RE: Home Made CA Kicker

RE: Home Made CA Kicker
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RE: Home Made CA Kicker - 5/9/2008 1:22:47 PM

MJD

Posts: 1509
Joined: 5/27/2003
From: Orangeville, ON, CANADA
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: scratchonly

I read somewhere that it is nitromethane. I have never tried it.

Nope! Nitromethane is a solvent for cured CA though, very effective.

(in reply to scratchonly)

Post #: 26

RE: Home Made CA Kicker - 5/9/2008 1:40:04 PM

MJD

Posts: 1509
Joined: 5/27/2003
From: Orangeville, ON, CANADA
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: 2boys

As it was explained to me by my LHS- kicker is only suppose to heat up the CA to cure it instantly. Notably there is smoke and heat associated with kickers. I hate using it cuz it smells so bad and when I can I heat it up with a hair drier. I wasn't born into the world of convenience so waiting 10 minutes doesn't bother me, beats waiting 24 hours like we used to.

Typical LHS technical advice. Ask them what fuel to use in 1/2A engines...

CA is kept storage stable by an acid inhibitor. When it encounters an alkali environment the pH shift deactivates the inhibitor and the CA homopolymerizes - i.e. cures. Heat is a by-product of the polymerization reaction. Smoke and fumes are a symptom of an overly rapid reaction, usually excessive catalyst but surface chemistry plays a major role as well.

I make my own CA kicker, but that's cheating because I spent 20 years in chem labs of various sorts, and I bought a 250ml reagent bottle of the pure catalyst which will last me for years. I mix it at the 1-2% level (2% would be typical) with a variety of organic solvents, such as THF or MEK, depending on the end use. Original CA kickers used Freon.. umm, 113 IIRC.. as the carrier/solvent, because it is liquid at room temp but has high vapor pressure and flashes off very quickly with no detrimental effect on the substrate - ozone destruction notwithstanding. I think spraying water on CA joints is one of the worst things you can do but people insist on cheaping out on CA kickers - use them wisely and they last a long time. Keep your bottles of CA well away from the kicker, and don't spray it near or esp. towards the CA bottles. Baking soda or ammonia with water is guaranteed to negatively impact the strength of the final bond by it's mere presence, but if you must, go right ahead.

If convenience is not an issue then I would be using a lot more aliphatic glue - CA is not the toughest adhesive out there but it is certainly the fastest.

Just my thoughts.

MJD

(in reply to 2boys)

Post #: 27

RE: Home Made CA Kicker - 5/10/2008 1:23:05 PM

aimmaintenance

Posts: 693
Joined: 9/11/2003
From: Montpelier, OH, USA
Status: offline

I built a kit a couple years ago that was made in the mid seventies. CA didn't seem to want to bond at all. (or kick)
I assumed it was because the wood was so dry due to it's age. Is my assumption correct?
Is it possible that I just simply got a bad bottle of glue?

_____________________________

If it's still in one piece means I haven't flown it yet.

(in reply to MJD)

Post #: 28

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