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What to do when plastic cement doesn't cement!

Plastic cement is a formula that temporarily softens and melts the surface of most plastics. This makes it very useful for constructing plastic kits because two surfaces can be bonded together permanently and neatly without the use of messier glues. But now and then, you may come across a type of plastic that simply refuses to bond.
These are often much harder types of plastic such as the kind used on a lot of older model railway locomotive chassis, and often the only way to know (without being a plastic expert) whether plastic cement will work, is to give it a go.
That all seems straightforward enough, however, what you may not know is that plastic cements have different strengths, so it could be that you don't need to throw in the towel just yet.
Plastic Magic is a brand of plastic cement that sits nicely in the middle of the strength range. It is an accomplished product for everyday uses such as building plastic kits. If you require something a little stronger, try Plastic Weld, or stronger still, Mek-Pak. Mek-Pak is about as strong as you are going to get, so if it still doesn't work on plastic, alas, it's time to break out the cyanoacrylate (Super Glue).
It is extremely unlikely that a mid-range plastic cement such as Plastic Magic will be that strong that it causes damage to your model, but, if you require something weaker to give you a little more positioning time, Revell's Contacta Cement or Humbrol's Liquid Poly are a good option with Poly Cement coming in at the bottom of the potency table.

Although it is unrealistic to have every single tool, formula, solution, potion, widget and gadget in your toolbox for every conceivable eventuality, it may be worth your while having at least two of the plastic cements to hand, a stronger one for repairs, and a weaker one for kit building.

Posted in: Assembling and gluing

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