Best glue to PERMANENTLY attach a Plastic Nose cone to a Paper Body Tube

[BABAR]

Using an Estes Viking Nose Cone on a BT-20 paper body tube for the nose of a boost glider. The nose cone remains hollow and the shock cord attachment is left OFF.

Glider is rear eject--- -the nose cone CANNOT be allowed to fail. I would prefer NOT to use a bulkhead, as my ejection pod has the weight FAR forward (and actually extends inside the nose cone hollow center at launch.)

I tried plastic model glue already. It worked, but....

Pop pod ejected flawlessly.
Glider flew nearly flawlessly.

When I picked up the glider, the nose cone literally fell off in my hand

Better to be lucky than good.

[GDJ]

For me, scotch tape to take up any clearances <> the nose cone and the bodytube, and the Gel CA glue. Used this method on Estes Big Bertha rear eject model and used masking tape and Gorilla Wood Glue on a BT and Balsa nose cone for my Long Tom mod, but the same proceedure. So far no signs that there is any chance of those parts coming loose (and that's after 4 flights).

[Tarasdad]

Medium or thick CA would work. So would epoxy.

[blackbrandt]

+1 on epoxy. Just a 5 minute epoxy picked up at Lowes would do great. Just don't skimp, and sand the joint between the body tube and the NC

[torpedan]

don't skimp

scotch tape to take up any clearances

These two things are the key to creating a strong joint in this application. In general terms, the strength of an adhesive bond in this scenario is going to be relative to the clearance between the two surfaces and the amount of surface area the adhesive bonds them over. The joint will be made stronger by keeping the clearances tight and using as much contact surface area as possible (basically be sure the whole shoulder on the nose cone is covered). That being said, +2 on the epoxy.

[chadrog]

Rough up both surfaces with 80 grit, epoxy together. Tube will likely fail before joint does.

[gpoehlein]

I often use the method Estes and Centuri used back in the early days - I use a piece of self adhesive mailing label stock (Avery makes an 8x11 sheet that I use for covering fins too) cut to fit the shoulder of the nose cone. Stick the label on the nose cone, then use white glue to glue the nose into the body tube. I've not had a failure yet. Oh, and whe I use a nose cone like this (works in various size versions of George Gassaway's Tasmanian Devil, too) I will often glue a disk of cardstock to the base of the nose cone instead of the shock cord attachment piece -just keeps ejection charge soot out of the nose cone. Saving the attachment piece isn't a big deal on either Wizard or Yankee nose cones, but since a lot of my BT-5 nose cones don't come with them (I keep several 220 Swift and Quark around just for their nose cones), having spares on hand is a good thing.

[Micromeister]

Permanent is sort of a misgiving:
Regardless of which adhesive or Glueing method is chosen..Eventually over time the bond is going to release. Might be 20 years down the road but that is the hard reality of Adhesive Bonds.

With the possible exception of a very few Factory applied Structural adhesives, your best choices for longevity are as Greg mentioned Adhesive lable and white glue or any decent 2 part epoxy well give you more than 10years service. No matter which adhesive or glue method is used be sure to rough-up the shoulder surface of the Plastic part with 80-120grit sandpaper before applying the adhesive backed lable or epoxy.

CA's become brittle pretty quickly with exposure to air and UV. CA's are fine for (Short Term) building and spot tacking but should not be used for long term or in high stress areas.

[gpoehlein]

Heh... As Micromeister and many others on the board know - sometimes the old ways are STILL the best!

[Rocketbuilder]

If it wouldn't get in the way of the weight that slides into the nose cone, maybe you could epoxy the no scone in after roughing it and the interior of the tube with sandpaper, then drill two tiny holes opposite each other, through the tube and into the nose cone shoulder. Then, just thread two tiny screws into the holes; that would prevent the nose cone from popping off even if the epoxy broke down.

[HammerZ2008]

A #2004 Estes Tornado I took a pin drill and drilled a number of holes in the shoulder of the cone. This way the glue locks onto it. At first I thought sanding would do it, but it still broke loose. Drilling holes at least the epoxy or just standard model glue would hold it on. The instructions just said to use model glue so that is the way I first built it. It is funny that plastic glue sticks to the tube but let go of the plastic cone.

