendency to re-weld to
the sides of the cut with heat. On my bandsaw I had to also remove the
mesh finger-guard from the dust extract port, to avoid clogging. If
you use a reciprocating jigsaw, it needs to have low vibration and
works best with a mild pendulum action - swarf welding is the
problem. Fretsaws work well too, but are obviously slow.

A belt sander (cheap benchtop mounted one, common these days) is a
useful tool for finishing edges, before gluing. Straighter, smoother
edges need less gap-filling from the glue and so look neater when
finished.

Finish polishing is important. Use many different grades of wet & dry
paper in turn (double the grit for each step) and you might find a
powered sander helpful. As always, don't switch grits until you're
finished with the larger grit, otherwise you end up with a polished
mirror that has big scratches left in it. Final polishing used to be
done with paste polishes (and took ages), but these days it's far
easier to buy some Micro-mesh abrasives. These work excellently well
for polishing acrylic.

In article , -MIKE- wrote:
On 7/18/10 9:38 PM, Doug Miller wrote:
In ,
wrote:
On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.

Correct, but potentially misleading -- the solvent you need is *not* the same
stuff used for PVC plumbing. The principle is the same, but the substance is
not. The stuff you need is called IPS Weld-On. You won't find it at Home Depot
or Ace Hardware. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics". Any plastics
dealer either carries this, or can tell you who does. Check with sign shops,
too.

Wow, Doug. Really?

How is that misleading? I told him to ask the manufacturer.
I wrote it's "like" pvc, not "is" pvc.

Are you a corporate lawyer or something? :-)

I said "potentially misleading". And IMHO it is -- someone not reading
carefully could conclude that PVC pipe solvent would work for that job. Since
the OP clearly doesn't know what to use, I wanted to clarify for his benefit
that it won't.

On Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:45:52 -0700 (PDT), Andy Dingley
wrote:

mirror that has big scratches left in it. Final polishing used to be
done with paste polishes (and took ages), but these days it's far
easier to buy some Micro-mesh abrasives. These work excellently well
for polishing acrylic.

I bought acrylic doors for an entertainment centre that were cut to
size on a tablesaw. By experimentation, I found that I could polish
the edges by using a hand scraper to get rid of the blade marks and
then a polishing wheel in a drill to finish them off. I was pleased to
find out that it was a very fast process. Maybe not the established
procedure, but it worked well for me.

In article , Upscale wrote:
I bought acrylic doors for an entertainment centre that were cut to
size on a tablesaw. By experimentation, I found that I could polish
the edges by using a hand scraper to get rid of the blade marks and
then a polishing wheel in a drill to finish them off. I was pleased to
find out that it was a very fast process. Maybe not the established
procedure, but it worked well for me.

Thanks, Upscale, that idea's a keeper.

On Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:59:44 GMT, (Doug Miller)
wrote:

Thanks, Upscale, that idea's a keeper.

You're welcome Doug. After first trying the process of increasingly
finer grits of sandpaper and then using the polishing compound, I
realized that impatience would get to me long before any edges were
polished. So, I looked for a shortcut.

"-MIKE-" wrote in message
...
On 7/18/10 9:38 PM, Doug Miller wrote:
In
,
wrote:
On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.

Correct, but potentially misleading -- the solvent you need is *not* the
same
stuff used for PVC plumbing. The principle is the same, but the substance
is
not. The stuff you need is called IPS Weld-On. You won't find it at Home
Depot
or Ace Hardware. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics". Any plastics
dealer either carries this, or can tell you who does. Check with sign
shops,
too.

Wow, Doug. Really?

How is that misleading? I told him to ask the manufacturer.
I wrote it's "like" pvc, not "is" pvc.

Are you a corporate lawyer or something? :-)


Nope. he's just an agitator.

On Jul 18, 6:14*pm, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed

I did the same project many years ago and offer the following tips in
answer to your questions.

1 . There are 3 techniques used to bond acrylic plastics together
depending on strength requirements, they are capillary, soak cementing
or reactive. The capillary method can be accomplished using ethylene
dichoride applied with a hyperdermic syringe. The reason for the
syringe applicator is neatness counts. Spills away from the seem will
show. Syringes are not easy to obtain as they have other nefarious
uses.

2 and 3. No idea.

Try reaching the acrylic manufacturers such as Rohm and Hass, DuPont
and many others. They usually can supply booklets or web sites with
details of fabrication which should authoritatively answer all your
questions.

