Easy to find Acrylic Bonding Agents

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WalterMelon

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 23, 2008
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Minnesota
The closest plastic shop I could find, is an 1 1/2 round trip from my house, and I don't feel like mail ordering solvents, so I took some acrylic scraps and did some tests with a few chemicals I had laying around the house

Testors No. 3521 model cement
Loctite SuperGlue Gel
Specs Paint Thinner
PVC cement
PVC Primer

I made a Butt joint with a 2 1" long pieces of 1/8" acrylic and let them dry for 2 hours
I have rated them all by :goldfish:s 0 being the worst 5 being the best


Testors No 3521 model cement :goldfish:
Extremely weak bond took forever to even set-up
Not Recommended

Loctite SuperGlue Gel :goldfish::goldfish::goldfish::goldfish:
Fast set up very strong lost points for crazing/hazing the surface, seems capable of filling in gaps.
Recommended for filling in gaps and use in non-visible areas, also good for tacking together pieces to be joined by a different solvent later.

Specs Paint Thinner 0
No bond whatsoever, pretty much what I expected, but i figured it was worth a try.
Don't even think about it.

Oatley's Regular PVC Cement :goldfish::goldfish::goldfish:
Moderate Bonding strength, fairly fast set up. May be useful for bonding PVC to acrylic. I have used this method before to build a 4"x4"x4" cube that held water with no leaks for over two days.
Use it in a pinch or for PVC to acrylic interfaces

Harvey's Clear PVC Primer :goldfish::goldfish::goldfish::goldfish::goldfish:
Excellent Bond Strength, takes a while to develop high strength. This stuff is a mix of tetrahydrofuran and Methyl Ethyl Ketone. This is the same mix thats in this cement. Its also pretty similar to Weld-On 1802, add that to the fact that any place that sells PVC also sells primer, you are set
Highly Recommend

Some future tests...
Using PVC cement diluted with primer, adding acrlyic shavings to PVC cement, PVC primer and diluted PVC cement.

EDIT: If you can get your hands on manufacturer recommended solvents use those. Make sure you test anything you build before using it.
 
i had some 10x14 1/4'' acrylic laying around and got board and tried to make a few grow outs for some fry. All my test had silicon over top of the glue. The first test was model cement (orange tube) and it failed in under 24 hours and just did not bond strong enouth to hold the pressure. The next was super glue and it failed allmost immediatly from pressure. And the 3rd was permatex zip grip gap filling high bond. And it lasted 3 days and one side started to deform and the seal let loose. After the all failed you could take and flick the glue off with a finger nail. It just did not bond with the plastic. They all failed in the same spot which was in the middle and on the bottom. i was told this is the highest pressure spot on a tank. -----------------Let us know what you find out. basically if you find a chemical that will disolve the plastic some and then evaporate then it will melt the 2 togetther. Or basically a solvent based glue.
 
reading is for winners----------------

The closest plastic shop I could find, is an 1 1/2 round trip from my house, and I don't feel like mail ordering solvents, so I took some acrylic scraps and did some tests with a few chemicals I had laying around the house
---------------------------you of all people should understand the value of finding another way.(DIY) I have checked homedepot,lowes,ace do not sell acrylic cements. 42 of my diy projects and ideas
 
MEK is by far the best way to 'weld' acrylic together. A coworker of mine (at a glue company of all places) bonded some acrylic together to make a reptile habitat for his Kenyan Sand Boas - seamless, invisible, water tight, and strong. Makes the acrylic look like it was made for a fish tank haha.
 
CHOMPERS;2127282; said:
Why did you use the word 'my' when the link is Midnights?
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Cause i was saying that he is the DIY king and is :ROFL:cause someone is trying to find a DIY way to do something. Which is pretty :ROFL::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL::ROFL:-----------------you get it.
 
dirtyblacksocks;2128530; said:
Any of this stuff been water tested for fish safety?
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Since it will be covered by a air tight and water tight substance thats has been used for decades (silicone) on aquariums. It will be ok.
 
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