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THE BEST METAL ADHESIVE??
- Thread starter riversidedan
- Start date
- Joined
- Jan 4, 2021
- Messages
- 1,858
I've used this adhesive to attach Aluminum channel "guides" to several Acrylic covers for my Mini Mill:
I don't toss them around, but I'm not particularly gentle with them either. the lowest channel is 6-1/4" long and the bond is only 2" x 3/8", so there is a lot of opportunity for breaking the bond. I did scuff the glossy surface of the Acrylic sheets in the area of the bond, and cleaned with Acetone. For the use you described I would think that the bond would be acceptable.
I've also used the same adhesive to attach Neodymium magnets to Aluminum & Polycarbonate and Alnico to Aluminum: none of the magnets have come loose yet.
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2016
- Messages
- 965
I'm not surprised that no one mentioned SHOE-GOO . It is my adhesive of choice for nearly everything. The only thing it will not stick to is Polypropylene (PP). That's the greasy feeling plastic that most totes are made from.
Most cabinets that you would buy at the 'big box' stores are glued with something like it. It sticks well and after full cure (about 48 hours at room temperature or better). You won't be able to pull it apart, but it must be cut. Great for any metal, wood, most plastics, glass, any paper product, and about anything else there is. It may dissolve some foam products. A $5 tube goes a long way and opened shelf life in a capped tube is months at least. Can be sped up with a heat gun or slowed down with cooling. Cured product is about as hard as tire rubber. Other names are 'hardware goop' and similar.
Before you bad mouth me, TRY IT!
Aaron
Most cabinets that you would buy at the 'big box' stores are glued with something like it. It sticks well and after full cure (about 48 hours at room temperature or better). You won't be able to pull it apart, but it must be cut. Great for any metal, wood, most plastics, glass, any paper product, and about anything else there is. It may dissolve some foam products. A $5 tube goes a long way and opened shelf life in a capped tube is months at least. Can be sped up with a heat gun or slowed down with cooling. Cured product is about as hard as tire rubber. Other names are 'hardware goop' and similar.
Before you bad mouth me, TRY IT!
Aaron
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2015
- Messages
- 9,640
For six years I worked for a company for which one line of products was epoxy composites. Epoxy is like concrete in that it continues to cure long after it reaches a solid state. As a result, its mechanical properties continue to improve with time.
In the research that I was involved in, one realization that I made is that epoxy is only about 10% cured when it is deemed hard. Curing actually occurs at a rate which is exponentially decreasing and an epoxy which sets in a few hours will take years to achieve a 99% cure. Cure rates are greatly accelerated by heating with a doubling for every 10ºC rise in temperature. LocTite makes a single component heat setting epoxy which is useful when you want the combination of long setup time but rapid cure. The glass transition point or temperature where the epoxy becomes plastic also rises with an increase in cure temperature. This can be achieved by slowly increasing the temperature following the initial set of the epoxy. One consideration when using heat to accelerate the cure time is that epoxy may have a different thermal expansion to the materials being bonded which may have an adverse effect on the on the bond to the substrate. When I use epoxy, I will set a small sample of the mixed epoxy aside and subject it to the same conditions as the rest. The chemical reaction involved in curing is exothermic so large volumes will generate higher internal temperatures. We purposely cooled the product until the epoxy had set and then raised the ambient temperature to reach a more complete cure.
Epoxies are typically made by combining an epoxide resin with an amine hardener. Final mechanical properties are determined by the actual chemistry of the two components. Choosing the right components can result in epoxies ranging from rubbery to glass hard although these options aren't usually available to the casual user. The point being that all epoxies aren't equal. There are litterally thousands of possible formulations. Finding one which has the best characteristics for your particular needs can be a bit of a challenge, particularly since there aren't many options to choose from for the casual user. If you find one that works for you, stick with it (no pun intended). JB Weld makes a quick setting clear epoxy branded ClearWeld in two 4 oz. containers rather than the 1/2. oz. squeeze tubes or twin syringe pack. I use a product branded PowerPoxy for a longer pot life epoxy. Although the company is no longer in business, I recently purchased the epoxy on eBay.
