acrylic bonding/solvent agent

[thefatman]

ok folks. i REALLY need to get my sump done TODAY. i went and bought a bunch of 1/4" acrylic today and a good acrylic cutting blade..

however neither lowes, nor hd, nor ace carries weld-on in any of the recommend numbers.

so what now? i did find some stuff at lowes, called:

Plastix made by loctite
advanced plastic bonder
guaranteed, repairs any plastic. instand bond. no mixing.
hard & soft plastics. polyethylene, polypropylene.

directions:
clean and dry surfaces to be bonded.
using built in brush, apply the surface activator to both sides to be joined.
wait 20 seconds for activator to completely dry.
apply sparingly to one side only
keeping your hands steady, press sides together immediately. hold in place for 30 seconds until bond sets. do not reposition parts.

it SOUNDS like the same stuff as weld-on. only drawback was that the tubes are super-glue size tubes. so i had to buy 4 tubes, and hope that will be enough.

there is also a note.
note: repairs made with plastix are not weather resistant or dishwasher safe. not recommended for repairs needing high flexibility.

i thoguht i could get around the weather deal by applying a bead of aquarium silicone to all the inside edges and the joint would never actually get wet.

any ideas?

btw: i opened one package, and did a test wiht two small pieces of acrylic.. i waited 5 minutes. could not break the bond with my hands. had to use two pairs of plyers to snap the pieces apart.. SEEMED like a really good joint.

[thefatman]

i know it's only been 15 minutes.. but...anyone?

[thefatman]

this is what i bought.. this place says works on acrylic http://www.crlaurence.com/ProductPag...D=3560&Origin=

[MontanaRocknReefer]

Jay the stuff sounds great and I don't see any problems with it! Having not done any of that kind of DIY project I would not want to be the one to say "Yeah go ahead and use it" and then find out it was not good!
My gut feeling says go with your plan!

[thefatman]

thanks johnny. i just finished cutting and sanding all the acrylic. so i'm gonna give it a shot.. we'll see what happens.

btw: i did another test with two pieces.. and let them sit while i cut all my peices.. trying to break them apart and couldnt. not even with two pliers. had to put one in the vise and bend the other back with pliers, that finally snapped them apart.

so i'm confidant this stuff will work. my only concern is the comment about not being weather resistant. so i am going to silicone all the seams just to be safe.

[Geoff]

sorry, Jay been really busy today. A/C went down for most of the day.

how did the pieces break. if it did not break clean at all then you should be fine. weld-on contains methylene chloride, nasty stuff, but boy does it work well on acrylic. look and see if it is in the warning label.

if you plan on working with acrylic more i suggest getting yourself a can of Weld-on 3 and a tube of #16 or even slightly higher. the bigger the number the thicker the cement. i have never been able to find the stuff at anywhere but a plastics place. you may be albe to find a Tapp plastics around you. they will carry all of this. including thick enough acrylic to be dangerous.

G~

[Stoney Reef]

NO! Don't use that glue!!!!!! . . . LOL!

[Buzz_Hog]

Of all people to listen to.... Jay listened to Johnny....

[thefatman]

i dont want to talk about it.

[MontanaRocknReefer]

Man I'm in trouble now!! Remember son I'm your dad!! Ya didn't forget did ya!

[Stoney Reef]

didn't your stand design call for a sealed bottom to catch those overflows? Heck with that glue, you will really be able to test it!

[cyberchef]

Jay check with a local glass/plexi supply/store/shop. Here in Columbus (GA), the glass shops also sell plexi/acrylic and they carry the weldon adhesives.

[thefatman]

the glass shop where i got my tank drilled didnt carry it. cuz they also dont carry plexi or acrylic. which is why i went to lowes for the plexi.

the reason i couldnt get weldon was because it was a saturday so all the glass and plastic dealers were closed for the weekend.

i'm gonna get some on tuesday.

so basically it's my fault because it HAD to be done over the weekend. just too impatient, and poor planning.

but it feels better to blame johnny since he gave me the go ahead

[Thunder14]

I know of a place that you can order it. It is called USPlastic. www.usplastic.com. You can find alot of things to do with Acrylic.
They even have the PETG Clear Adhesive/ you use a syringe to apply it. They also have other types.