One thing I forgot to add, Most plastic nosecones have a mold release on them. That can keep the glues from sticking. All sanding will do is just push it into the grooves. Before sanding or drilling I give them a good wipedown with Goo Gone or something (plain white vinegar is the old timer go to) that will strip the release agent off the plastic. Even the very oil from your hands can keep glues from getting a good bite on plastic, so a good idea to go over it again just before glueing it in place.

Build and fly a few Swifts and Quarks and you will learn these things.

[dave carver]

Gorilla Glue or Liqued Nails. I assemble speaker cabinets with Gorilla or other Polyurathane glues. Apply the glue to the plastic and wet the tube just a bit, like a drop or two on a finger rubbed on the tubing. Don't soak it out or nothing like that. The glue and water react and the glue expands and fills every space then sets up. If you look at the structure of the set up glue you see micro bubbles from gas expansion. That is what fills the space. It won't come apart, ever. Liqued Nails comes in a "hobby" sized tube, way easier to work with than a caulking applicator tube which also has a place in very large rocket construction. I think it also comes in pints, quarts and gallons depending on your needs.

Just wanted to throw in a few alternates

[RadManCF]

In my rear eject models, I just friction fit the nose. But if you want A good bond, without excessive weight, I would suggest a polystyrene cement. The thicker cements are quite effective at bonding plastic to porous materials. I've never used any of the thinner cements, which are almost entirely solvent. I've mostly used Testors liquid cement, but I suppose the stuff from the tube could work also. Testors actually makes two liquid cements, one comes in a plastic container with a metal spout, the other comes in a jar. IIRC, the stuff in the plastic container is thicker, as it has some styrene dissolved in it. IMO, one of the thinner, mostly solvent cements would be nearly useless for bonding plastic to porous materials. The thicker cements can penetrate the porous material, and leave styrene in the pores, creating a strong bond.

[cwbullet]

Epoxy or Urethane will work.

[Marc_G]

Amazing Household Goop. Or the similar Amazing All-purpose Goop. These will solvent weld to the cone. And properly smeared into the tube, will soak in and be as permanent as anything else. Cheap, easy, but a bit stinky.

[BEC]

Pacer Formula 560 (http://www.horizonhobby.com/products...y-glue-PAAPT56). This looks like Elmer's glue but isn't - and works wonderfully for plastic-to-paper or plastic-to-balsa joints. Not brittle like CAs, no expansion mess like urethane, cleans with water (unlike epoxies or GOOP family glues). Though if I didn't have the Formula 560 and did have GOOP on hand, that's what I'd use.

[boomtube]

Gluing plastics these days is a lot more “interesting” than it once was. That’s because back in the good old days pretty much anything hobby related that was plastic was styrene plastic and Testor’s model glue was king.

Now-a-days we get plastics that nothing appears to “stick” to and if you don’t have the proper solvent you’re hooped.

So I’d go with the tape and ACC method. The tape will likely adhere to whatever type of plastic is being used and the ACC will bond the tape to the paper tube.

Be forewarned; there is a type of “Plastic” that has the look and feel of that hard rubbery stuff bath tub duckies are made from. I’ve used both Scotch Tape as well as masking tape and after a couple of weeks or so the tape will slip off the shoulder easy-peasy leaving behind a slimy film.

I have been informed this is the result of out-gassing from the plastic. These same types of nose cones are a cast-ironed b*&%h to paint. I’ve obtained great results only to have them bubble or flake off weeks later.

[Tarasdad]

If you use Gorrila Glue or another expanding polyurethane adhesive make sure you drill a few holes through the shoulder of the NC. The glue will expand through the holes anh help bind the NC to the BT. If you're able to apply a thin film of glue to he inside of the shoulder area it will help lock everything in place.

[jimzcatz]

Im sure you have already figured this out, but I have had great success with Testors plastic cement. Warning, the blue tube is useless,you MUST use the toxic stuff in the orange tube. Has always worked for me.

[Coop]

Sand w/ med-coarse, 5 min epoxy, and a pair of hose clamps around the outside of the airframe until cured.


Later!

--Coop