What have you found to be the best? I have tried rocket poxy, was ok but peeled off. Aeropoxy, better, wood stick let go first, but could still peel off with screw driver.
3D Printing Best glue for PLA
- Thread starter David Schwantz
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Charles_McG
Ciderwright
3D Gloop - but don't inhale.
Also, it doesn't fill very well.
I also use simple BSI 15-30 min epoxies on well scuffed surfaces.
Also, it doesn't fill very well.
I also use simple BSI 15-30 min epoxies on well scuffed surfaces.
I actually have foam tac drying now. Will test yet this weekend. Bout the same as Goop.
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Epoxy works well, as long as the surfaces have some roughness.
Winston
Lorenzo von Matterhorn
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This by a considerable margin against epoxy and everything else according to a YouTube channel that did a very well done strength test:
Loctite Ultra Gel Control Super Glue
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Loctite-Ultra-Gel-Control-4g-Super-Glue-1363589/202020461
I've had good success with good old Duco cement. I also found some of the Loctite mentioned above on close-out at Kroger of all places. It does work very well as expected.
Tony
Tony
I had tried a couple epoxies, ok but popped off. Tried CA popped off also. Medium, have not tried the gel yet. Let me qualify all this was done with no surface prep. For this project I am just needing to glue sections of printed tube together and glue them to the blue tube air frame that will be inside.
I use either Plastic Bonder Epoxy or CA Glue and a Bonding agent.
Plastic Bonder Epoxies such as gorilla brand fuse the plastic parts after melting the surface.
Plastic Bonder Epoxies such as gorilla brand fuse the plastic parts after melting the surface.
Never seen the Plastic Bonders, is there a special one for PLA.
Look at Lowes in the Epoxy Isle.
Thanks.
Winston
Lorenzo von Matterhorn
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NOT the excellent YouTube test I can't find, but he has the same results:
LOCALLY SOURCED: PLA ADHESIVE
7 Feb 2018
https://hackaday.com/2018/02/07/locally-sourced-pla-adhesive/
After some more research I found people suggesting Weld-On #16, an acrylic adhesive that will actually melt PLA. A little of this applied to the parts, they said, and you can solvent weld PLA just like acetone on ABS. Sure enough, the stuff works great and I’ve used it to put together nearly everything I’ve printed in PLA over the last few years. Only problem is, this stuff is a bit nasty, takes 24 hours to fully cure, and nobody has it locally.
[snip]
When tested under load, the Loctite Super Glue Gel survived past the breaking point of my test pieces just like Weld-On #16. I’ll admit I was very surprised by this, as I had assumed none of the glues would have been as strong as the solvent welded pieces.
[snip]
LOCTITE PLASTICS BONDING SYSTEM: NOT FOR PLA
This one is rather interesting, as it is specially formulated for hard to glue plastics and comes in two parts. You first use the “Activator” on the plastic, wait a minute for it to dry, and then apply the glue and clamp the pieces. This seemed a little gimicky to me when I saw it in the store, but figured it was worth a try.
The “Activator” goes on with a felt-tip applicator, and judging by the smell and way it evaporated off the pieces, I’m fairly sure it’s largely isopropyl alcohol. The glue itself is a relatively thick gel and has a working time of about 30 seconds. I was able to reposition the pieces without trouble.
Performance in the load test was the poorest out of all the glues, the bond broke at only 50 lb. To be fair there might be other types of plastic that this product works well on, but PLA is certainly not one of them.
[snip]
Overall, I still think that Weld-On #16 is the best PLA adhesive I’ve personally used. The long work time combined with the high strength bond is simply an ideal combination. Online-only availability, long cure time, and the fact it smells like a chemical factory are bummers to be sure, but not deal-breakers if you want to make absolutely sure your project isn’t going to fail on account of the adhesive used.
That being said, the performance of the Loctite Super Glue Gel really surprised me. Truth be told, I feel a little foolish having used this glue for so long in other applications and only now trying to use it on printed parts. There’s probably a lesson to be learned there about getting stuck in your ways. The work time is a bit short, but otherwise it’s an extremely close alternative to Weld-On #16; close enough that I’ll be using it for most of my PLA gluing from here on out.
I am not using Locktite - mine is Gorilla Plastic Bonder. It works with PLA regardless of what the packaging says.
Winston
Lorenzo von Matterhorn
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Please provide a link to where I can find it.
My mistake. It is not Gorilla, it is JB Weld.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/JB-Weld-Plastic-Bonder-Brown-Epoxy-Adhesive/1000820860
https://www.jbweld.com/product/plasticweld-syringe
https://www.lowes.com/pd/JB-Weld-Plastic-Bonder-Brown-Epoxy-Adhesive/1000820860
https://www.jbweld.com/product/plasticweld-syringe
DeepOvertone
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This stuff is a real deal solvent weld glue for PLA. Works great. Not sure how well it’ll glue to the blue tube though.
i have been gluing PLA scraps together and it seems like our standard epoxies hold real strong (even without scuffing/roughing) if the glue is able to fillet around the entire surfice. I suspect this is because it prevents leverage from destroying the joint, but am no expert
