Ernie Misner

If two planks are glued flush on top of each other, but the parts cannot be accessed to clamp them together, will there still be decent strength there? (the polyuethane glues expand when curing, so the two planks will not be perfectly together)

If just trying to add strength to the inside seams of an ARF, would running a little fillet of gorilla glue be adequate or similar in strength to adding a fillet of CA or epoxy to these joints?

When gluing wood to wood with gorilla glue, do most of you slightly moisten the parts first, or just "go for it"?

Thanks for you input or ideas,

Ernie

Gringo Flyer

My Feedback: (18)

Gorilla glue works a lot better with a little moisture.

In this situation I think I would just use wood glue.

If you want to use gorilla glue it would be fine as well bc I assume you would put it on two pieces that are already part of the airplane so in some way they are already reinforced.

But would glue would be cleaner, easier, and just as goodin this case.

bubbagates

My Feedback: (32)

Ernie,

Acording to the Gorilla Glue FAQ

http://www.gorillaglue.com/faqs.htm

Yep, it must have some kind of pressure on it since it expands

Ernie Misner

Gosh, thanks for the link to their site. Now why wouldn't I have thought of that?

Ernie

JohnW

My Feedback: (6)

If you can't get a clamp on the parts, try putting a few small dabs of medium CA on the parts in addition to the poly glue. The CA will set quickly and hold the parts together. Then as the poly expands, it won't lift the part. You'd need to use some caution and common sense with this technique, but I've used it before and it works fine.

Yes, poly will work well as a fillet. It is lighter than CA and Epoxy, but I'd still use minimal glue. I'd suggest making a tool (i.e. a stick), to help spread a small quantity directly in the corner. You can accelerate/increase the foaming by lightly misting with water.

Cheers.

Ernie Misner

Great input guys! One question at least still remains though. I've used it without adding any moisture and it still seemed to foam up and work fine. If I had misted or dampened the parts a little, would it have dried any quicker, or be any stronger in the end? I think there is some moisture already in balsa. That is what kicks the CA so quickly in basla too, isn't it? Perhaps on metal or plastic parts the Gorilla glue wouldn't set up without some moisture?

Thanks,

Ernie

Deadeye

Yes, you would get quicker cure times by misting. It can set without added moisture, but how long depends on the humidity in the air.

As you work with and get to know poly glues, you can do all sorts of stuff with it. Try aiming a monokote heat gun (12 inches away at least) at the glue sometime. See those bubbles? See it expand right before your eyes? Now lay a bead on a piece of cardboard. Mist it, and set in a warm 80 degree enviorment. Take another piece of cardboard and another bead. Don't mist it, and leave it at 70 degrees or room temerature. You will be amazed at the difference in set times. This also helps one understand the characteristics of this glue.

Last night I had firewall repair on my TwinStar. Those 40 LAs proved to be too much pull for the joke of a gusset system they used. I removed the old gussets, dremeld the area clean, and lay down polyglue beads in the corners after I misted behind the firewall. I used 3/8 basswood for gussets, applying the polyglue to the corner of the gusset where it contacs the firewall and nacelle side. I didn't clamp for 15 minutes, as i wanted the poly to expand inside the tabbed area of the firewall. Mission accomplished. No way in heck are those firewalls coming loose now.