Automotive tail light assemblies used (and maybe still are) to made of
cast acrylic plastics.

Joe G

In article , Upscale wrote:
On Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:59:44 GMT, (Doug Miller)
wrote:

Thanks, Upscale, that idea's a keeper.

You're welcome Doug. After first trying the process of increasingly
finer grits of sandpaper and then using the polishing compound, I
realized that impatience would get to me long before any edges were
polished. So, I looked for a shortcut.

It's been a few years since I had to do that, but the last time I did I
smoothed the edges as best I could with a file before digging out the
sandpaper. Took a lot less time than it would have to do everything with
sandpaper, but I'll surely give the scraper a try the next time I have to do
this. I expect it to be quite a bit faster than files.

On 7/19/10 7:09 AM, Doug Miller wrote:
In , wrote:
On 7/18/10 9:38 PM, Doug Miller wrote:
In ,
wrote:
On 7/18/10 5:14 PM, Ed Lowenstein wrote:
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed


Ask the manufacturer what "glue" to use. Most of it is like pvc
plumbing, in which the solvent actually melts the two pieces together.

Correct, but potentially misleading -- the solvent you need is *not* the same
stuff used for PVC plumbing. The principle is the same, but the substance is
not. The stuff you need is called IPS Weld-On. You won't find it at Home Depot
or Ace Hardware. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Plastics". Any plastics
dealer either carries this, or can tell you who does. Check with sign shops,
too.

Wow, Doug. Really?

How is that misleading? I told him to ask the manufacturer.
I wrote it's "like" pvc, not "is" pvc.

Are you a corporate lawyer or something? :-)

I said "potentially misleading". And IMHO it is -- someone not reading
carefully could conclude that PVC pipe solvent would work for that job. Since
the OP clearly doesn't know what to use, I wanted to clarify for his benefit
that it won't.

Yeah, ok buddy.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

On 7/19/10 11:19 AM, Doug Miller wrote:
In , wrote:
On Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:59:44 GMT, (Doug Miller)
wrote:

Thanks, Upscale, that idea's a keeper.

You're welcome Doug. After first trying the process of increasingly
finer grits of sandpaper and then using the polishing compound, I
realized that impatience would get to me long before any edges were
polished. So, I looked for a shortcut.

It's been a few years since I had to do that, but the last time I did I
smoothed the edges as best I could with a file before digging out the
sandpaper. Took a lot less time than it would have to do everything with
sandpaper, but I'll surely give the scraper a try the next time I have to do
this. I expect it to be quite a bit faster than files.


It makes perfect sense that a scraper would work.
Those hooked scoring tools they sell for plexi are essentially very
narrow scrapers.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

On Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:19:15 GMT, (Doug Miller)
wrote:
sandpaper, but I'll surely give the scraper a try the next time I have to do
this. I expect it to be quite a bit faster than files.

And definitely a lot smoother than files. A few seconds with the
polishing wheel tells me if I need to go further with the scraper or
just continue with the polishing wheel.

In article , -MIKE- wrote:
On 7/19/10 11:19 AM, Doug Miller wrote:
In ,
wrote:
On Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:59:44 GMT, (Doug Miller)
wrote:

Thanks, Upscale, that idea's a keeper.

You're welcome Doug. After first trying the process of increasingly
finer grits of sandpaper and then using the polishing compound, I
realized that impatience would get to me long before any edges were
polished. So, I looked for a shortcut.

It's been a few years since I had to do that, but the last time I did I
smoothed the edges as best I could with a file before digging out the
sandpaper. Took a lot less time than it would have to do everything with
sandpaper, but I'll surely give the scraper a try the next time I have to do
this. I expect it to be quite a bit faster than files.


It makes perfect sense that a scraper would work.

Of course it does. It just never occurred to me. That's why I'm grateful to
Upscale for mentioning it.

On 2010-07-18, Ed Lowenstein wrote:

1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. If straight acetone
is too difficult to work with, mix some Plexiglas sawdust with it till
you get the consistency you want.

nb

The commercial solvents are just pure acetone, the main ingredient in nail
polish remover.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-nail-polish-remover.htm

but the commercial plexiglass solvents come in a nice hypodermic style
dispenser. If it touches the plexiglass elsewhere it disolves it too and it
looks like hell.


