I’ve been delighted with the no objectionable scent of Tenax 7R glue but… I’ve been very frustrated that almost nothing I’ve glued has stayed connected on styrene models. I’ve used Testors’/MKE solvents very successfully for years, but due to chemical sensitivities of both myself and my wife, I stopped using it…for now. Examples of models I’ve had no success with Tenax are: Atlas Code 83 track ties. (snapped off ends in shipment), Atlas water tower roof and tank to base, Globe News IHC, and others so even if the styrene varied in “make up” somehow the glue is not holding. The ties (although maybe the track is NOT styrene?) bent right off 24 hr.s later with no effort, the water tower roof and base NEVER held even after several attempts at regluing, etc. Any advice? It seems that many here use this glue with success but over several months and several kits, I’ve had no joy, even trying a second/different bottle of the 7R. I’m ready to give up on this cement/solvent and try to find another low scent brand or go back to gluing with Testors/MKE outdoors. Argh. Thanks.
Parts must be firmly clamped together before applying the Tenax 7R, because it seeps into the seams by capillary action and then melts or fuses the parts together. If you try applying the Tenax before the parts are touching, it will evaporate before you can get them together.
I never did have good luck with the Tenax. “Superglue stuck everything, Tenax to noting” frquently followed phrases best not repeated on these forums. I reccomend Ambrose Proweld, or Plastistruct, in that order. But I know nothing of chemical sensitivites, so these may not work for you. And the above don’t evaporate as fast as the Tenax, so if you have a seam you can’t paint on, you can coat the edges and quickly rush the joints together. I’ve done it.
Thanks. Gee, that make things a mite inconvenient when parts are irregularly shaped like on the water tower… I’ll re-read the label but didn’t recall seeing anything about the need to clamp lst. Do you happen to have any experience with other no scent glues that behave more like Testors/MKE? Thanks for the help Cacole. Flashwave, I just saw your additional post, thanks. Mainly I’m looking for something that doesn’t smell so strongly as Testors that it comletely stinks up the entire house and smell like…solvent. Does that help regarding recommending a specific brand to try. I think R7 isn’t going to fit my overall modeling needs… Thanks.
The above suggestions are correct - When gluing parts with Tenax, the parts need to fit well and be held in place while the glue is flowed into the seam. They don’t necessarily need to be clamped as it only takes 10 to 30 seconds for it to be set firmly enough to carry on.
As for the Atlas track ties, that’s a whole different type of plastic much like that slippery stuff handrails are made of … there’s very little if anything that will glue that stuff together !
Mark.
Yep, Tenax7R works great but you do have to hold the parts together and brush it into the joint and let capilary action work. I used to to build flat kit parts like the Eel River 60 PC&F box car and buildings. The stuff works great and welds stuff together. You can’t bush it on and then put parts together, and expect it to work well, it evaporates too quickly.
Faller “Expert” plastic(styrene) cement comes in a needle applicator bottle whcih makes it much easier to apply, it’s also a little thicker so you have more time for adjustments or apply it first then put the parts together. And you don’t need three hands.
Ambroid (not Ambrose) ProWeld is almost as fast as Tenax and in addition to styrene will also work for: Butyrate, ABS (Kato shells), Acrylic(Lucite & Plexiglass) and you get almost twice as much for the $. (Don’t forget to close the bottle when you’re done[:-^]).
I always have several different on hand including for plastics, ProWeld for quick joins, Plastruct & Faller Expert for more time and larger joins and Testors Liquid cement for large surfaces and even more adjustment time. Try to use paint brushes (reserved for glueing only), a fine(3/0) and a medium(1) brushes will do.
Ties are not made of styrene, so the “plastic welder” clear liquids won’t work well, or perhaps not at all,on them. Over the years I have used most brands of “plastic welder” (Tenax, Testors, Ambroid etc) and I never noticed any difference between them either in stickitivity or odor. I believe the active ingredient in every brand is MEK and/or methyl chloride.
The stuff is not a gap filler. The parts to be glued have to fit tightly, any air space between parts and the stuff doesn’t work. Properly speaking the “plastic welders” are not glue, they are solvents, and work by dissolving the styrene. The styrene hardens again after the solvent evaporates. They are not like Elmer’s or epoxy where the liquid glue hardens to make the bond, and you can fill small gaps with hardened glue. The “plastic welders” don’t harden, they evaporate until nothing is left.
