"Hot glue gun vs. 2 part epoxy" Topic

I've never owned the first and only once used the second.

In terms of application, what's the difference?

Here's what I think I know:
HGG's best use is for tree flock to plastic trees. What about grass on terrain pieces? Is it better than pva for that purpose? I really like how pva dries hard and clear.
2PE's best use is metal to metal bonds, like cav figures to horses, or horses to steel washers. 2PE is for a permanent bond and is not brittle like the Super glue families.

Is this basically right?

I use Got Glue for Metal to Metal, actually I use it for just about everything. It is strong enough to handle almost any task yet it usually (always so far) gives way before any of my figures do.

You have to get finesse in using it though, it does have some "thickness" so you can't goop in too much, but you need enough to get a strong bond.

Finally – it hardens very quickly, I love using it for sticking figures onto nails for painting, the instant I'm done I can start painting. When I'm done painting the figs come right off the nails without hassle.

Hot glue is good for pourous surfaces . It is thick and dries very fast . Neatness is not a strong point .
Epoxy is a very strong bond it is not generally neat . Mix and apply it dries slowly ( fast is 5 mins) .
For terrain flock and such you are best with white glue ( pva)

The best use I have found for my hot glue gun is making spiders webs. My experience with it is small (Christmass present) but wood and paper stuff it has done well and spiders webs it has really made some good stuff.

x42

Hot glue is also useful for temporary bonding (e.g. mounting figs on nails for painting) and I sometimes use it for basing (esp if I think I might rebase) and large terrain. It is rubbery when it sets and can be peeled off most surfaces. It is easy to use, quick and cheap. One of my favourite tools. Not good for riders to horses though.

Epoxy has a much stronger permanent bond, I also use it for basing and terrain when a stronger bond is required and I know it is permanent. Sometimes for metal to metal, but it can be messy so I prefer pinning and supergluing my fingers together ;)

PVA is best for flock and ground cover, can also be used for basing.

For tree foliage, I have used Aleene's tacky glue, which is a lot like PVA but thicker and stickier, so the foliage sticks better to the armatures while drying. I also use it for basing. It's good stuff.

Dave

Argh – bad spelling, should be "I use Hot Glue for Metal to Metal"

And yes, the stuff is awesome for making a spider web like mess – just cut it away though.

Hot glue is melted plastic and works great for surfaces that are very hard for other glues to bond with, especially slippery plastics. For example plastic aquarium plants. Although it is messy and imprecise, it does also fill gaps. Another advantage is it dries very quickly, so it's great for sticking terrain pieces together.

I've used it for basing (small cast bases of metal, plastic or resin on top of plastic slot bases), but over time the bond degrades and perhaps 10% come loose every year.

You wouldn't use hot glue for flock or static grass -- the idea is laughable and as soon as you try a hot glue gun you'll see why. It is good for sticking some kinds of foliage onto tree armatures, although you typically have to clean up fine strands of glue afterwards.

Two part epoxy is the strongest glue you can find, and ideal for metal to metal, or permanent metal to plastic. I use it whenever possible. It fills gaps great. It is a little messy but once you get used to it, not as bad as you at first think. It does *not* replace pinning; no glue does that.

Superglue is brittle and the best I can say for it is I still have some superglued model parts that haven't come apart yet. Its primary attribute is it bonds quickly (except that sometimes it doesn't bond at all and you start over); its secondary attribute is it is pretty neat because less is more. I understand people use it for static grass and flock sometimes; I would never bother since PVA works so well.

PVA (white glue or yellow carpenter's glue) is the workhorse glue. It fills gaps somewhat. You can't really use it to put models together but it is good for everything else. If you use it to base troops, it usually holds well enough, but you can still pop them off and rebase later if you ever need to. PVA (or thinned PVA) is good for flock and ground cover and similar, and also for sealing terrain. I haven't used it to stick foliage onto trees although I have read tutorials where people have done that; I have soaked clump foliage in thinned PVA; this turns it rock hard and keeps it from crumbling off in use.