I’m back with yet another question. Please forgive my very act of posting it, as I have found a number of threads discussing this topic. But, I can’t find any directly relevant threads that have been posted within the last year. I also admit some reluctance in posting this question as, in the previous threads a number of people have mocked the OP and suggested that they should find a new hobby such as “doing nothing.” But, despite all this, I will post it anyway.
Due to a number of factors including very serious medical conditions suffered by both my wife and I, the onset of cold weather causing the furnace to run very frequently and the windows to remain closed, I am looking for suggestions of a truly non-toxic cement/glue to use.
I am afraid there won´t be a truly non-toxic cement for gluing styrene. All of them need to be solvent-based to be effective and all of them are recommended to be used in well-vented areas only.
Using CA is no solution, either.
The only feasible recommendation I see is to stay away from plastic kits and go for wood or cast plaster kits, such as offered from DowntownDeco.
I agree that all the plastic weld cements would off-gass for a little while, they wouldn’t post a danger to a furnace unless you poured the whole bottle out right next to it and that would still be a remote possibily as we are talking about a pretty small quantity. This would be true of pretty much all the adhesives we use.
Now as to direct inhaltion, that can be helped by keeping a fan going by the work area, but it won’t eliminate the problem. CA (superglues) would fall into this catagory. Epoxy is probably the least toxic and not vollatile in uncured form but is a bit smelly untill cured and works pretty well with plastics.
You could try Aleene’s Tacky glue. It’s water based and is pretty grabby. I have never glued a plastic building together with it, but anything I have glued with it has stayed stuck. You could try it on a small kit. You would probably have to clamp things well and leave them untill the glue is fully dry. There are faster setting versions of Aleenes’ Tacky glue you could try.
Thank you for your responses. Not only your your quick responses but, also the fact that it was done in a respectful manner. While I had hoped for a “magic panacea” in the form of a bonding agent that would be truly non-toxic, I appreciate your thoughtful consideration of my question. I think that the best bet for my health and more importantly that of my wife, I will use non-plastic kits where at all possible. And, when it is unavoidable, I will give Aleene’s Tacky glue a try.
The only plastic model cement I know of that’s non-toxic is Testor’s model cement in the blue tube. I don’t use it anymore myself because it takes a while to set. But as far as I know it doesn’t have any fumes that would be harmful to you. I use the Testor;s cement in the red tube and I’m less than three feet from an electric heater. Haven’t had a mishap yet.
Aleenes tacky could work. Can be found at any AC Moores or Michaels or JoAnn Fabric and crafts. They may also have other non toxic plastics glues that we as modelers have overlooked. ASk there.
There is also something called “gorilla glue” that is supposed to bond very well. I can’t lay my hands on it right now, but I think that it is supposed to about glue anything to anything together. It is like a very strong white glue only it is yellow. I could be wrong maybe only for wood.
I know once you glue wood together with the gorilla glue the wood will break apart before the glue joint will if you try to pull them apart.
CA is perfectly fine. CA (Super glue) is what some doctors use on cut skin to hold it together instead of threaded stiches (which can leave scars)
Testors and various other manufacturers make a non-toxic “green glue” which is based off a citrus compound. It is still a solvent, but not nearly as strong as MEK (Testors). It comes in both brush and bottle form.
The bad thing about Gorilla glue is that it foams up and expands as it dries. Anything you put together with it must be well clamped until the glue is dry. Then you have the task of removing the excess that bubbled out.
I know for many folks model railroading is a seasonal “cold weather” hobby, but in my case I tend to do a lot of my model train work in the summer. Where I live it can be very cold for about half the year, so I try to finish up projects that need spray painting or a lot of gluing (like structure kits, freight cars, etc.) in the summer months when I can have the windows open or can work outside or in the garage. In the winter if I do any projects, it’s generally things like scenery work, wiring, tracklaying etc. that don’t require the windows to be open. Maybe setting up a schedule something like that would help?? [C):-)]
I use white glue because it dries clear and I can neatly shave the excess off after it dries which is fairly quick. Only trouble is you can’t apply a lot of pressure to the part or it will break off, but I’ve learned to handle those areas carefully. I’ve glued heavy weights to the inside of a boiler or freight car with white glue and they dry pretty darn solid, even suspended upside-down in a steam dome. Also if you want to remove or re-position a part just pop it off, dab the surfaces clean with a wet q-tip and start over.
since the medical condition is the reason this question was asked, I am assuming it is an inhalation issue. If that is the case, how about using a spray booth that vents to the outside. This can take all of the fumes away and provide you with a nicely lit work area at the same time. another option is the Testors bottles that have the metal applicator tip built into them. These alow for very minute amounts of glue to be dispensed which will cut down drasticaly on the fume issue.
Which Testor’s cement contains MEK? The type I use (red tube) contains oil of mustard (CH2CHCH2NCS) (Allyl isothiocyanate) and toluene (C6H5CH3) (the stuff they use to make TNT).
I would like to thank everyone for taking the time to answer my question, and the kind manner in which everyone approached it. It might sound silly, but it makes me feel good and helps to get through tough times knowing that there are perfect strangers in the world who will take the time to help others out.
I will have to read over all of your suggestions and discuss the best approach to be taken with my wife.