Plexiglass is an old product that will yellow on you. Look for polycarbonate
(depending on usage) at Home Depot, Single , double and triple thicknesses
are available for green house and other usage


"Ed Lowenstein" wrote in message
...
I planning a project where I'll need to make boxes with plexiglass
sides. I need to know 2 things:
1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?
2. What adhesive to bond edges of plexiglass boxes too sapele base?
3. What thickness of plexiglass should I buy?
Thanks in advance.
--- Ed

What he really means is nobody else can read like he can.

"-MIKE-" wrote in message
...
Yeah, ok buddy.

In article , notbob wrote:
On 2010-07-18, Ed Lowenstein wrote:

1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. If straight acetone
is too difficult to work with, mix some Plexiglas sawdust with it till
you get the consistency you want.

That is not correct. Acetone does not dissolve plexiglass.

Really?

Can you cite some sites to back that up?



"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
That is not correct. Acetone does not dissolve plexiglass.

In article , notbob
wrote:
On 2010-07-18, Ed Lowenstein wrote:

1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. If straight acetone
is too difficult to work with, mix some Plexiglas sawdust with it till
you get the consistency you want.

Once a know-it-all troll, always a know-it-all troll!

and as usual, Full of **** 61% of the time!


http://familywoodworking.org/forums/...ad.php?p=94220

http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasc.../chem00825.htm

http://www.thepenshop.net/Library%20...ence/Plexi.pdf

http://www.rplastics.com/faqs.html

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/s...d.php?t=353848

http://www.ehow.com/how_5229770_glue...-together.html

http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/28985/

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/f...s-finish-6957/

http://www.wizdforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6661



"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
That is not correct. Acetone does not dissolve plexiglass.


In article , notbob
wrote:
On 2010-07-18, Ed Lowenstein wrote:

1. What adhesive to bond 2 pieces of plexiglass?

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. If straight acetone
is too difficult to work with, mix some Plexiglas sawdust with it till
you get the consistency you want.

On Jul 19, 11:37*am, GROVER wrote:


Syringes are not easy to obtain as they have *other nefarious
uses.

TSC stores carry syringes for the farming community. Easy to obtain. I
buy them all the time to glue small letters to a substrate.

I recall a model maker neighbor used laquer thinner to bond plastics,
but that's been fifty years or so ago.

I would suggest visiting a big hobby shop. I was in one recently and
saw a rack filled with specialized adhesives and a counter manned by
hobbyists!

As to the wooden base, might you rout a groove to take the plastic?
Recessing the box into the base might serve to hide the joint and the
glue used.

On 19 July, 20:16, "Josepi" wrote:
The commercial solvents are just pure acetone, the main ingredient in nail
polish remover.

Nail polish remover has been cellulose acetate, not acetone, for some
years now. Doesn't dry skin as much, but it's useless in the workshop.

On 19 July, 18:47, notbob wrote:

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. *

You'll be lucky. Acetone dissolves acrylic well enough that a spill
is damaging to the surface, but not well enough that it makes a useful
solvent glue.

On 19 July, 12:59, wrote:

These days, edge polishing of plexiglas is done with a flame.

That tends to round the corners, so it's good for bare edges, but not
if you're trying to make butt joints.

I make my display cases with 45° butted mitres. I can saw these on the
bandsaw, but they still need polishing up to 400 grit wet & dry if
they're to be invisible, even after solvent welding.

Nail polish remover is also full of perfume and oils to relieve the nasty
effects on your skin from the acetone.

I wasn't suggesting to use it. I should have elaborated more.


"Andy Dingley" wrote in message
...
Nail polish remover has been cellulose acetate, not acetone, for some
years now. Doesn't dry skin as much, but it's useless in the workshop

On 19 July, 20:16, "Josepi" wrote:
The commercial solvents are just pure acetone, the main ingredient in nail
polish remover.

..

On Tue, 20 Jul 2010 08:58:59 -0700 (PDT), Andy Dingley
wrote the following:

On 19 July, 18:47, notbob wrote:

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. *

You'll be lucky. Acetone dissolves acrylic well enough that a spill
is damaging to the surface, but not well enough that it makes a useful
solvent glue.

