Superglue and Baking soda
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I’ve been wanting to try that out for a while. Haven’t had a suitable occasion yet.
mjennings
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I find it worrying that it has "food and drink" and "cooking school" in the address.
It's essentially a similar thing to microballons and other fillers in epoxy. Not sure how much I would trust some of the show fixes over time but for quick short term fix like pass the good enough test. For the wood fix my thought was that's what wood glue is for!
I'm not so sure about that. My (admittedly vague) understanding is that the baking soda reacts with the CA in some way and gets extremely hard. But I don't know the exact chemistry. By contrast, I don't think any of the various epoxy fillers actually react with the epoxy; they just add bulk and/or some sort of mechanical matrix.
mjennings
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Yes microballons etc don't react. I was unaware of the chemical reaction between the CA and Baking Soda.
It's been done in the past as a way to make up for poor fitting joints in older balsa model airplane kits that used die-cut (die-crunch) parts.
The biggest issue with it is that it is a nightmare to sand/smooth, particularly in those instances where the adjacent surface is soft (as balsa would be).
The biggest issue with it is that it is a nightmare to sand/smooth, particularly in those instances where the adjacent surface is soft (as balsa would be).
I find that to be a problem with any glue, but definitely even worse with CA.
This seems like it is better suited to use in non-balsa contexts.
Baking soda is a CA accelerator, it cures quickly and can be used to build bulk.
Look for YouTube videos from Adam Savage on the subject.
Look for YouTube videos from Adam Savage on the subject.
Initiator001
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How 'Old School'. 
In the mid-late 1970s when I was building and flying (crashing) R/C aircraft I used Hot Stuff CA and baking soda when building planes.
As others have mentioned the baking soda acts as an accelerator for the CA (This was before 'Zip Kicker' and the like). I think it helped fill gaps between parts also.
In the mid-late 1970s when I was building and flying (crashing) R/C aircraft I used Hot Stuff CA and baking soda when building planes.
As others have mentioned the baking soda acts as an accelerator for the CA (This was before 'Zip Kicker' and the like). I think it helped fill gaps between parts also.
I have used it and the result seems much stronger than CA by itself. I wouldn't want to have to sand it! As I understand it, the science behind it is similar to adding gravel to cement to make concrete.
It's a little hard to control, so I would only use it in hidden areas where I don't have to care about looks. I haven't had occasion to use it in rocketry, only fixing kids toys made of hard-to-glue plastics.
It's a little hard to control, so I would only use it in hidden areas where I don't have to care about looks. I haven't had occasion to use it in rocketry, only fixing kids toys made of hard-to-glue plastics.
An example of making fillets with the combo at 23 sec mark ...
https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle...per-glue/vi-AA1tSbbA?ocid=socialshare#details
https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle...per-glue/vi-AA1tSbbA?ocid=socialshare#details
MClark
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I have used for fin fillets. Form baking soda to curve with popsicle sticks and wick in CA. Hard as concrete. Red spot putty over top to smooth and sand.
Yeah, as Bob noted, that's an old trick that goes back to the days of Satellite City's "Hot Stuff", which was the first CA sold into the hobby market as far as I know. I have had an open box of baking soda on my workbench for decades and still occasionally use it this way. I have one of those little bulb pipettes in the box, use of which makes it relatively easy to put a small amount of soda where you actually want it to be.
As David noted, it forms a really hard mass and is a bear to sand. But it does allow thin CA to fill a gap. It also makes the balsa structure stick to wax paper very well....
As David noted, it forms a really hard mass and is a bear to sand. But it does allow thin CA to fill a gap. It also makes the balsa structure stick to wax paper very well....
lr64
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I don't think it takes very much baking soda to set it off, in cases where a filler isn't needed. Also, it's been while, but I have the impression that some fine powders will set it off, too, if not as vigorously. In either case, make sure not to breathe the fumes. Very unpleasant.
BTW, I understand that Duco, Ambroid, etc. sand more easily than other glues.
BTW, I understand that Duco, Ambroid, etc. sand more easily than other glues.
Titan II
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Much to my dismay (and many others), Ambroid is long gone. I would love to have some for building some of my vintage models. To stay on topic, it did sand relatively well.
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lr64
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I haven't used it myself, but you might go to volareproducts.com and check out their "Am-Droid" glue.
Do you think Ambroid was superior to Duco, Sigment, Testors, Beacon 527, etc.? As I recall, Testors was pretty fast.
Titan II
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I do not know as I never bothered with the others. Ambroid was the go to glue for most aircraft modeling in the 50s and 60s.
BTW...thanks for the info on Am-Droid. I think I will pass due to the shipping (12.56 for a 5.00 bottle)
Fine balsa dust (from sanding) will also kick it off, but, as you say, not as violently as baking soda.