In the research that I was involved in, one realization that I made is that epoxy is only about 10% cured when it is deemed hard. Curing actually occurs at a rate which is exponentially decreasing and an epoxy which sets in a few hours will take years to achieve a 99% cure. Cure rates are greatly accelerated by heating with a doubling for every 10ºC rise in temperature. LocTite makes a single component heat setting epoxy which is useful when you want the combination of long setup time but rapid cure. The glass transition point or temperature where the epoxy becomes plastic also rises with an increase in cure temperature. This can be achieved by slowly increasing the temperature following the initial set of the epoxy. One consideration when using heat to accelerate the cure time is that epoxy may have a different thermal expansion to the materials being bonded which may have an adverse effect on the on the bond to the substrate. When I use epoxy, I will set a small sample of the mixed epoxy aside and subject it to the same conditions as the rest. The chemical reaction involved in curing is exothermic so large volumes will generate higher internal temperatures. We purposely cooled the product until the epoxy had set and then raised the ambient temperature to reach a more complete cure.
Epoxies are typically made by combining an epoxide resin with an amine hardener. Final mechanical properties are determined by the actual chemistry of the two components. Choosing the right components can result in epoxies ranging from rubbery to glass hard although these options aren't usually available to the casual user. The point being that all epoxies aren't equal. There are litterally thousands of possible formulations. Finding one which has the best characteristics for your particular needs can be a bit of a challenge, particularly since there aren't many options to choose from for the casual user. If you find one that works for you, stick with it (no pun intended). JB Weld makes a quick setting clear epoxy branded ClearWeld in two 4 oz. containers rather than the 1/2. oz. squeeze tubes or twin syringe pack. I use a product branded PowerPoxy for a longer pot life epoxy. Although the company is no longer in business, I recently purchased the epoxy on eBay.
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2016
- Messages
- 3,289
I am surprised no one mentioned 3M VHB (Very High Bond) tape. The tape comes in a multitude of thicknesses, widths and adhesive flavors. The entire outside of my enclosed trailer is manufactured with 3M VHB.
- Joined
- Jan 4, 2021
- Messages
- 1,858
Not specifically, but by reference: Earlier Post with Link to Metal Adhesives Guide
I’ve used VHB tape to attach fabric bellows to Aluminum & Galvanized Steel. I also re-attached a laptop bezel with it (same method used for original assembly). The main disadvantage of using VHB tape is that it can be a mess unless you buy the correct gun to work with the specific roll of tape (regular vs. reverse wound, width & core diameter).
I’ve used VHB tape to attach fabric bellows to Aluminum & Galvanized Steel. I also re-attached a laptop bezel with it (same method used for original assembly). The main disadvantage of using VHB tape is that it can be a mess unless you buy the correct gun to work with the specific roll of tape (regular vs. reverse wound, width & core diameter).
Last edited:
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2020
- Messages
- 193
Yes.
When using an epoxy to bond to the outer circumference of a metal cylinder, it's better to cure the epoxy at or above the maxiumum temperature that the part will encounter during its lifetime. That way, the greater thermal expansion rate of the epoxy is always causing the epoxy to clamp to the cylinder, as opposed to expand away from the cylinder and eventually break the bond.
Conversely, when using an epoxy to bond to the inner circumference of a metal cylinder, it's better to cure the epoxy at a temperature below the minimum temperature that the part will encounter during its lifetime.
Some epoxies cannot be cured at low temperature; they become glassy and cure reaction practically stops.
Some epoxies can't be cured at high temperature because they cure too fast at high temperature. The epoxy hardens before the part has reached the desired cure temperature, or heat from the cure reaction causes the the epoxy to become too hot.
There is no one best epoxy for metal, for every application..