Greenhouse friends of mine from the 1970s use acetone exclusively for
their orchid containers. All solvents which attack acrylic will damage
the surface and most work really well for glue. Acetone is thin, quick
drying, and has a very nice capillary action. shrug

--
Exercise ferments the humors, casts them into their proper channels,
throws off redundancies, and helps nature in those secret distributions,
without which the body cannot subsist in its vigor, nor the soul act
with cheerfulness. -- Joseph Addison, The Spectator, July 12, 1711

On 2010-07-21, Larry Jaques wrote:

Greenhouse friends of mine from the 1970s use acetone exclusively for
their orchid containers. All solvents which attack acrylic will damage
the surface and most work really well for glue. Acetone is thin, quick
drying, and has a very nice capillary action. shrug

Yeah. I guess I was just hallucinating when the whole class used it
in a Summer school crafts shop dedicated to working with Fiberglas.
Musta been from sniffing all that acetone.

Are there better solvents? Yes. MEK is fun, if you don't mind yer
kid being born with flippers. DCM, the primary solvent in Tap acrylic
cement. You checked the prices at Tap Plastics, lately? Bring $$$!!
Otherwise, acetone (which is no saint) works jes fine.

nb

On 7/21/2010 2:04 PM, notbob wrote:
On 2010-07-21, Larry wrote:

Greenhouse friends of mine from the 1970s use acetone exclusively for
their orchid containers. All solvents which attack acrylic will damage
the surface and most work really well for glue. Acetone is thin, quick
drying, and has a very nice capillary action.shrug

Yeah. I guess I was just hallucinating when the whole class used it
in a Summer school crafts shop dedicated to working with Fiberglas.
Musta been from sniffing all that acetone.

Are there better solvents? Yes. MEK is fun, if you don't mind yer
kid being born with flippers. DCM, the primary solvent in Tap acrylic
cement. You checked the prices at Tap Plastics, lately? Bring $$$!!
Otherwise, acetone (which is no saint) works jes fine.

nb


Isn't the cleaning fluid that plumbers use to clean and prime PVC pipe
before gluing MEK based?
The stuff I have in my workshop is I'm sure.
I'll check and report back

--
Kevin (Bluey)
"I'm not young enough to know everything."

"notbob" wrote in message
...
On 2010-07-21, Larry Jaques wrote:

Greenhouse friends of mine from the 1970s use acetone exclusively for
their orchid containers. All solvents which attack acrylic will damage
the surface and most work really well for glue. Acetone is thin, quick
drying, and has a very nice capillary action. shrug

Yeah. I guess I was just hallucinating when the whole class used it
in a Summer school crafts shop dedicated to working with Fiberglas.
Musta been from sniffing all that acetone.

Prolly was, as you seem to be carping at someone who suggested using it.


Are there better solvents? Yes. MEK is fun, if you don't mind yer
kid being born with flippers. DCM, the primary solvent in Tap acrylic
cement. You checked the prices at Tap Plastics, lately? Bring $$$!!
Otherwise, acetone (which is no saint) works jes fine.

nb

In article , notbob wrote:
On 2010-07-21, Larry Jaques wrote:

Greenhouse friends of mine from the 1970s use acetone exclusively for
their orchid containers. All solvents which attack acrylic will damage
the surface and most work really well for glue. Acetone is thin, quick
drying, and has a very nice capillary action. shrug

Yeah. I guess I was just hallucinating when the whole class used it
in a Summer school crafts shop dedicated to working with Fiberglas.

Fiberglass and plexiglas are *not* the same thing. Acetone is an excellent
solvent for the resins that make up the former; it has no effect on the
latter.
Musta been from sniffing all that acetone.

In article , lid wrote:
On Tue, 20 Jul 2010 08:58:59 -0700 (PDT), Andy Dingley
wrote the following:

On 19 July, 18:47, notbob wrote:

All you really need to bond Plexiglas is acetone. *

You'll be lucky. Acetone dissolves acrylic well enough that a spill
is damaging to the surface, but not well enough that it makes a useful
solvent glue.

Greenhouse friends of mine from the 1970s use acetone exclusively for
their orchid containers. All solvents which attack acrylic will damage
the surface and most work really well for glue. Acetone is thin, quick
drying, and has a very nice capillary action. shrug

Don't know what solvent you're actually thinking of, but it's not acetone.
Acetone does *not* dissolve plexiglass. Here, try an experiment: soak a rag in
acetone and wipe it across a piece of acrylic plastic -- then watch as the
acetone evaporates, leaving the plastic totally unscathed.

On 2010-07-21, Lobby Dosser wrote:

Prolly was, as you seem to be carping at someone who suggested using it.

It would "seem" your use of the word indicates you're not sure. Good
thing, too, cuz yer wrong.

nb