When I was building with cellulose cements, I mostly used Testors, because that was the easiest to get and it was less expensive than Ambroid. Duco was around the house as a general-purpose glue but I don't think I ever built an airplane with it. Cellulose cements did indeed sand more easily than CAs (or even white or yellow glues). But I'd better stop there lest this become yet another "glue thread"
lr64
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You need to justify the shipping charge by buying some of his other goodies. If you buy a tracker, you won't even notice it. ;-)
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Acetone is a pretty good super glue activator...
Tony
Tony
Also, another good similar technique is CA with Powdered Carbon which can come from ground pencil leads, charcoal, coal, etc. It's best to use with Thin Wicking Cyanoacrylates.
I've used both to fix the "Nut" or "Neck Bridge" on guitars that had an end of the Nut chipped off depending on the color of the Nut material. I've also used both to fill bad dings in painted guitar bodies that are going to get repainted anyway, or left unpainted but sanded smooth for guitars where the owner wants the "I got repaired and saved" with a "garage hardware" or "science project" look.
The Carbon Powder version by my experience sets up even harder than the Baking Soda version, but both are very capable for a rocket.
Hope that's of some use.
Adios - Paul
I've used both to fix the "Nut" or "Neck Bridge" on guitars that had an end of the Nut chipped off depending on the color of the Nut material. I've also used both to fill bad dings in painted guitar bodies that are going to get repainted anyway, or left unpainted but sanded smooth for guitars where the owner wants the "I got repaired and saved" with a "garage hardware" or "science project" look.
The Carbon Powder version by my experience sets up even harder than the Baking Soda version, but both are very capable for a rocket.
Hope that's of some use.
Adios - Paul
John Brohm
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It does indeed, and it makes an appearance in my shop from time to time for exactly the reason you say. When the product was discontinued, it caused a little panicked search for a reasonable substitute. I've used, and still use, Sig-ment; it's just that I like Ambroid better. Perhaps it's a nostalgia thing, I don't know.
Anyway, my search led me to 3Rivers Archery, and they carry a fletching glue that, to me, looks and smells (and works!) much like the old Ambroid.
https://www.3riversarchery.com/nitrocellulose-adhesive-fletching-glue.html
As for CA and a filler, I've not really found a combination that works well from a sandability point of view (for balsa). They all end up too hard, at least the ones I've tried. That said, CA+filler can work as a good gap filler for plastic models.
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I've used a glue called Fletchtite for gluing feathers and plastic vanes to aluminum arrow shafts. I wondered if it would work to glue rocket parts to plastic nose cones and transitions. I pulled my tube out and found that it was dried up so I didn't get to do that experiment.
lr64
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You might try reviving it with acetone. Unless your acetone has a significant amount of water in it.
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Oh yeah, Ambroid was great stuff. I actually built a few small rockets with it back in the day. It cured way faster than white glue.
Oh man, you’re taking me back! I remember both of those brands. They would advertise in RCModeler magazine. That used to be a heckuva publication. I would save my money to buy an issue and read it cover to cover…several times. And also send a bunch of random companies my SASEs to get a copy of their catalog. Oh the days before the internet. Sure has changed the purchasing process!Yeah, as Bob noted, that's an old trick that goes back to the days of Satellite City's "Hot Stuff", which was the first CA sold into the hobby market as far as I know. I have had an open box of baking soda on my workbench for decades and still occasionally use it this way. I have one of those little bulb pipettes in the box, use of which makes it relatively easy to put a small amount of soda where you actually want it to be.
As David noted, it forms a really hard mass and is a bear to sand. But it does allow thin CA to fill a gap. It also makes the balsa structure stick to wax paper very well....
All those AV bay bulkhead holes I drilled that I dont like are about to get FILLED!
Could use as spot filler on fiberglass too? hrmmm... paintable?
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Has anyone tried fabricating parts from CA and Baking Soda?
I mean where you take some playdough, make a mold, pour in the CA/BS mix, let it harden, remove the mold and use the part you have created?
I do not have a 3-D printer, so I am trying to figure out how to craft myself an Electronics Bay for an altimeter and a few other gizmos.
I mean where you take some playdough, make a mold, pour in the CA/BS mix, let it harden, remove the mold and use the part you have created?
I do not have a 3-D printer, so I am trying to figure out how to craft myself an Electronics Bay for an altimeter and a few other gizmos.
The mix hardens instantly, so can't be poured. You have to fill the mold with baking soda, then add CA. It works well for single sided molds, I've seen videos of casting gears and such this way.
For a two-part mold, it would be trickier. You have to get the baking soda to all parts of the mold, then get CA to all parts, too. It wicks in, so it might be possible, but probably not reliable.
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