The problem I have with the Tenax, and to a lesser extent with the other mentioned solvent cements, is that I don’t quite have enough hands to both hold the parts together and apply the cement at the same time. Clamping is helpful, but can’t be done with small parts. And the cement always wants to flow the wrong way on the applicator. As was already mentioned, the Tenax evaporates rapidly. In fact it seems to evaporate from the bottle once opened, no matter how tight the cover is.
But these things are not the reason for this post. Most of the solvent cement bottles have a warning stating that they be used with adequate ventilation. At least with the smelly cements you have an indication that there are fumes around that you might be breathing. I suggest a small table fan be used around the work area to keep some air moving. A window open a crack is even better.
The Testors unquestionably has tons more smell than the R7. I can literally sniff (not a brilliant thing but necessary ONCE) the R7 bottle and not even smell anything. The Testors woke my wife up three rooms away around a circuitous route through the house and gave us both headaches. Even outdoors, I have to glue and run. I’ve build many plastic buildings. The only part of the hobby I’ve had decent amount of experience with (other than operations on other’s layouts). I do all of the steps you guys have mentioned above and have no trouble ever with the testors. I’ll try some other brands. Tried Ambrose today and that was better but still not as strong a join. It came apart fairly easily after 10 min. setting. The “evil” Testors works instantly every time. I guess I’ll have to keep trying other brands and maybe rig up a blower/sucker table if I go back to Testors/MKE. Oh, by the way, the Ambrose also smells minimally compared wtih Testors. Most sensitivities are somewhat subjective, but in this case I would think that the very strong solvent smell of Testors would be relatively evident to anyone? Thanks for the tips and recommendations guys. Modelmaker51, I’ll give Faller’s a try next. Thanks.
Whoops. That’s what I meant. On the lid, Amroid and Plastistruct come with bruhes in the lids. If you use those, be sure to wipe the brush before sticking in the bottle after use or you get plastic in the bottle. I’ve also found that wiping the edge of the brush on the rim of the bottle before you apply to the model removes some of the extra solvent (right term?) that collects plastic flakes and leaves only what goes on the model.
I’ve not found needle applicators to be my thing, I prefer the brushes. Can’t get enough on the seams, though there;s a good chance I’m ding it wrong.
I too use Faller Expert cement for most of my modeling needs…also I like to us the hobby shop brand glue better known as Bob Smith Industries glue for anything else such as plastic to metal or metal to wood…for the rare wood kits that I do find I use Titebond 2 wood glue.
Some glues cure hard and brittle. I have used a craft jewelry glue called"E 6000" that takes some time to cure but does not cure brittle and is good at weathering. Comes in a tube and can be found at Hobby Lobby or fabric stores. rio bill
I’ve used both Tenax and ProWeld. I prefer the latter, since you get more of it for the same price. The one thing that bugs me about Tenax…is that there’s no brush in the bottle. Solution? Use one from an empty ProWeld container. The screw-top lids are the same size; once the brush “tube” is cut down, it works just fine 
I’ve not had any problems using Tenax on those materials which it is meant for. Works every time. For an applicator, I use those microbrushes that are like little fuzzies on the end of a plastic stick. I beleive the ones I have are the small and micro sizes, which get used depending on the situation and how much room there is to get at the joint. The biggest danger with Tenax is that you have your finger too close to the joint and some will seep between your finger and the surface via capillary action. This will in turn melt some of the material to your finger, which WILL leave a mark when you pull away. Obviously - try not to do this.
–Randy
Hi Capt. Grimek,
My wife is in the same boat as you and your wife when it comes to sensentivity to chemicals and allergies so I am very understanding of your problems. It is a real curse.
I don’t have a comment on your question but I picked up a glue yesterday at Lowes that you may want to try or use on other projects… It’s made by Loctite and is called "NO MESS Adhesive.It is easy clean up and is solvent free. It is low odor, non toxic and cleans up with water. It is a gel type adhesive. I used it for the first time last night and was very pleased. Being a gel may limit where you can use it. I was gluing small parts that couldn’t be clamped and it started setting fast enough that I could let go of the parts in short order.
Good rring.
Bob