"What's the best glue to use on the plastic figures?" Topic

What is the llbest glue to use on the plastic figures?
I have not been using plastic until now.

Plastic glue (cement) is what you want.

Not superglue.
Plastic cement melts the plastic, thus bonding when it sets.

Which one for resin figures? Anyone know?

I use superglue (Krazy Glue brand) on everything.

Superglue doesn't work well on plastics and they will fall apart in time.

For resin figures superglue works very well as they are porous and the superglue grips great.

Different plastics require different glues… Plastic cement only works for hard plastics; it won't do anything on soft plastics, as they are a different type, chemically. Sorry, can't be more specific, but you really should clarify which type of plastic, for more accurate responses. Cheers!

PS: for resin figures, I use a 2-part epoxy, usually the 5-minute type, not longer, as the setup time is an issue. I have used various brands, and they all seem to work about the same.

This is the best that I have ever used:

I have been using it on all of my Perry Miniatures plastics.

Polystyrene cement is definitely best for hard plastic figures. It will give a very strong bond and doesn't set immediately so you can reposition the parts you are gluing to make sure you are happy with the pose.
Also it won't glue your fingers together (or to the figure).

Plastruct Plastic-weld link

absolutely the best cement for model styrene

Tamiya, the one with the brush applicator.
Cheapest in my area.
BTW any Tamiya sales rep. out there, get your finger out…

I have used Revell Contacta PROFESSIONAL on all my Warlord Zulu Regiments.

I use Loctite super glue on everything… plastics, metals, resins, combo-models. About the only thing it hasn't worked on is gluing large soft plastic figures like Armies In Plastic stuff.

How about for Reaper Bones?

mek

You can even use a combination of plastic cement from the tube (or the more viscous version), and the liquid, brush-on type together. The later as an "accelerant" to the first. Liquid, plastic cement can also be brushed onto areas where you might have some sanding/cutting burrs you want to eliminate/dissolve from off a plastic figure's surface (go lightly though).

My local hobby shop said the the model master glue was great to use.

Model Master is very good, but I'm with BignickR. Plastic Weld is best. The brush on applicator is great.

Recently though I ran out of Plastic weld so I just refilled the bottle with MEK (the main ingredient in Plastic Weld). Plain MEK is a bit more volotile so it evaporates quick, but it's far cheaper when purchased from the hardware store and works well. I'll probalbly just keep using it.

Using the right kind of glue helps prevent a lot of tears down the line. I went through the "superglue is awesome" phase, glued several kits and figures with it and they fell apart later.

I then switched to Revell Contacta, very useful for gluing large parts together, but recently I found that Tamiya's extra thin cement applied with a brush works extremely well with most plastics, including Rubicon's that appears to be resistant against Contacta.

The advantage of the cement is that you can use it to glue some elements after they have been put together by simple capillarity, it doesn't leave any traces on the plastic and can simply be painted over.

I have never had the falling apart problem with super glued figures. Just been lucky I guess. I have a high sensitivity to the smell of most plastic glues (and many super glues too). Loctite has served me well both with little to no odor and reliable hold on my figures.

One other positive for MEK-based glues like Plastic Weld. It works on a variety of plastics including ABS and Polystyrene (though not polyurethane).

Tamiya makes a Lemonene variant that has an "orange peel" smell that is designed for people who have trouble with the smells of glues.

My personal preference is for Testors liquid cement, with the brush applicator in the top. I have used it on plastic models and minis for more than 40 years now, and it hasn't failed me yet.

Here is another "Old Modeler" trick for filling seams on plastic models (and it also works on metal minis too) that is easy to do.

Take a small glass baby-food jar (or similar glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Fill it full of chopped-up plastic sprue bits. Now pour over liquid plastic cement (like Testors) and put the lid back on tight. Let set for a couple days. By stirring with a wooden toothpick of swizel stick, and adding more cement, you will eventually melt it all into a useable spreadable mixture. By using dental tools, toothpicks, sculpting tools, etc, you can use it to fill gaps between arms and torsos, legs, etc.

Easy to use and, in a pinch, a small dab will work in place of cement in an emergency.

I have some 3d printed bases, and I want to put hard plastic figures on them. I know plastic cement would be best for plastic figures, but am guessing won't work for the bases. I don't know specifically what they are, son printed them for me.

andy

My fav has been the Same Same Stuff from Micro-Mark. I find it less, destructive?, than Plastrut's stuff.

Strange how each of us has the most success with a different brand.