Assembling and gluing

Superglue has strong bonding properties but still takes time to cure. Depending on the type of superglue you use, the curing time may be too long for you needs. Hence the need for an accelerator which is almost immediate. Super glue relies on...

There are several trains of thought on the best way to secure parts together temporarily. Some suggest using a small amount of super glue, rubber glue or even PVA glue. All of these are fine but will leave a glue residue when pulled apart....

The reason for test fitting before gluing is simply to make sure the piece will actually fit into place. One example of this would be, if you were building a plastic kit and are going to fit a piece with a square peg into a square hole you need...

The best way to glue a cardboard kit like Metcalfe or Superquick is to read and follow the instructions that are supplied with the kit. We are all guilty of thinking we know best and we don't need the instructions to build something, most of the...

There are several glues out there on the market for gluing plastic kits. The most commonly used would have to be a poly cement and it is probably the best glue if you are just starting out in the hobby. Poly cement contains a solvent that melts...

This really depends on what it is you plan to glue, most things can be glued straight from the bottle, but this will give you quite a large bead of glue on application, which may be more than you need and cause an over spill on your model leaving...

There is glue specifically designed for gluing photo etched parts, but this is basically a strong super glue (cyanoacrylate glue). Depending on what it is you are gluing, a good superglue will suffice in most cases. Some people even use PVA glue...

That would very much depend on what it is you are trying to glue the balsa wood to, if you are gluing it to another piece of balsa wood, I would say either balsa cement or PVA glue. This would be the same for gluing it to cardboard, paper and...

A G clamp is traditionally used in wood working for holding pieces of wood in place whilst being glued etc and come in many sizes. In the world of modelling you can get a sized down version, which you can use for clamping more or less anything...

This is really dependent on what it is you plan to glue. There are several different glues for different materials.  If you are planning on gluing a plastic kit, then the best glue to use is polystyrene cement. Some modellers use superglue or...

The main problem, which we have all been guilty of at one time or another is using too much glue. The secret is: "you don't need very much glue". When it comes to applying the glue to the model, try using a cocktail stick/tooth pick or a...

Kit bashing is when you take two or more model kits to make something unique to you. This may include parts that you already have in your spares box as well. Another way of explaining it: kit bashing is the art of creating something else out of...