If CA comes in a plastic bottle, and does not stick to that, how does it stick to the plastic in the middle of a CA hinge? Are these made of different plastics? Or, does it just stick to the fiber cover with the plastic as a strength brace in the center?

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Luke[8D]

The secret is to keep the bottle closed, if you let it dry it'll stick to the plastic bottle as well. When you glue the hinge with CA it comes into contact with air and it dries and glues.

Primodus - That's why they put a laminate on the plastic that CA hinges are made of. You should pin the hinges for extra security and then the glue joint isn't soley responsible for holding the hinge.

PS. Good question, btw.

The bottle the CA comes in has a teflon content to the plastic. That is why the CA peels from it so easlly when you get a buildup on the tip.

Some plastics CA stiks to fairly well. Others it wn't stick at at all. Any plastic that flexes, tends to have the CA break off along the flex line.

Lightly sanding plastic will have the CA stick quite well (thats how we build SPAD type models... sand the coro and use thin or medium CA) The plastic will often tear before the CA will let go.

My understanding is that CA bottles (and nozzles and caps) are made of quite pure polyethylene, a plastic that very few glues stick to at all. There are plenty of plastics that CA will glue pretty well, such as PVC, and I'd guess nylon, since you can use CA to glue control rod housings. I'm not sure what plastic CA hinges are made out of, but it's not polyethylene. They seem to be a sandwich of materials, with the outside material very gluable.