Gluing Plano venetian blinds to plastic passenger car windows

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

I’m looking for some advice about gluing stainless steel Plano venetian blinds
onto the plastic window materials in both Kato business cars and Rivarossi passenger cars. Type of glue? Technique? Thanks, FSR

2

There are several options for this.

  1. light coat of white glue.
  2. Micro-scale or Micro-Mark “Crystal Clear” window maker/clear part adhiesive
  3. Testors Cement for Clear Parts.

Any one should yield the desired results if used sparingly.

3

Be sure to put them on the inside. …OK some are going to laugh at this… but look closely at the BLI CZ cars. The blinds are on the outside.

4

Thanks for the quick response. I originally attempted gluing with Micro Kristal Klear with negative results - so - I’m doing something wrong, obviously! Any thoughts?

I observed the outside venetian blind decals on the BLI cars…FSR

5

Monte,

Exactly, what happened with the Kristal Klear? Did the window get smeared or did the blinds not stick?

6

Antonio FP45: Both! I have since bought a bottle of alcohol (non drinkable type) to wash SS blinds before applying glue. Window did get smeared but not damaged…I was able to clean off Kristal Klear…Monte

7

The alcohol will probably help the situation. Also alcohol the window to clean any mold release residue off them. And it should work this time.

James

8

Thanks all for the assistance. If I don’t succeed with all of your advice, I had better get out of the hobby…Monte

9

You may want to try using the Handibond Oderless. It doesn’t cloud (or fog) plastics. I am going to try using it tonight and put it to the test.

10

You may want to try using the Handibond Oderless. It doesn’t cloud (or fog) plastics. I am going to try using it tonight and put it to the test.

Smitty: Let me know how it works - good thought…Monte

11

Handibond at least claims that it doesn’t cloud. I am going to use it tonight to re-attach some etched metal grills to a brass business car. I am also going to use it to fix the windows to some brass car sides. They are pretty reputable, and I use their other CA products for various tasks with excellent results.

Edit: BTW, I got some of the Plano blinds for my business car. They look great!

12

Well, I tried the Handibond Oderless, and am pretty impressed. It has different preperties than their regular CA, though. It is really thick, and is acts like the Testors tube cement (stringy). It also takes a little longer to cure than regular CA. BUT, I tried it on some glazing that I have not installed on a Walther’s diner yet, and it did not fog the plastic. It also bonded the etched metal grills on the skirting of my business car really well. That is a huge plus for what I need to do. It does run about $7 a bottle, but seems well worth it.

13

Smitty: Good news! Now, all I have to do is locate a Handibond dealer in the San Francisco Bay area. So far, Bob Smith’s CA adhesives are prevalent in this area…Monte

14

Just an update: I used the Handibond Oderless to not only affix the window material (Evergreen clear styrene) to my business car, but I also used it to affix the venetian blinds to the window material. There was no fogging of the window material or the blinds. The stuff is great. It doesn’t set very fast, so you have time for adjustment. I would again suggest being careful as this CA is “stringy”. Just smear a little on the window material above where it is visible (I use small application brushes that are made for this purpose) and carefully apply the blinds. Obviously you want to be careful not to get any of the CA on the visible portion of the glazing.

15

Thanks again, Smitty. I have been unable to find Handibond in the Northern California area that I reside; however, Bob Smith makes a similar (probably the same stuff) orderless CA which I can pickup at my local ‘Just Trains’ hobby shop! I’ll test first…Monte

16

I did find that some fogging is possible. If you get any oil from your skin on any surface that you are gluing to, the oderless will fog. I just learned to handle the window material with gloves (after washing the material with mild dish detergent) and you won’t have any problems. This goes for the blinds themselves as well. The blinds will get a bit of fogging if you get any skin oil on them. Otherwise, it is great stuff.